by our College Data Analytics TeamAre students coming back to ULM after their first year? Are ULM 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 74% students making it past their freshmen year, ULM 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 | |
|---|---|
| ULM | 74% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Louisiana | 67.86% |
Of the 892 students in the class of 2015, how many completed their degree on time?
Four years after beginning their degree, 20% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 43% of the students had graduated and after eight years 45% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of ULM is 43%. 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 average ULM student takes 4.13 years to graduate with their bachelors.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 574 | 28% |
| Six Years | 892 | 43% |
| Eight Years | 48 | 2% |
| Did Not Complete | 1,128 | 55% |
Approximately 1128 students or 55% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 1128 students who did not complete their degree?
9 are still enrolled.
687 transferred to another institution.
ULM lost contact with the remaining 411 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 9 | 0.8% |
| Transferred | 687 | 60.9% |
| Dropped Out | 411 | 36.4% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 50% |
| Asian | 72% |
| Black / African-American | 49% |
| Hawaiian | 100% |
| Hispanic | 60% |
| International | 70% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 62% |
| Unknown | 56% |
| White | 58% |
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 ULM 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 University of Louisiana at Monroe represent 58% of the students in the class of 2015, and 54.04% of ULM bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 20%, first-time students in the ULM class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the ULM graduation rate was 40%, and by the eight year mark, 43% 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 | ULM | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 20% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 40% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 43% | 47.82% |
692 first-time / full-time students or 57% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
9 are still enrolled.
459 transferred to another institution.
ULM lost contact with the remaining 215 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 9 | 1.30% |
| Transferred | 459 | 66.33% |
| Dropped Out | 215 | 31.07% |
First-time / part-time students at University of Louisiana at Monroe represent 1.93% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six-year graduation rate of 10%, first-time, part-time students in the ULM class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 13%.
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 | ULM | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 3% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 10% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 13% | 23.72% |
35 first-time / part-time students or 87% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
2 are still enrolled.
15 transferred to another institution.
ULM lost contact with the remaining 18 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 2 | 5.71% |
| Transferred | 15 | 42.86% |
| Dropped Out | 18 | 51.43% |
537 ULM students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 25.95% 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 54%, 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 55%.
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 | ULM | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 54% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 55% | 55.07% |
241 non first-time / part-time students or 45% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
5 are still enrolled.
138 transferred to another institution.
ULM lost contact with the remaining 98 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 5 | 2.07% |
| Transferred | 138 | 57.26% |
| Dropped Out | 98 | 40.66% |
282 ULM students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 13.63% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 41%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate higher than the national average.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 43%.
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 | ULM | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 41% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 43% | 37.80% |
160 non first-time / part-time students or 57% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
5 are still enrolled.
75 transferred to another institution.
ULM lost contact with the remaining 80 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 5 | 3.13% |
| Transferred | 75 | 46.88% |
| Dropped Out | 80 | 50.00% |
