by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding NWACC 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 62% students making it past their freshmen year, NWACC 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 Arkansas, the average is 66.23%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| NWACC | 62% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Arkansas | 66.23% |
Of the 655 students in the class of 2023, how many completed their degree on time?
Four years after beginning their degree, 19% of those students had graduated. By 2025, six years after starting their degree, 23% of the students had graduated and after eight years 24% 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 NWACC graduation rate 23%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 556 | 19% |
| Six Years | 655 | 23% |
| Eight Years | 46 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 2208 | 76% |
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 2208 students or 76% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 2208 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
474 transferred to another institution.
NWACC lost contact with the remaining 1685 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 474 | 21.5% |
| Dropped Out | 1685 | 76.3% |
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 NWACC are considered 'non-traditional students' who are not first-time, full-time, and under 25.
Comparing the graduation rates of the specific cohorts below can be more revealing than the overall graduation rates.
First-time / full-time students at NorthWest Arkansas Community College represent 38.23% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NWACC graduation rate was 28%, and by the eight year mark, 30% 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 | NWACC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 25% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 28% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 30% | 47.82% |
780 first-time / full-time students or 70% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
24 are still enrolled.
176 transferred to another institution.
NWACC lost contact with the remaining 580 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 24 | 3.08% |
| Transferred | 176 | 22.56% |
| Dropped Out | 580 | 74.36% |
First-time / part-time students at NorthWest Arkansas Community College represent 26.61% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NWACC graduation rate was 14%, and by the eight year mark, 16% 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 | NWACC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 11% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 14% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 16% | 23.72% |
647 first-time / part-time students or 84% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
13 are still enrolled.
86 transferred to another institution.
NWACC lost contact with the remaining 548 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 13 | 2.01% |
| Transferred | 86 | 13.29% |
| Dropped Out | 548 | 84.70% |
Returning / full-time students at NorthWest Arkansas Community College represent 14.71% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NWACC graduation rate was 25%, and by the eight year mark, 26% 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 | NWACC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 25% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 26% | 55.07% |
316 non first-time / part-time students or 74% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
4 are still enrolled.
109 transferred to another institution.
NWACC lost contact with the remaining 203 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 4 | 1.27% |
| Transferred | 109 | 34.49% |
| Dropped Out | 203 | 64.24% |
Returning / part-time students at NorthWest Arkansas Community College represent 20.45% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NWACC graduation rate was 20%, and by the eight year mark, 22% 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 | NWACC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 17% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 20% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 22% | 37.80% |
465 non first-time / part-time students or 78% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
8 are still enrolled.
103 transferred to another institution.
NWACC lost contact with the remaining 354 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 8 | 1.72% |
| Transferred | 103 | 22.15% |
| Dropped Out | 354 | 76.13% |
