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GSU Graduation Rate & Retention Rates

62% 6-Year Graduation Rate
58% Retention Rate

Governors State University 2023 Graduation & Retention Report

How long does it take to earn a degree at GSU? Find out how many students return after their freshman year, how long it takes to graduate, and what happens to the students who don't.

GSU Retention Rate

58% Freshmen Retention Rate
Below Average Retention Rate

Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.

With 58% students making it past their freshmen year, GSU has freshmen retention rates similar to the national average.

Nationwide, the average first to second year retention rate is 70.57%.

When looking at just colleges and universities in Illinois, the average is 72.64%.

GSU Retention  58 out of 100
0%
100%
Illinois Retention  73 out of 100
0%
100%
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Retention Rate
GSU58%
Nationwide70.57%
Illinois72.64%
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?

GSU Graduation Rates

62% 6-Year Graduation Rate
23.10% Transfer Rate
12.30% Dropout Rate

How many of the estimated 874 students in the class of 2015 completed their degree within eight years?

After four years <nil>% of the cohort graduated. After six years 62% had completed their degree, and 64% after eight years.

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 GSU graduation rate 62%.

Four Year Graduation Rate  57%
0%
100%
Six Year Graduation Rate  62%
0%
100%
Eight Year Graduation Rate  64%
0%
100%

GSU Graduation Rates vs. National Average

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Completion WithinUndergraduatesPercentage
Four Years80157%
Six Years87462%
Eight Years262%
Did Not Complete50736%
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.
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GSU Drop Out Rate

Approximately 507 students or 36% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.

What happened to the 507 students who did not complete their degree?

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Non-CompletionsUndergraduatesPercentage
Still Enrolled00.0%
Transferred32564.1%
Dropped Out17334.1%

GSU Graduation Rates by Race/Ethnicity

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Race/EthnicityGraduation Rate
Asian25%
Black / African-American20%
Hispanic33%
International100%
Multi-Ethnic25%
Unknown26%
White31%

Some Students Take More Time To Graduate

Some schools have mainly first-time, full-time students, while others cater to part-time students, transfer students, or adult learners. For a variety of reasons first-time, full-time students under the age of 25 are usually more likely to graduate in four years.

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.

Comparing the graduation rates of specific cohorts shown below will be more revealing than the overall statistics shared above.

First-Time / Full-Time GSU Graduation Rates

Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on GSU first-time, full-time students.

First-Time / Part-Time Graduation Rates

Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on GSU first-time, part-time students.

Non First-Time / Full-Time Students

42% Returning, Full-Time
74% 6-Year Grad Rate
Good Grad Rate

589 GSU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 41.86% 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 74%, 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 75%.

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.

Six Year Graduation Rate  74 out of 100
0%
100%
Eight Year Graduation Rate  75 out of 100
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100%

GSU Non First-Time / Full-Time Graduation Rate vs. National Average

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Returning / Full-Time CompletionsGSUNationwide
Four Years0%49.57%
Six Years74%53.83%
Eight Years75%55.07%

Non First-Time / Full-Time GSU Drop Out Rates

148 non first-time / part-time students or 25% did not complete their degree within eight years.

Of those who did not finish:

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First-Time / Part-Time Non-CompletionsUndergraduatesPercentage
Still Enrolled32.03%
Transferred9362.84%
Dropped Out5235.14%

Non First-Time / Part-Time Graduation Rates

58% Returning, Part-Time
54% 6-Year Grad Rate
Good Grad Rate

818 GSU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 58.14% of the students in the class of 2015.

With a six year graduation rate of 54%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate higher than the national average.

After eight years, the graduation rate was 56%.

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.

Six Year Graduation Rate  54 out of 100
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100%
Eight Year Graduation Rate  56 out of 100
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100%

GSU Non First-Time / Part-Time Graduation Rate vs. National Average

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Returning / Part-Time CompletionsGSUNationwide
Four Years0%30.46%
Six Years54%36.03%
Eight Years56%37.80%

Non First-Time / Part-Time GSU Drop Out Rates

359 non first-time / part-time students or 44% did not complete their degree within eight years.

Of those who did not finish:

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Returning / Part-Time Non-CompletionsUndergraduatesPercentage
Still Enrolled61.67%
Transferred23264.62%
Dropped Out12133.70%

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