by our College Data Analytics TeamHow many SMU first-year students return for their second year? How many graduate and how long does it take them? On this page we'll explore SMU retention rates, graduation rates, drop out rates and more.
The freshmen retention rate applies to first-time / full-time students who come back for their second year.
With 90% students making it past their freshmen year, SMU 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 Texas, the average is 68.17%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| SMU | 90% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Texas | 68.17% |
There were approximately 1,395 students in the class of 2015. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?
Four years after beginning their degree, 70% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 79% of the students had graduated and after eight years 80% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of SMU is 79%. 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 average length of time it takes an SMU undergraduate student to complete their bachelor's degree is 4.13 years.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 1,231 | 69% |
| Six Years | 1,395 | 79% |
| Eight Years | 16 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 361 | 20% |
Approximately 361 students or 20% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 361 students who did not complete their degree?
1 are still enrolled.
265 transferred to another institution.
SMU lost contact with the remaining 93 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 0.3% |
| Transferred | 265 | 73.4% |
| Dropped Out | 93 | 25.8% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 67% |
| Asian | 81% |
| Black / African-American | 75% |
| Hawaiian | 50% |
| Hispanic | 75% |
| International | 73% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 76% |
| White | 83% |
First-time, full-time students under the age of 25 are much more likely to graduate in four years. Some schools cater to mostly traditional students while others cater to 'non-traditional' students. So called 'non-traditional' students include part-time students or those who may be returning after an absense. It is common for part-time and/or adult students to take longer to graduate.
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 SMU are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.
Examining the graduation rates of the specific cohorts shown below may be more revealing than looking at the overall graduaton rates.
First-time / full-time students at Southern Methodist University represent 80% of the students in the class of 2015, and 81.08% of SMU bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 70%, first-time students in the SMU class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the SMU graduation rate was 80%, and by the eight year mark, 81% 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 | SMU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 70% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 80% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 81% | 47.82% |
266 first-time / full-time students or 19% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
204 transferred to another institution.
SMU lost contact with the remaining 60 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 0.38% |
| Transferred | 204 | 76.69% |
| Dropped Out | 60 | 22.56% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on SMU first-time, part-time students.
346 SMU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 19.53% 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 75%, 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 75%.
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 | SMU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 75% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 75% | 55.07% |
86 non first-time / part-time students or 25% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
56 transferred to another institution.
SMU lost contact with the remaining 30 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 56 | 65.12% |
| Dropped Out | 30 | 34.88% |
16 SMU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 0.90% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 38%, 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 44%.
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 | SMU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 38% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 44% | 37.80% |
9 non first-time / part-time students or 56% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
5 transferred to another institution.
SMU lost contact with the remaining 3 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 11.11% |
| Transferred | 5 | 55.56% |
| Dropped Out | 3 | 33.33% |
