Dive Summary:
- New research from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center shows that although only one in five community college students transfer to a four-year institution, 60% of those transfer students earn their bachelor's degree within four years--and the number rises to 71% for transfer students who first earned an associate degree.
- These new statistics not only give a rare look at how transfer students perform on a national level, but also account for the "swirl" effect that results from students transferring multiple times or moving in and out of an institution.
- The National Student Clearinghouse is a nonprofit with 3,300 institutional members who enroll 96% of the nation's college students, and it has been able to track cohorts of millions of students going back to 2005 and is now using that database to create "snapshot reports."
From the article:
Only one in five community college students transfer to a four-year institution. But 60 percent of those who do so earn a bachelor’s degree within four years, according to new research from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Another 12 percent are sticking with it and remain enrolled after four years. Relatively good graduation rates for community college transfers get even better for students who complete their associate degree before heading to a four-year institution. The research found that 71 percent of those transfer students earned a bachelor degree within four years of transferring, with 80 percent either graduating or remaining enrolled. ...