by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding Ferrum 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 64% students making it past their freshmen year, Ferrum 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 Virginia, the average is 69.66%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Ferrum College | 64% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Virginia | 69.66% |
Of the 172 students in the class of 2023, how many completed their degree on time?
Four years after beginning their degree, 27% of those students had graduated. By 2025, six years after starting their degree, 32% of the students had graduated and after eight years 32% 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 Ferrum College graduation rate 32%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 144 | 27% |
| Six Years | 172 | 32% |
| Eight Years | 1 | 0% |
| Did Not Complete | 369 | 68% |
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 369 students or 68% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 369 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
213 transferred to another institution.
Ferrum College lost contact with the remaining 152 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 213 | 57.7% |
| Dropped Out | 152 | 41.2% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 33% |
| Asian | 25% |
| Black / African-American | 21% |
| Hispanic | 35% |
| International | 11% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 12% |
| Unknown | 29% |
| White | 41% |
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.
The majority of students at Ferrum College are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.
Looking at the individual cohorts below may tell you more than the overall graduation rate alone.
First-time / full-time students at Ferrum College represent 84.50% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Ferrum College graduation rate was 28%, 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 | Ferrum College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 23% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 28% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 29% | 47.82% |
327 first-time / full-time students or 71% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
3 are still enrolled.
184 transferred to another institution.
Ferrum College lost contact with the remaining 140 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 3 | 0.92% |
| Transferred | 184 | 56.27% |
| Dropped Out | 140 | 42.81% |
We don’t have data for this cohort at Ferrum College.
Returning / full-time students at Ferrum College represent 15.13% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Ferrum College graduation rate was 49%, and by the eight year mark, 49% 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 | Ferrum College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 49% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 49% | 55.07% |
42 non first-time / part-time students or 51% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
29 transferred to another institution.
Ferrum College lost contact with the remaining 12 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 2.38% |
| Transferred | 29 | 69.05% |
| Dropped Out | 12 | 28.57% |
Returning / part-time students at Ferrum College represent 0.37% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Ferrum College graduation rate was 100%, and by the eight year mark, 100% 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 | Ferrum College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 50% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 100% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 100% | 37.80% |
