by our College Data Analytics TeamHow many PAFA first-year students return for their second year? How many graduate and how long does it take them? On this page we'll explore PAFA retention rates, graduation rates, drop out rates and more.
The freshmen retention rate applies to first-time / full-time students who come back for their second year.
With 37% students making it past their freshmen year, PAFA 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 Pennsylvania, the average is 73.24%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| PAFA | 37% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Pennsylvania | 73.24% |
Of the 33 students in the class of 2015, how many completed their degree on time?
Four years after beginning their degree, 30% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 57% of the students had graduated and after eight years 59% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of PAFA is 57%. This is the percentage of students who completed their degree within 150% of the published time. That means six years for a standard bachelor's degree program.
The typical PAFA student takes 4.08 years to complete their bachelor's degree.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 27 | 47% |
| Six Years | 33 | 57% |
| Eight Years | 1 | 2% |
| Did Not Complete | 24 | 41% |
Approximately 24 students or 41% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 24 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
9 transferred to another institution.
PAFA lost contact with the remaining 15 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 9 | 37.5% |
| Dropped Out | 15 | 62.5% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| Hispanic | 100% |
| International | 100% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 40% |
| White | 67% |
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.
The majority of students at PAFA are considered 'non-traditional students' who either not first-time, or not full-time, or both.
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 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts represent 40% of the students in the class of 2015, and 33.33% of PAFA bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 30%, first-time students in the PAFA class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the PAFA graduation rate was 48%, and by the eight year mark, 48% of the cohort had completed their degree.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes full-time is 37.92% after four years, 46.43% after six years, and 47.82% after eight years.
| First-Time / Full-Time Completions | PAFA | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 30% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 48% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 48% | 47.82% |
12 first-time / full-time students or 52% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
7 transferred to another institution.
PAFA lost contact with the remaining 5 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 7 | 58.33% |
| Dropped Out | 5 | 41.67% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on PAFA first-time, part-time students.
33 PAFA students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 56.90% 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 67%, 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 70%.
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.
| Returning / Full-Time Completions | PAFA | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 67% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 70% | 55.07% |
10 non first-time / part-time students or 30% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
2 transferred to another institution.
PAFA lost contact with the remaining 8 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 2 | 20.00% |
| Dropped Out | 8 | 80.00% |
2 PAFA students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 3.45% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 0%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate lower than the national average.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 0%.
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.
2 non first-time / part-time students or 100% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
0 transferred to another institution.
PAFA lost contact with the remaining 2 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 0 | 0.00% |
| Dropped Out | 2 | 100.00% |
