by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding Gateway 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.
The percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year is tracked as the freshmen retention rate.
With 70% students making it past their freshmen year, Gateway has freshmen retention rates near the national average.
Nationwide, the average first to second year retention rate is 70.57%.
When looking at just colleges and universities in Kentucky, the average is 67.55%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Gateway | 70% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Kentucky | 67.55% |
There were approximately 475 students in the class of 2023. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?
Four years after beginning their degree, 40% of those students had graduated. By 2025, six years after starting their degree, 42% of the students had graduated and after eight years 43% 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 Gateway graduation rate 42%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 456 | 40% |
| Six Years | 475 | 42% |
| Eight Years | 14 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 641 | 57% |
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 641 students or 57% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 641 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
176 transferred to another institution.
Gateway lost contact with the remaining 453 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 176 | 27.5% |
| Dropped Out | 453 | 70.7% |
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.
A meaningful share of students at Gateway are considered 'non-traditional students' who are not first-time, full-time, and under 25.
Looking at the individual cohorts below may tell you more than the overall graduation rate alone.
First-time / full-time students at Gateway Community and Technical College represent 29.83% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Gateway graduation rate was 48%, and by the eight year mark, 49% 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 | Gateway | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 47% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 48% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 49% | 47.82% |
170 first-time / full-time students or 51% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
2 are still enrolled.
46 transferred to another institution.
Gateway lost contact with the remaining 122 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 1.18% |
| Transferred | 46 | 27.06% |
| Dropped Out | 122 | 71.76% |
First-time / part-time students at Gateway Community and Technical College represent 32.66% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Gateway graduation rate was 29%, and by the eight year mark, 31% 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 | Gateway | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 27% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 29% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 31% | 23.72% |
257 first-time / part-time students or 69% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
7 are still enrolled.
56 transferred to another institution.
Gateway lost contact with the remaining 194 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 7 | 2.72% |
| Transferred | 56 | 21.79% |
| Dropped Out | 194 | 75.49% |
Returning / full-time students at Gateway Community and Technical College represent 14.74% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Gateway graduation rate was 60%, and by the eight year mark, 61% 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 | Gateway | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 60% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 61% | 55.07% |
65 non first-time / part-time students or 39% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
23 transferred to another institution.
Gateway lost contact with the remaining 41 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 1.54% |
| Transferred | 23 | 35.38% |
| Dropped Out | 41 | 63.08% |
Returning / part-time students at Gateway Community and Technical College represent 22.77% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Gateway graduation rate was 41%, and by the eight year mark, 42% 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 | Gateway | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 39% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 41% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 42% | 37.80% |
149 non first-time / part-time students or 58% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
2 are still enrolled.
51 transferred to another institution.
Gateway lost contact with the remaining 96 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 1.34% |
| Transferred | 51 | 34.23% |
| Dropped Out | 96 | 64.43% |
