by our College Data Analytics TeamAre students coming back to NWC after their first year? Are NWC students graduating in a timely manner? What happens to the students who don't graduate? Get all your questions answered here.
Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.
With 79% students making it past their freshmen year, NWC has freshmen retention rates above the national average.
Nationwide, the average first to second year retention rate is 70.57%.
When looking at just colleges and universities in Iowa, the average is 68.94%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| NWC | 79% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Iowa | 68.94% |
There were approximately 245 students in the class of 2015. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?
57% of the cohort completed their degree in four years, 66% in six years, and 66% in eight years.
Any student who completes their bachelor's degree within six years is considered to have graduated on time, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. This makes the offical NWC graduation rate 66%.
How long does it take to get a bachelor's degree at NWC? The standard length of time for most students is 4.10 years.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 209 | 56% |
| Six Years | 245 | 66% |
| Eight Years | 1 | 0% |
| Did Not Complete | 128 | 34% |
Approximately 128 students or 34% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 128 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
116 transferred to another institution.
NWC lost contact with the remaining 9 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 116 | 90.6% |
| Dropped Out | 9 | 7.0% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| Asian | 50% |
| Black / African-American | 20% |
| Hispanic | 47% |
| International | 78% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 50% |
| Unknown | 63% |
| White | 72% |
Some schools have mainly first-time, full-time students, while others cater to part-time students, transfer students, or adult learners. For a variety of reasons first-time, full-time students under the age of 25 are usually more likely to graduate in four years.
Traditional Students:
First-time, full-time students under the age of 25.
Non-Traditional Students:
Any student that is not first-time, full-time, and under the age of 25.
The majority of students at NWC are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.
Comparing the graduation rates of specific cohorts shown below will be more revealing than the overall statistics shared above.
First-time / full-time students at Northwestern College represent 87% of the students in the class of 2015, and 90.61% of NWC bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 57%, first-time students in the NWC class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the NWC graduation rate was 68%, and by the eight year mark, 68% of the cohort had completed their degree.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes full-time is 37.92% after four years, 46.43% after six years, and 47.82% after eight years.
| First-Time / Full-Time Completions | NWC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 57% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 68% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 68% | 47.82% |
104 first-time / full-time students or 32% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
96 transferred to another institution.
NWC lost contact with the remaining 5 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 96 | 92.31% |
| Dropped Out | 5 | 4.81% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on NWC first-time, part-time students.
46 NWC students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 12.30% of the students in the class of 2015.
Non first-time students could include transfer students or adults who have returned to school after an absense.
With a six year graduation rate of 48%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate lower than the national average for students in this category.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 48%.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for non first-time undergraduates attending classes full-time is: 49.57% after four years, 53.83% after six years, and 55.07% after eight years.
| Returning / Full-Time Completions | NWC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 48% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 48% | 55.07% |
24 non first-time / part-time students or 52% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
20 transferred to another institution.
NWC lost contact with the remaining 4 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 20 | 83.33% |
| Dropped Out | 4 | 16.67% |
1 NWC students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 0.27% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 100%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate higher than the national average.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 100%.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for non first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 36.03% after six years, 36.03% after eight years.
| Returning / Part-Time Completions | NWC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 100% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 100% | 37.80% |
