by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding Atlantic Cape Community College 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 57% students making it past their freshmen year, Atlantic Cape Community College has freshmen retention rates below the national average.
Nationwide, the average first to second year retention rate is 70.57%.
When looking at just colleges and universities in New Jersey, the average is 74.83%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Atlantic Cape Community College | 57% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| New Jersey | 74.83% |
Of the 424 students in the class of 2023, how many completed their degree on time?
Four years after beginning their degree, 18% of those students had graduated. By 2025, six years after starting their degree, 21% of the students had graduated and after eight years 23% of this class completed their degree.
Any student who completes their bachelor's degree within six years is considered to have graduated on time, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. This makes the offical Atlantic Cape Community College graduation rate 21%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 362 | 18% |
| Six Years | 424 | 21% |
| Eight Years | 39 | 2% |
| Did Not Complete | 1537 | 77% |
The non-completers rate is anyone who is not still enrolled at the institution after eight years. Both transfer students and drop-outs could be included in this group.
Approximately 1537 students or 77% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 1537 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
449 transferred to another institution.
Atlantic Cape Community College lost contact with the remaining 1050 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 449 | 29.2% |
| Dropped Out | 1050 | 68.3% |
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 Atlantic Cape Community College 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 Atlantic Cape Community College represent 52.22% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Atlantic Cape Community College graduation rate was 27%, and by the eight year mark, 29% of the cohort had completed their degree.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for this group is 37.92% after four years, 46.43% after six years, and 47.82% after eight years.
| Completions | Atlantic Cape Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 23% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 27% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 29% | 47.82% |
742 first-time / full-time students or 71% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
23 are still enrolled.
225 transferred to another institution.
Atlantic Cape Community College lost contact with the remaining 494 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 23 | 3.10% |
| Transferred | 225 | 30.32% |
| Dropped Out | 494 | 66.58% |
First-time / part-time students at Atlantic Cape Community College represent 33.70% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Atlantic Cape Community College graduation rate was 11%, and by the eight year mark, 13% of the cohort had completed their degree.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for this group is 14.37% after four years, 21.59% after six years, and 23.72% after eight years.
| Completions | Atlantic Cape Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 8% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 11% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 13% | 23.72% |
589 first-time / part-time students or 87% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
12 are still enrolled.
134 transferred to another institution.
Atlantic Cape Community College lost contact with the remaining 443 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 12 | 2.04% |
| Transferred | 134 | 22.75% |
| Dropped Out | 443 | 75.21% |
Returning / full-time students at Atlantic Cape Community College represent 7.39% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Atlantic Cape Community College graduation rate was 30%, and by the eight year mark, 32% of the cohort had completed their degree.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for this group is 53.83% after six years, and 55.07% after eight years.
| Completions | Atlantic Cape Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 30% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 32% | 55.07% |
100 non first-time / part-time students or 68% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
2 are still enrolled.
54 transferred to another institution.
Atlantic Cape Community College lost contact with the remaining 44 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 2.00% |
| Transferred | 54 | 54.00% |
| Dropped Out | 44 | 44.00% |
Returning / part-time students at Atlantic Cape Community College represent 6.69% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Atlantic Cape Community College graduation rate was 19%, and by the eight year mark, 21% of the cohort had completed their degree.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for this group is 30.46% after four years, 36.03% after six years, and 37.80% after eight years.
| Completions | Atlantic Cape Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 19% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 19% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 21% | 37.80% |
106 non first-time / part-time students or 79% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
36 transferred to another institution.
Atlantic Cape Community College lost contact with the remaining 69 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 0.94% |
| Transferred | 36 | 33.96% |
| Dropped Out | 69 | 65.09% |
