Graduation and Transfer-Out Rates

What is Student Right-To-Know? 
Student Right-To-Know is a federal law that requires all colleges and universities to disclose certain information to students. This handout provides the information that a college must provide to students on graduation rates and transfer-out rates for full-time students seeking degrees at Rochester Community and Technical College (RCTC).

What is graduation rate and what is transfer-out rate? 
Federal regulations specify how to calculate the graduation and transfer rates. The rates come from a study of Rochester Community and Technical College students who started at the college in the fall of 2011. The study includes all first-time students who enrolled full-time that fall and were seeking to earn a degree, diploma or certificate at the college. The graduation rate is the percentage of these students who graduated from RCTC within three years. The transfer-out rate is the percentage of these students who did not graduate from RCTC, but instead transferred to another college or university within three years.

What do I need to know about these rates? 
These rates do not report on all students at Rochester Community and Technical College. The 940 first-time, full-time students in the study were 16 percent of all students enrolled at RCTC in fall of 2011.

What are the graduation and transfer-out rates for Rochester students and how do they compare to rates for other colleges?

  • The graduation rate for RCTC was 20 percent.
  • The transfer-out rate for RCTC was 29 percent.
  • The combination of the graduation rate and the transfer-out rate for RCTC was 49 percent. The national average combined rate for similar colleges was 56 percent.

Why don’t more Rochester students graduate or transfer in three years?

  • Since RCTC has an “open door” mission, many new students need to take “developmental” courses to improve their reading, writing or math skills before taking other college courses;
  • Students who switch from full-time to part-time enrollment or “stop out” for one or more semesters are more likely to take more than three years to graduate;
  • Some students take jobs before they graduate;
  • Other students delay their education for personal, family or financial reasons.
Disaggregated Student Right-To-Know Graduation and Transfer-Out Rates – 150% of Normal Time 
Rochester Community and Technical College Graduation Rate Transfer-out Rate Combined Rate
Total Fall 2011 Cohort 20% 29% 49%
Gender
   Men 17% 30% 47%
   Women 23% 27% 50%
Students of Color 10% 31% 41%
Disaggregated Rates by Race/Ethnicity
   Hispanic/Latino 11% 16% 26%
   American Indian or Alaska Native NR NR NR
   Asian 32% 24% 56%
   Black or African American 6% 41% 47%
   Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander NR NR NR
   White 23% 28% 51%
   Two or more races 10% 23% 33%
   Race and ethnicity unknown NR NR NR
Notes:
Students of Color Includes: Hispanic/Latino, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, Two or more races students
“NR” indicates Not Reported: Disaggregated rates for race groups not reported to protect student privacy. Due to low count of a group’s starting cohort, completers, or transfers  the disaggregated rates are not reported.
Data: IPEDS 2014 Reported Figures
Prepared by: RCTC Institutional Research