by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding NLTCC 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 79% students making it past their freshmen year, NLTCC 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 Louisiana, the average is 67.86%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| NLTCC | 79% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Louisiana | 67.86% |
There were approximately 681 students in the class of 2023. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?
Four years after beginning their degree, 48% of those students had graduated. By 2025, six years after starting their degree, 49% of the students had graduated and after eight years 51% 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 NLTCC graduation rate 49%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 660 | 48% |
| Six Years | 681 | 49% |
| Eight Years | 32 | 2% |
| Did Not Complete | 676 | 49% |
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 676 students or 49% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 676 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
371 transferred to another institution.
NLTCC lost contact with the remaining 265 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 371 | 54.9% |
| Dropped Out | 265 | 39.2% |
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 NLTCC are considered 'non-traditional students' who are not first-time, full-time, and under 25.
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 Northwest Louisiana Technical Community College represent 26.51% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NLTCC graduation rate was 44%, and by the eight year mark, 48% 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 | NLTCC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 42% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 44% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 48% | 47.82% |
190 first-time / full-time students or 52% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
10 are still enrolled.
105 transferred to another institution.
NLTCC lost contact with the remaining 75 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 10 | 5.26% |
| Transferred | 105 | 55.26% |
| Dropped Out | 75 | 39.47% |
First-time / part-time students at Northwest Louisiana Technical Community College represent 12.28% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NLTCC graduation rate was 38%, and by the eight year mark, 40% 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 | NLTCC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 37% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 38% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 40% | 23.72% |
103 first-time / part-time students or 60% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
6 are still enrolled.
54 transferred to another institution.
NLTCC lost contact with the remaining 43 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 6 | 5.83% |
| Transferred | 54 | 52.43% |
| Dropped Out | 43 | 41.75% |
Returning / full-time students at Northwest Louisiana Technical Community College represent 31.90% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NLTCC graduation rate was 56%, and by the eight year mark, 59% 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 | NLTCC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 56% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 59% | 55.07% |
183 non first-time / part-time students or 41% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
17 are still enrolled.
152 transferred to another institution.
NLTCC lost contact with the remaining 14 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 17 | 9.29% |
| Transferred | 152 | 83.06% |
| Dropped Out | 14 | 7.65% |
Returning / part-time students at Northwest Louisiana Technical Community College represent 29.31% of the students in the class of 2023.
After six years, the NLTCC graduation rate was 50%, and by the eight year mark, 51% 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 | NLTCC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 48% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 50% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 51% | 37.80% |
200 non first-time / part-time students or 49% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
7 are still enrolled.
60 transferred to another institution.
NLTCC lost contact with the remaining 133 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 7 | 3.50% |
| Transferred | 60 | 30.00% |
| Dropped Out | 133 | 66.50% |
