by our College Data Analytics TeamHow many Harvard first-year students return for their second year, and how many go on to graduate? Retention and graduation rates help you understand how students progress at Harvard. First year retention shows who comes back, and graduation rates show who finishes 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 98% students making it past their freshmen year, Harvard 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 Massachusetts, the average is 73.02%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Harvard | 98% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Massachusetts | 73.02% |
Of the 1634 students in the class of 2023, how many completed their degree on time?
Four years after beginning their degree, 87% of those students had graduated. By 2025, six years after starting their degree, 98% of the students had graduated and after eight years 99% 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 Harvard graduation rate 98%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 1451 | 87% |
| Six Years | 1634 | 98% |
| Eight Years | 14 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 23 | 1% |
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 23 students or 1% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 23 students who did not complete their degree?
4 are still enrolled.
3 transferred to another institution.
Harvard lost contact with the remaining 16 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 4 | 17.4% |
| Transferred | 3 | 13.0% |
| Dropped Out | 16 | 69.6% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 100% |
| Asian | 99% |
| Black / African-American | 97% |
| Hawaiian | 100% |
| Hispanic | 96% |
| International | 94% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 98% |
| Unknown | 96% |
| White | 98% |
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 Harvard are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.
Examining the graduation rates of the specific cohorts shown below may be more revealing than looking at the overall graduaton rates.
First-time / full-time students at Harvard University represent 99.28% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Harvard graduation rate was 98%, and by the eight year mark, 99% 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 | Harvard | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 87% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 98% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 99% | 47.82% |
22 first-time / full-time students or 1% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
4 are still enrolled.
3 transferred to another institution.
Harvard lost contact with the remaining 15 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 4 | 18.18% |
| Transferred | 3 | 13.64% |
| Dropped Out | 15 | 68.18% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data for this cohort at Harvard University.
Returning / full-time students at Harvard University represent 0.72% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the Harvard graduation rate was 92%, and by the eight year mark, 92% 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 | Harvard | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 92% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 92% | 55.07% |
1 non first-time / part-time students or 8% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
0 transferred to another institution.
Harvard lost contact with the remaining 1 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 0 | 0.00% |
| Dropped Out | 1 | 100.00% |
We don’t have data for this cohort at Harvard University.
