by our College Data Analytics TeamHow many CUA first-year students return for their second year? How many graduate and how long does it take them? On this page we'll explore CUA retention rates, graduation rates, drop out rates and more.
The percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year is tracked as the freshmen retention rate.
With 86% students making it past their freshmen year, CUA 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 District of Columbia, the average is 78.47%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| CUA | 86% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| District of Columbia | 78.47% |
How many of the estimated 794 students in the class of 2015 completed their degree within eight years?
Four years after beginning their degree, 66% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 74% of the students had graduated and after eight years 75% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of CUA is 74%. 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 CUA student takes 4.11 years to graduate with their bachelors.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 717 | 67% |
| Six Years | 794 | 74% |
| Eight Years | 4 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 270 | 25% |
Approximately 270 students or 25% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 270 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
226 transferred to another institution.
CUA lost contact with the remaining 44 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 226 | 83.7% |
| Dropped Out | 44 | 16.3% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| Asian | 62% |
| Black / African-American | 63% |
| Hispanic | 69% |
| International | 43% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 63% |
| Unknown | 74% |
| White | 79% |
First-time, full-time students, under the age of 25 are known as traditional students. These students are more likely to graduate in four years than so called 'non-traditional' students that includes part-time students, transfer students, or adult learners. Some schools cater to non-traditional students and it may affect their overall graduation rates.
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 CUA are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.
How does this school do graduating the type of student you are most concerned bout?
First-time / full-time students at Catholic University of America represent 86% of the students in the class of 2015, and 85.01% of CUA bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 66%, first-time students in the CUA class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the CUA graduation rate was 73%, and by the eight year mark, 74% 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 | CUA | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 66% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 73% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 74% | 47.82% |
241 first-time / full-time students or 26% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
207 transferred to another institution.
CUA lost contact with the remaining 34 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 207 | 85.89% |
| Dropped Out | 34 | 14.11% |
First-time / part-time students at Catholic University of America represent 0.66% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six-year graduation rate of 43%, first-time, part-time students in the CUA class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 43%.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 14.37% after four years, 21.59% after six years, 23.72% after eight years.
| First-Time / Part-Time Completions | CUA | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 1% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 43% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 43% | 23.72% |
4 first-time / part-time students or 57% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
4 transferred to another institution.
CUA lost contact with the remaining 0 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 4 | 100.00% |
| Dropped Out | 0 | 0.00% |
138 CUA students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 12.92% 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 84%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate higher than the national average for students in this category.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 84%.
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 | CUA | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 84% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 84% | 55.07% |
22 non first-time / part-time students or 16% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
13 transferred to another institution.
CUA lost contact with the remaining 9 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 13 | 59.09% |
| Dropped Out | 9 | 40.91% |
3 CUA students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 0.28% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 0%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate lower than the national average.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 0%.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for non first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 36.03% after six years, 36.03% after eight years.
3 non first-time / part-time students or 100% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
2 transferred to another institution.
CUA lost contact with the remaining 1 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 2 | 66.67% |
| Dropped Out | 1 | 33.33% |
