Why are Retention and Graduation Rates Important?
Make an informed decision about your education by understanding how CCV's retention and graduation rates impact you. First year retention rates let you know how many students come back for their sophomore year. Graduation rates tell you how long it takes to complete a degree at CCV . Remember, every extra semester it takes to graduate will increase the cost of your degree.

On This Page You'll Find:
- What These Rates Have To Do With You
- First to Second Year Retention Rate at CCV
- Graduation Rates at Community College of Vermont
CCV Has One of the Lowest Freshman Retention Rates in the Country
You have to make it past freshman year in order to graduate. With only 53.0% of students staying on to become sophomores, Community College of Vermont has among the worst freshman retention rates in the country.
Nationwide, the average first year to second year retention rate is 69.0% . When looking at just colleges and universities in Vermont , the average is 72.0% .
CCV Freshmen Retention Rate Rankings
Any Questions?
- When you attend a school that is high quality and a good fit for you, it is more likely you'll return for another year. Read more about why retention is so important.
- How many students make it past freshman year? You might be surprised at the answer.
- Low retention rates may be a signal that a lot of students plan on transferring after a year or two. Is that the case here?
Overall, 17.7% of CCV Undergrads Finish Within Six Years
At CCV , there were 2,119 bachelors degree candidates in the class of 2016 . By 2018 , six years after beginning their degree, 17.7% of these students had graduated. After an additional two years, 19.2% of this class eventually completed their degree.
We consider the "on-time" graduation rate for a bachelor's degree to be four years, but colleges typically report their graduation rates after six or even eight years.
This implies that 80.8% did not graduate within eight years. Of these 1,714 students, 52 were still working towards their degree, 611 had transferred to a different institution, and CCV lost contact with the remaining 1,050 whom we assume dropped out.
Some Students Take More Time to Graduate
First-time, full-time students under the age of 25 are much more likely to graduate in four years (on-time). Some schools cater mostly to traditional students while others cater to “non-traditional” students who may be attending part time and thus are likely to take longer to graduate.
Comparing the graduation rates of specific cohorts shown below will be more revealing than the overall statistics shared above.
First-Time / Full-time Students at CCV Represent 16.9% of the Class of 2016 and 24.4% of all Their Bachelor's Degree Graduations.
With a four year graduation rate of N/A , first-time students in the CCV class of 2016 who attended classes full-time After six years, the graduation rate was 26.3% and by 2020 ,27.7% of this class had completed their degree.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes full-time is: 35.8% after four years, 46.4% after six years, and 47.8% after eight years.
Nationwide Rankings for First-Time / Full-time Graduation Rates at CCV
72.4% of the First-Time / Full-time Class of 2016 had not Completed Their Degree by 2020
Of these 259 students, 3 were still working towards their degree, 103 had transferred to a different institution, and CCV lost contact with the remaining 153 whom we assume dropped out.
First-Time / Part-time Students at CCV Represent 49.7% of the Class of 2016 and 40.9% of all Their Bachelor's Degree Graduations.
With a six year graduation rate of 14.1% , first-time students in the CCV class of 2016 who attended classes part-time had a graduation rate similar to the national average. After eight years, the graduation rate was 15.8% .
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 21.6% after six years and 23.7% after eight years.
Nationwide Rankings for First-Time / Part-time Graduation Rates at CCV
84.2% of the First-Time/ Part-time Class of 2016 had not Completed Their Degree by 2020
Of these 887 students, 33 were still working towards their degree, 224 had transferred to a different institution, and CCV lost contact with the remaining 630 whom we assume dropped out.
Returning / Full-time Students at CCV Represent 12.5% of the Class of 2016 and 16.0% of all Their Bachelor's Degree Graduations.
With a six year graduation rate of 23.9% , returning students in the CCV class of 2016 who attended classes full-time were among the least likely in the nation to graduate in a reasonable time. After eight years, the graduation rate was 24.6% .
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for returning undergraduates attending classes full-time is: 53.8% after six years and 55.1% after eight years.
Nationwide Rankings for Returning / Full-time Graduation Rates at CCV
75.4% of the Returning / Full-time Class of 2016 had not Completed Their Degree by 2020
Of these 199 students, 7 were still working towards their degree, 110 had transferred to a different institution, and CCV lost contact with the remaining 82 whom we assume dropped out.
Returning / Part-time Students at CCV Represent 21.0% of the Class of 2016 and 18.7% of all Their Bachelor's Degree Graduations.
With a six year graduation rate of 16.0% , returning students in the CCV class of 2016 who attended classes part-time were among the least likely in the nation to graduate in a reasonable time. After eight years, the graduation rate was 17.1% .
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for returning undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 36.0% after six years and 37.8% after eight years.
Nationwide Rankings for Returning / Part-time Graduation Rates at CCV
82.9% of the Returning / Part-time Class of 2016 had not Completed Their Degree by 2020
Of these 368 students, 9 were still working towards their degree, 174 had transferred to a different institution, and CCV lost contact with the remaining 185 whom we assume dropped out.