by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding CSUMB 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 80% students making it past their freshmen year, CSUMB 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 California, the average is 73.07%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| CSUMB | 80% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| California | 73.07% |
How many of the estimated 1493 students in the class of 2023 actually finished their degree in a timely fashion?
Four years after beginning their degree, 62% of those students had graduated. By 2025, six years after starting their degree, 73% of the students had graduated and after eight years 74% 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 CSUMB graduation rate 73%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 1271 | 62% |
| Six Years | 1493 | 73% |
| Eight Years | 28 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 531 | 26% |
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 531 students or 26% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 531 students who did not complete their degree?
1 are still enrolled.
367 transferred to another institution.
CSUMB lost contact with the remaining 157 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 0.2% |
| Transferred | 367 | 69.1% |
| Dropped Out | 157 | 29.6% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 33% |
| Asian | 67% |
| Black / African-American | 65% |
| Hawaiian | 50% |
| Hispanic | 64% |
| International | 47% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 61% |
| Unknown | 52% |
| White | 65% |
Traditional first-time, full-time students under 25 tend to graduate in four years far more often than other students. Some schools serve mostly traditional students while others serve more 'non-traditional' students — part-timers or those returning after time away — who commonly take longer to finish.
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.
A meaningful share of students at CSUMB are considered 'non-traditional students' who are not first-time, full-time, and under 25.
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 California State University-Monterey Bay represent 39.28% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the CSUMB graduation rate was 62%, and by the eight year mark, 63% 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 | CSUMB | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 37% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 62% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 63% | 47.82% |
296 first-time / full-time students or 37% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
226 transferred to another institution.
CSUMB lost contact with the remaining 69 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 0.34% |
| Transferred | 226 | 76.35% |
| Dropped Out | 69 | 23.31% |
First-time / part-time students at California State University-Monterey Bay represent 0.15% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the CSUMB graduation rate was 33%, and by the eight year mark, 67% 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 | CSUMB | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 33% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 67% | 23.72% |
1 first-time / part-time students or 33% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
1 transferred to another institution.
CSUMB lost contact with the remaining 0 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 1 | 100.00% |
| Dropped Out | 0 | 0.00% |
Returning / full-time students at California State University-Monterey Bay represent 51.80% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the CSUMB graduation rate was 83%, and by the eight year mark, 84% 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 | CSUMB | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 83% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 84% | 55.07% |
173 non first-time / part-time students or 16% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
2 are still enrolled.
107 transferred to another institution.
CSUMB lost contact with the remaining 64 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 1.16% |
| Transferred | 107 | 61.85% |
| Dropped Out | 64 | 36.99% |
Returning / part-time students at California State University-Monterey Bay represent 8.77% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the CSUMB graduation rate was 64%, and by the eight year mark, 66% 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 | CSUMB | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 61% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 64% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 66% | 37.80% |
61 non first-time / part-time students or 34% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
4 are still enrolled.
33 transferred to another institution.
CSUMB lost contact with the remaining 24 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 4 | 6.56% |
| Transferred | 33 | 54.10% |
| Dropped Out | 24 | 39.34% |
