by our College Data Analytics TeamAre students coming back to Southern Union State Community College after their first year? Are Southern Union State Community College students graduating in a timely manner? What happens to the students who don't graduate? Get all your questions answered here.
Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.
With 60% students making it past their freshmen year, Southern Union State Community College 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 Alabama, the average is 66.79%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Southern Union State Community College | 60% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Alabama | 66.79% |
How many of the estimated 553 students in the class of 2015 completed their degree within eight years?
Four years after beginning their degree, 16% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 17% of the students had graduated and after eight years 18% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of Southern Union State Community College is 17%. 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.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 472 | 15% |
| Six Years | 553 | 17% |
| Eight Years | 34 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 2,624 | 82% |
Approximately 2624 students or 82% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 2624 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
625 transferred to another institution.
Southern Union State Community College lost contact with the remaining 1964 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 625 | 23.8% |
| Dropped Out | 1,964 | 74.8% |
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.
The majority of students at Southern Union State Community College are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.
Comparing the graduation rates of specific cohorts shown below will be more revealing than the overall statistics shared above.
First-time / full-time students at Southern Union State Community College represent 41% of the students in the class of 2015, and 41.59% of Southern Union State Community College bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 16%, first-time students in the Southern Union State Community College class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the Southern Union State Community College graduation rate was 18%, and by the eight year mark, 18% 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 | Southern Union State Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 16% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 18% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 18% | 47.82% |
1064 first-time / full-time students or 82% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
472 transferred to another institution.
Southern Union State Community College lost contact with the remaining 578 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 472 | 44.36% |
| Dropped Out | 578 | 54.32% |
First-time / part-time students at Southern Union State Community College represent 24.35% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six-year graduation rate of 4%, first-time, part-time students in the Southern Union State Community College class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 5%.
Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 14.37% after four years, 21.59% after six years, 23.72% after eight years.
| First-Time / Part-Time Completions | Southern Union State Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 3% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 4% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 5% | 23.72% |
744 first-time / part-time students or 95% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
8 are still enrolled.
43 transferred to another institution.
Southern Union State Community College lost contact with the remaining 693 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 8 | 1.08% |
| Transferred | 43 | 5.78% |
| Dropped Out | 693 | 93.15% |
620 Southern Union State Community College students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 19.31% 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 24%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate lower than the national average for students in this category.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 25%.
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 | Southern Union State Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 24% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 25% | 55.07% |
463 non first-time / part-time students or 75% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
8 are still enrolled.
102 transferred to another institution.
Southern Union State Community College lost contact with the remaining 353 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 8 | 1.73% |
| Transferred | 102 | 22.03% |
| Dropped Out | 353 | 76.24% |
505 Southern Union State Community College students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 15.73% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 28%, 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 30%.
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.
| Returning / Part-Time Completions | Southern Union State Community College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 28% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 30% | 37.80% |
353 non first-time / part-time students or 70% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
5 are still enrolled.
8 transferred to another institution.
Southern Union State Community College lost contact with the remaining 340 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 5 | 1.42% |
| Transferred | 8 | 2.27% |
| Dropped Out | 340 | 96.32% |
