by our College Data Analytics TeamHow long does it take to earn a degree at Sweet Briar? Find out how many students return after their freshman year, how long it takes to graduate, and what happens to the students who don't.
The freshmen retention rate applies to first-time / full-time students who come back for their second year.
With 79% students making it past their freshmen year, Sweet Briar 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 Virginia, the average is 69.66%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Sweet Briar | 79% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Virginia | 69.66% |
How many of the estimated 112 students in the class of 2015 completed their degree within eight years?
53% of the cohort completed their degree in four years, 53% in six years, and 53% in eight years.
The official graduation rate of Sweet Briar is 53%. 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 Sweet Briar undergraduate student to complete their bachelor's degree is 4.08 years.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 110 | 52% |
| Six Years | 112 | 53% |
| Eight Years | 0 | 0% |
| Did Not Complete | 99 | 47% |
Approximately 99 students or 47% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 99 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
39 transferred to another institution.
Sweet Briar lost contact with the remaining 60 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 39 | 39.4% |
| Dropped Out | 60 | 60.6% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| Asian | 50% |
| Black / African-American | 23% |
| Hispanic | 18% |
| International | 14% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 25% |
| Unknown | 67% |
| White | 36% |
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 Sweet Briar 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 Sweet Briar College represent 92% of the students in the class of 2015, and 93.75% of Sweet Briar bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 53%, first-time students in the Sweet Briar class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the Sweet Briar graduation rate was 54%, and by the eight year mark, 54% 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 | Sweet Briar | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 53% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 54% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 54% | 47.82% |
89 first-time / full-time students or 46% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
39 transferred to another institution.
Sweet Briar lost contact with the remaining 50 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 39 | 43.82% |
| Dropped Out | 50 | 56.18% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on Sweet Briar first-time, part-time students.
17 Sweet Briar students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 8.02% 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 41%, 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 41%.
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 | Sweet Briar | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 41% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 41% | 55.07% |
10 non first-time / part-time students or 59% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
0 transferred to another institution.
Sweet Briar lost contact with the remaining 10 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 0 | 0.00% |
| Dropped Out | 10 | 100.00% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on Sweet Briar returning, part-time students.
