New Low for College Graduation Rate, But Dropout Picture Brighter
April 1, 1998
| NOTE TO EDITORS: This release reports national trends in U.S. college five-year graduation rates and freshman-to-sophomore-year dropout rates from ACT's annual National Dropout and Graduation Rates report, which summarizes self-reported percentages for two- and four-year public and private postsecondary institutions according to four educational levels, based on degrees awarded, and five levels of admissions selectivity. The full report for 1997 is also available. Reports for earlier years are available by mail. Data are not available by institution or by state. |
Iowa City, Iowa, April 1—The percentage of U.S. college students who graduate within five years has fallen to an all-time low for the second year in a row and the 11th year in the last 13, according to a report released today by ACT Inc., but the percentage of college freshmen who drop out before their sophomore year decreased slightly in 1997, after reaching a record high in 1996.
The new percentage of students who earn a bachelor's degree within five years is 52.8, a drop of 4.7 percent since 1983, when ACT began collecting enrollment data from the nation's postsecondary institutions. The rate for graduation within five years has decreased every year but two in this period.
Public universities are experiencing both lower graduation rates and greater rate slippage than are private colleges, but the trend is downward at either type of institution. For 1997, the five-year graduation rate at public institutions fell to a record-low 44.2, down from 52.2 percent in 1983, while the rate at private colleges slipped to 56.6 percent, also a record.
Graduation Rates* at Four-Year Colleges and Universities
| 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
| Public | 52.2 | 51.2 | 49.9 | 48.5 | 48.0 | 48.2 | 47.9 | 46.6 | 46.7 | 46.3 | 45.6 | 46.1 | 44.6 | 44.2 |
| Private | 59.5 | 58.4 | 58.4 | 58.4 | 58.1 | 58.0 | 57.8 | 57.7 | 57.6 | 57.7 | 57.2 | 57.5 | 57.1 | 56.6 |
| All | 57.5 | 56.3 | 56.0 | 55.5 | 55.2 | 55.1 | 54.9 | 54.4 | 54.4 | 54.3 | 53.7 | 54.0 | 53.3 | 52.8 |
*Percentage of students graduating within five years. Record lows in bold. 1984 data unavailable.
"The continuing decreases in college graduation rates probably have multiple causes," said Wes Habley, director of the ACT Center for the Enhancement of Educational Practices. "For instance, as you would expect, part-time students take longer to complete degrees, and the percentage of undergraduates who attend school part-time has risen steadily in the 1980s and '90s. More than 42 percent of college students now are enrolled part-time.
"Also, as the average age of students increases, so does the likelihood that family, job and community activities will compete with school and lengthen the time to graduation. Today, at least 57 percent of undergraduates are 21 or older."
The new level for the freshman-to-sophomore-year dropout rate is 26.7 percent, a decrease of 0.2 percent from the all-time high of 26.9 percent reported in 1996. However, that rate remains more than 2 percent above the rate reported in 1983.
The slight improvement in the overall dropout rate can be attributed to students enrolled at public colleges, where the percentage of nonreturning freshmen fell from 29.0 in 1996 to 28.6 in 1997. The rate at which private-college freshmen do not return for their second year, 25.9 percent, remained steady from 1996 to 1997.
Dropout Rates* at Four-Year Colleges and Universities
| 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
| Public | 28.6 | 28.8 | 29.5 | 29.3 | 29.6 | 29.3 | 28.6 | 28.3 | 28.4 | 28.1 | 28.3 | 28.6 | 29.0 | 28.6 |
| Private | 22.8 | 23.4 | 24.0 | 24.3 | 23.8 | 23.6 | 23.8 | 23.8 | 23.8 | 24.0 | 24.8 | 25.1 | 25.9 | 25.9 |
| All | 24.5 | 24.9 | 25.6 | 25.8 | 25.5 | 25.3 | 25.2 | 25.1 | 25.2 | 25.2 | 25.9 | 26.2 | 26.9 | 26.7 |
*Percentage of enrolled freshmen who did not return for their sophomore year. Record highs in bold. 1984 data unavailable.
"As with graduation rates, the issue of dropouts is complicated," Habley said. "An unknown number of those students who don't return transfer to other institutions, but no one is tracking these students accurately. And some students enroll for personal or career enhancement, without intending to earn a degree.
"Other complicating factors are increasing college costs and the strength of the economy. When high-paying jobs are relatively easy to find, some students opt to work for a while rather than go to school.
"Further, ACT data reveal a growing disparity between students' expectations for college and their readiness for college-level work. A lack of structured assistance for students at lower levels of preparedness may result in increased numbers of dropouts or transfers."
Graduation Rates at Two-Year Colleges Continue to Decrease,
Dropouts to Increase
Public two-year institutions report that the percentage of their students earning a diploma or an associate degree within three years has decreased by 4.7 percent since 1983, and private colleges report a 1.3 percent decrease, for a combined drop of 4.2 percent.
Graduation Rates* at Two-Year Institutions
| 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
| Public | 40.0 | 39.0 | 37.9 | 39.0 | 38.1 | 38.8 | 38.6 | 38.6 | 38.8 | 38.7 | 37.8 | 36.9 | 36.1 | 35.3 |
| Private | 64.0 | 64.0 | 65.1 | 66.7 | 66.2 | 66.3 | 66.4 | 64.2 | 66.0 | 65.2 | 64.1 | 63.4 | 63.3 | 62.7 |
| All | 44.1 | 43.5 | 43.2 | 44.3 | 43.5 | 43.9 | 43.9 | 43.5 | 43.8 | 43.6 | 42.6 | 41.7 | 40.8 | 39.9 |
*Percentage of students earning an associate's degree within three years. Record lows in bold. 1984 data unavailable.
Students attending two-year colleges also continue to leave in less than a year at greater rates. These institutions report that a new high of 44.6 percent of first-year students did not return for a second year, an increase of 1.4 percent since 1983. Private institutions have contributed slightly more than public institutions to the increase.
Attrition Rates* at Two-Year Institutions
| 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
| Public | 46.0 | 47.0 | 47.0 | 47.8 | 47.8 | 47.7 | 47.8 | 47.9 | 48.0 | 48.0 | 47.5 | 47.7 | 47.2 | 47.4 |
| Private | 30.0 | 31.0 | 30.8 | 28.9 | 29.2 | 28.9 | 29.4 | 28.4 | 27.6 | 27.6 | 28.4 | 29.9 | 31.1 | 31.8 |
| All | 43.2 | 43.6 | 43.7 | 43.9 | 43.9 | 43.9 | 44.1 | 44.0 | 44.1 | 44.1 | 43.9 | 44.4 | 44.3 | 44.6 |
*Percentage of first-year students who did not return for a second year. Record highs in bold. 1984 data unavailable.
The data reported in this release and in ACT's annual compilations of national dropout and graduation rates are derived from information reported to ACT by the majority of the nation's accredited postsecondary institutions. In 1997, 2,609 institutions—1,619 four-year and 990 two-year—participated. The dropout rates are for fall 1995 freshmen who did not return in fall 1996; the graduation rates apply to fall 1991 freshmen who had earned a bachelor's degree or 1993 freshmen who had earned an associate's degree by summer 1996. The federal government now requires many institutions to report six-year graduation rates, but institutions report these rates individually, and they are not aggregated.
|
Graduation Rates* at Four-Year Colleges and Universities
*Percentage of students graduating within five years. Record lows in bold. 1984 data unavailable. |
"The continuing decreases in college graduation rates probably have multiple causes," said Wes Habley, director of the ACT Center for the Enhancement of Educational Practices. "For instance, as you would expect, part-time students take longer to complete degrees, and the percentage of undergraduates who attend school part-time has risen steadily in the 1980s and '90s. More than 42 percent of college students now are enrolled part-time.
"Also, as the average age of students increases, so does the likelihood that family, job and community activities will compete with school and lengthen the time to graduation. Today, at least 57 percent of undergraduates are 21 or older."
The new level for the freshman-to-sophomore-year dropout rate is 26.7 percent, a decrease of 0.2 percent from the all-time high of 26.9 percent reported in 1996. However, that rate remains more than 2 percent above the rate reported in 1983.
The slight improvement in the overall dropout rate can be attributed to students enrolled at public colleges, where the percentage of nonreturning freshmen fell from 29.0 in 1996 to 28.6 in 1997. The rate at which private-college freshmen do not return for their second year, 25.9 percent, remained steady from 1996 to 1997.
Dropout Rates* at Four-Year Colleges and Universities
| 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
| Public | 28.6 | 28.8 | 29.5 | 29.3 | 29.6 | 29.3 | 28.6 | 28.3 | 28.4 | 28.1 | 28.3 | 28.6 | 29.0 | 28.6 |
| Private | 22.8 | 23.4 | 24.0 | 24.3 | 23.8 | 23.6 | 23.8 | 23.8 | 23.8 | 24.0 | 24.8 | 25.1 | 25.9 | 25.9 |
| All | 24.5 | 24.9 | 25.6 | 25.8 | 25.5 | 25.3 | 25.2 | 25.1 | 25.2 | 25.2 | 25.9 | 26.2 | 26.9 | 26.7 |
*Percentage of enrolled freshmen who did not return for their sophomore year. Record highs in bold. 1984 data unavailable.
"As with graduation rates, the issue of dropouts is complicated," Habley said. "An unknown number of those students who don't return transfer to other institutions, but no one is tracking these students accurately. And some students enroll for personal or career enhancement, without intending to earn a degree.
"Other complicating factors are increasing college costs and the strength of the economy. When high-paying jobs are relatively easy to find, some students opt to work for a while rather than go to school.
"Further, ACT data reveal a growing disparity between students' expectations for college and their readiness for college-level work. A lack of structured assistance for students at lower levels of preparedness may result in increased numbers of dropouts or transfers."
Graduation Rates at Two-Year Colleges Continue to Decrease,
Dropouts to Increase
Public two-year institutions report that the percentage of their students earning a diploma or an associate degree within three years has decreased by 4.7 percent since 1983, and private colleges report a 1.3 percent decrease, for a combined drop of 4.2 percent.
Graduation Rates* at Two-Year Institutions
| 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
| Public | 40.0 | 39.0 | 37.9 | 39.0 | 38.1 | 38.8 | 38.6 | 38.6 | 38.8 | 38.7 | 37.8 | 36.9 | 36.1 | 35.3 |
| Private | 64.0 | 64.0 | 65.1 | 66.7 | 66.2 | 66.3 | 66.4 | 64.2 | 66.0 | 65.2 | 64.1 | 63.4 | 63.3 | 62.7 |
| All | 44.1 | 43.5 | 43.2 | 44.3 | 43.5 | 43.9 | 43.9 | 43.5 | 43.8 | 43.6 | 42.6 | 41.7 | 40.8 | 39.9 |
*Percentage of students earning an associate's degree within three years. Record lows in bold. 1984 data unavailable.
Students attending two-year colleges also continue to leave in less than a year at greater rates. These institutions report that a new high of 44.6 percent of first-year students did not return for a second year, an increase of 1.4 percent since 1983. Private institutions have contributed slightly more than public institutions to the increase.
Attrition Rates* at Two-Year Institutions
| 1983 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
| Public | 46.0 | 47.0 | 47.0 | 47.8 | 47.8 | 47.7 | 47.8 | 47.9 | 48.0 | 48.0 | 47.5 | 47.7 | 47.2 | 47.4 |
| Private | 30.0 | 31.0 | 30.8 | 28.9 | 29.2 | 28.9 | 29.4 | 28.4 | 27.6 | 27.6 | 28.4 | 29.9 | 31.1 | 31.8 |
| All | 43.2 | 43.6 | 43.7 | 43.9 | 43.9 | 43.9 | 44.1 | 44.0 | 44.1 | 44.1 | 43.9 | 44.4 | 44.3 | 44.6 |
*Percentage of first-year students who did not return for a second year. Record highs in bold. 1984 data unavailable.
The data reported in this release and in ACT's annual compilations of national dropout and graduation rates are derived from information reported to ACT by the majority of the nation's accredited postsecondary institutions. In 1997, 2,609 institutions—1,619 four-year and 990 two-year—participated. The dropout rates are for fall 1995 freshmen who did not return in fall 1996; the graduation rates apply to fall 1991 freshmen who had earned a bachelor's degree or 1993 freshmen who had earned an associate's degree by summer 1996. The federal government now requires many institutions to report six-year graduation rates, but institutions report these rates individually, and they are not aggregated.
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