by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding Piedmont Technical College retention and graduation rates. First year retention rates let you know how many first-time, full-time students students come back for their second year. Graduation rates tell you how many students complete their degree and how long it takes.
Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.
With 54% students making it past their freshmen year, Piedmont Technical College has freshmen retention rates similar to the national average.
Nationwide, the average first to second year retention rate is 70.57%.
When looking at just colleges and universities in South Carolina, the average is 65.91%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Piedmont Technical College | 54% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| South Carolina | 65.91% |
There were approximately 568 students in the class of 2015. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?
After four years 23% of the cohort graduated. After six years 24% had completed their degree, and 25% after eight years.
The official graduation rate of Piedmont Technical College is 24%. This is the percentage of students who completed their degree within 150% of the published time. That means six years for a standard bachelor's degree program.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 471 | 20% |
| Six Years | 568 | 24% |
| Eight Years | 39 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 1,804 | 75% |
Approximately 1804 students or 75% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 1804 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
645 transferred to another institution.
Piedmont Technical College lost contact with the remaining 1114 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 645 | 35.8% |
| Dropped Out | 1,114 | 61.8% |
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 Piedmont Technical College 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 Piedmont Technical College represent 44% of the students in the class of 2015, and 50.18% of Piedmont Technical College bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 23%, first-time students in the Piedmont Technical College class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the Piedmont Technical College graduation rate was 27%, and by the eight year mark, 29% 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 | Piedmont Technical College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 23% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 27% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 29% | 47.82% |
745 first-time / full-time students or 71% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
233 transferred to another institution.
Piedmont Technical College lost contact with the remaining 486 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 233 | 31.28% |
| Dropped Out | 486 | 65.23% |
First-time / part-time students at Piedmont Technical College represent 28.80% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six-year graduation rate of 13%, first-time, part-time students in the Piedmont Technical College class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 14%.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 14.37% after four years, 21.59% after six years, 23.72% after eight years.
| First-Time / Part-Time Completions | Piedmont Technical College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 9% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 13% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 14% | 23.72% |
599 first-time / part-time students or 86% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
14 are still enrolled.
144 transferred to another institution.
Piedmont Technical College lost contact with the remaining 441 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 14 | 2.34% |
| Transferred | 144 | 24.04% |
| Dropped Out | 441 | 73.62% |
326 Piedmont Technical College students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 13.49% 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 38%, 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 39%.
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 | Piedmont Technical College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 38% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 39% | 55.07% |
199 non first-time / part-time students or 61% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
2 are still enrolled.
114 transferred to another institution.
Piedmont Technical College lost contact with the remaining 83 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 1.01% |
| Transferred | 114 | 57.29% |
| Dropped Out | 83 | 41.71% |
342 Piedmont Technical College students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 14.15% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 21%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate lower than the national average.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 23%.
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 | Piedmont Technical College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 21% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 23% | 37.80% |
261 non first-time / part-time students or 77% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
3 are still enrolled.
154 transferred to another institution.
Piedmont Technical College lost contact with the remaining 104 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 3 | 1.15% |
| Transferred | 154 | 59.00% |
| Dropped Out | 104 | 39.85% |
