low retention rate schools

[Anonymous]

Are there any schools with a low freshman retention rate (<90%) that deserve more recognition?

[Anonymous]

uncompetitive public colleges

[Anonymous]

So you want to look at lower tier public schools and middling private schools?

[Anonymous]

Probably but I'm worried about them - I'm worried the peer group isn't in it for the long run/kids drop out, etc. I visited a school with a low retention rate that I really liked and so did my DC, but I know 2 kids that dropped out of that school already - and I worry my kid would get in with a group that isn't committed to 4 years.

Not sure what comes first here - the chicken or the egg, but I do want my kid to go to a school that most people finish.

[Anonymous]

Was this a COVID thing? How were retention rates historically?

What were the experiences of the two people who dropped out and were those experiences recent?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Probably but I'm worried about them - I'm worried the peer group isn't in it for the long run/kids drop out, etc. I visited a school with a low retention rate that I really liked and so did my DC, but I know 2 kids that dropped out of that school already - and I worry my kid would get in with a group that isn't committed to 4 years.

Not sure what comes first here - the chicken or the egg, but I do want my kid to go to a school that most people finish.

+1

[Anonymous]

An admissions professional I follow is adamant that retention is largely about the inputs (students and their backgrounds) and shouldn't be overly judged.

I definitely wouldn't treat less than 90% as "low." According to USNews, Harvard is at 92% and Yale has "only" a 90% retention rate. So yes, there are lots of solid schools below 90%. E.g. Trinity, Connecticut, Reed, Mount Holyoke and Bryn Mawr at at 89%. American and Dickinson are at 88%.

I think it's fair to think about the student body and their commitment to education, but I wouldn't be too strict in using one measure to understand that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An admissions professional I follow is adamant that retention is largely about the inputs (students and their backgrounds) and shouldn't be overly judged.

I definitely wouldn't treat less than 90% as "low." According to USNews, Harvard is at 92% and Yale has "only" a 90% retention rate. So yes, there are lots of solid schools below 90%. E.g. Trinity, Connecticut, Reed, Mount Holyoke and Bryn Mawr at at 89%. American and Dickinson are at 88%.

I think it's fair to think about the student body and their commitment to education, but I wouldn't be too strict in using one measure to understand that.

exactly! I look at international student %, low income %, First Gen % as a start. All of those groups are much more likely to "not be able to continue" for a variety of reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with the quality of the universities education or for reasons that won't affect my kid (Ie. both parents have advanced degrees in our household, so we understand how to help our kid navigate college. We are full pay and cost will not be an issue---our kid doesn't have to worry about working to pay for college or possibly needing to quit/take a break because the family at home needs them to work or be at home to help care for family members, etc. )

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Probably but I'm worried about them - I'm worried the peer group isn't in it for the long run/kids drop out, etc. I visited a school with a low retention rate that I really liked and so did my DC, but I know 2 kids that dropped out of that school already - and I worry my kid would get in with a group that isn't committed to 4 years.

Not sure what comes first here - the chicken or the egg, but I do want my kid to go to a school that most people finish.

Retention rates are much more a function of non-academic issues, like cost, family responsibilities, etc. than it is about not being able to hack the work. That’s yet another glaring flaw with rankings systems. They reward colleges that “cream skim” from wealthy and UMC students who are very unlikely to drop out for those reasons, and punish ones who take first gen and Pell Grant students who are more likely to be forced to suspend their education for financial or familial reasons. There are 100s of colleges where almost anyone can find their intellectual peer cohort. No one on this board should be worried that their kid will be too smart for any college that they’ve ever even heard of.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Probably but I'm worried about them - I'm worried the peer group isn't in it for the long run/kids drop out, etc. I visited a school with a low retention rate that I really liked and so did my DC, but I know 2 kids that dropped out of that school already - and I worry my kid would get in with a group that isn't committed to 4 years.

Not sure what comes first here - the chicken or the egg, but I do want my kid to go to a school that most people finish.

OP: Are you comfortable naming the school ? I ask because it may generate more specific and meaningful comments.

[Anonymous]

Also, at many large public universities, there is a significant difference in overall freshmen retention rates versus honors college freshmen retention rates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Probably but I'm worried about them - I'm worried the peer group isn't in it for the long run/kids drop out, etc. I visited a school with a low retention rate that I really liked and so did my DC, but I know 2 kids that dropped out of that school already - and I worry my kid would get in with a group that isn't committed to 4 years.

Not sure what comes first here - the chicken or the egg, but I do want my kid to go to a school that most people finish.

Retention rates are much more a function of non-academic issues, like cost, family responsibilities, etc. than it is about not being able to hack the work. That’s yet another glaring flaw with rankings systems. They reward colleges that “cream skim” from wealthy and UMC students who are very unlikely to drop out for those reasons, and punish ones who take first gen and Pell Grant students who are more likely to be forced to suspend their education for financial or familial reasons. There are 100s of colleges where almost anyone can find their intellectual peer cohort. No one on this board should be worried that their kid will be too smart for any college that they’ve ever even heard of.

I'm a PP - I'm not worried my kid is too smart for the school, I'm worried his friends won't take the school seriously and will be inclined to quit and work or take time off because that's what all the kids are doing, or whatever.

[Anonymous]

<90% is too high a benchmark for your question, Op. Too high for finding choices. Accept closer to 80%

[Anonymous]

I would think twice about private schools with freshman retention rates below that.

There's quite a few decent public colleges with freshman retention rates in the 85-90% range.

[Anonymous]

<85% is low by my definition