by our College Data Analytics TeamAre students coming back to Whittier after their first year? Are Whittier students graduating in a timely manner? What happens to the students who don't graduate? Get all your questions answered here.
The percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year is tracked as the freshmen retention rate.
With 73% students making it past their freshmen year, Whittier 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 California, the average is 73.07%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Whittier | 73% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| California | 73.07% |
How many of the estimated 393 students in the class of 2015 completed their degree within eight years?
Four years after beginning their degree, 61% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 69% of the students had graduated and after eight years 70% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of Whittier is 69%. 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 Whittier student takes 4.09 years to complete their bachelor's degree.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 352 | 62% |
| Six Years | 393 | 69% |
| Eight Years | 1 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 172 | 30% |
Approximately 172 students or 30% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 172 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
126 transferred to another institution.
Whittier lost contact with the remaining 46 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 126 | 73.3% |
| Dropped Out | 46 | 26.7% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| Asian | 51% |
| Black / African-American | 44% |
| Hawaiian | 100% |
| Hispanic | 70% |
| International | 38% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 76% |
| Unknown | 100% |
| White | 66% |
First-time, full-time students, under the age of 25 are known as traditional students. These students are more likely to graduate in four years than so called 'non-traditional' students that includes part-time students, transfer students, or adult learners. Some schools cater to non-traditional students and it may affect their overall graduation rates.
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 Whittier are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.
How does this school do graduating the type of student you are most concerned bout?
First-time / full-time students at Whittier College represent 77% of the students in the class of 2015, and 76.84% of Whittier bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 61%, first-time students in the Whittier class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the Whittier graduation rate was 69%, and by the eight year mark, 69% 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 | Whittier | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 61% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 69% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 69% | 47.82% |
134 first-time / full-time students or 31% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
99 transferred to another institution.
Whittier lost contact with the remaining 35 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 99 | 73.88% |
| Dropped Out | 35 | 26.12% |
First-time / part-time students at Whittier College represent 0.71% of the students in the class of 2015.
| First-Time / Part-Time Completions | Whittier | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 1% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 1% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 25% | 23.72% |
3 first-time / part-time students or 75% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
1 transferred to another institution.
Whittier lost contact with the remaining 2 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 1 | 33.33% |
| Dropped Out | 2 | 66.67% |
122 Whittier students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 21.55% 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 73%, 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 73%.
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 | Whittier | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 73% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 73% | 55.07% |
33 non first-time / part-time students or 27% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
25 transferred to another institution.
Whittier 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 | 25 | 75.76% |
| Dropped Out | 8 | 24.24% |
4 Whittier students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 0.71% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 50%, 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 50%.
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 | Whittier | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 50% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 50% | 37.80% |
2 non first-time / part-time students or 50% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
1 transferred to another institution.
Whittier lost contact with the remaining 1 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 1 | 50.00% |
| Dropped Out | 1 | 50.00% |
