by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding SRU 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 83% students making it past their freshmen year, SRU 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 Pennsylvania, the average is 73.24%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| SRU | 83% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Pennsylvania | 73.24% |
There were approximately 1,569 students in the class of 2015. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?
Four years after beginning their degree, 49% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 65% of the students had graduated and after eight years 65% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of SRU is 65%. 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.
The typical SRU student takes 4.23 years to complete their bachelor's degree.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 1,259 | 52% |
| Six Years | 1,569 | 65% |
| Eight Years | 20 | 0% |
| Did Not Complete | 837 | 35% |
Approximately 837 students or 35% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 837 students who did not complete their degree?
2 are still enrolled.
546 transferred to another institution.
SRU lost contact with the remaining 287 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 0.2% |
| Transferred | 546 | 65.2% |
| Dropped Out | 287 | 34.3% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 75% |
| Asian | 67% |
| Black / African-American | 49% |
| Hawaiian | 100% |
| Hispanic | 50% |
| International | 56% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 61% |
| Unknown | 38% |
| White | 71% |
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 SRU 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 Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania represent 64% of the students in the class of 2015, and 64.44% of SRU bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 49%, first-time students in the SRU class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the SRU graduation rate was 66%, and by the eight year mark, 66% 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 | SRU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 49% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 66% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 66% | 47.82% |
517 first-time / full-time students or 34% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
2 are still enrolled.
361 transferred to another institution.
SRU lost contact with the remaining 153 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 0.39% |
| Transferred | 361 | 69.83% |
| Dropped Out | 153 | 29.59% |
First-time / part-time students at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania represent 0.12% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six-year graduation rate of 33%, first-time, part-time students in the SRU class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 33%.
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 | SRU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 1% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 33% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 33% | 23.72% |
2 first-time / part-time students or 67% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
2 transferred to another institution.
SRU lost contact with the remaining 0 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 2 | 100.00% |
| Dropped Out | 0 | 0.00% |
767 SRU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 31.43% 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 63%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate higher than the national average for students in this category.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 64%.
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 | SRU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 63% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 64% | 55.07% |
276 non first-time / part-time students or 36% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
160 transferred to another institution.
SRU lost contact with the remaining 115 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 0.36% |
| Transferred | 160 | 57.97% |
| Dropped Out | 115 | 41.67% |
115 SRU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 4.71% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 63%, 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 63%.
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 | SRU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 63% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 63% | 37.80% |
42 non first-time / part-time students or 37% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
23 transferred to another institution.
SRU lost contact with the remaining 19 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 23 | 54.76% |
| Dropped Out | 19 | 45.24% |
