National college completion rates remained stable at historically high levels, with 61.1% of students who began college in fall 2019 earning a credential within six years, according to a report released Thursday by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
The completion rate marks the fourth consecutive year that the six-year graduation figure has held steady at recent highs, despite the cohort facing significant disruption from the COVID-19 pandemic that began during their second semester.
"Students who started in fall 2019 faced the challenges of the pandemic beginning in their second semester, so the fact that their completion rates remain at recent highs underscores the remarkable strength of our higher education ecosystem," said Dr. Doug Shapiro, executive director of the center.
The report, which analyzed more than 2.3 million students who entered postsecondary education in fall 2019, found that an additional 9.0% remained enrolled in their sixth year, while 29.8% had stopped out.
The data revealed stark disparities based on students' prior preparation and enrollment patterns. Students with prior dual enrollment experience showed notably higher success rates, with 71.1% earning a credential by year six compared to 57.2% of students without dual enrollment experience.
Full-time students significantly outperformed their part-time peers, with 67.1% completing within six years and only 25.1% stopping out. By contrast, part-time starters had a 51.7% stopout rate and just 34.1% earned credentials in the same timeframe.
Economic background continued to play a decisive role in completion. Students from the most affluent neighborhoods (top 20% income quintile) achieved a 75.9% six-year completion rate, compared to 50.1% for those from the lowest income neighborhoods.
Age at enrollment also correlated with completion likelihood. Students who started college at age 20 or younger had a 63.8% completion rate, while those ages 21-24 and 25 and older completed at rates of 35.6% and 36.6%, respectively.
The report showed modest improvement in the public two-year sector, which saw completion rates rise 1.2 percentage points to 43.4%. State-level progress remained limited, with only 10 states achieving completion rate improvements of one percentage point or more.
Eight-year completion data for the fall 2016 cohort reached 64.7%, the highest rate tracked in the report's history. However, the proportion of students completing in years seven and eight has declined over time, dropping 1.3 percentage points compared to the fall 2007 cohort.
The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center's Yearly Progress and Completion report combines previously separate analyses and tracks enrollment and completion outcomes for 12 cohorts of students who began college between fall 2007 and fall 2018. The completion rates account for all credentials earned at any U.S. degree-granting institution, including those earned after transfer.
