Freshman Retention Rate National Universities

As many as one in three first year students doesn't make it back for sophomore year. The reasons run the gamut, from family problems and loneliness to academic struggles and a lack of money. If schools you're considering have a low freshman retention rate, you'll want to ask the admissions office why. Some colleges do a great job of taking care of their freshman; some don't. The retention rates shown below, from highest to lowest, are the average proportion of freshmen entering starting in fall 2007 through fall 2010 who returned to school the following fall.

Save School Average freshman retention rate
Columbia University

New York, NY

99%
Yale University

New Haven, CT

99%
Brown University

Providence, RI

98%
California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, CA

98%
Dartmouth College

Hanover, NH

98%
Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

98%
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, MA

98%
Princeton University

Princeton, NJ

98%
Stanford University

Stanford, CA

98%
University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

98%
University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, IN

98%
University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

98%
Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

97%
Duke University

Durham, NC

97%
Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD

97%
Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

97%
Rice University

Houston, TX

97%
Tufts University

Medford, MA

97%
University of California–​Berkeley

Berkeley, CA

97%
University of California–​Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA

97%
University of North Carolina–​Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC

97%
University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA

97%
University of Virginia

Charlottesville, VA

97%
Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

97%
Washington University in St. Louis

St. Louis, MO

97%
Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

96%
Georgetown University

Washington, DC

96%
University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

96%
University of Michigan–​Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI

96%
Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA

95%
College of William and Mary

Williamsburg, VA

95%
Emory University

Atlanta, GA

95%
University of California–​San Diego

La Jolla, CA

95%
University of Rochester

Rochester, NY

95%
Georgia Institute of Technology

Atlanta, GA

94%
Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA

94%
University of California–​Irvine

Irvine, CA

94%
University of Georgia

Athens, GA

94%
University of Illinois–​Urbana-​Champaign

Champaign, IL

94%
University of Maryland–​College Park

College Park, MD

94%
University of Wisconsin–​Madison

Madison, WI

94%
Wake Forest University

Winston-Salem, NC

94%
Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Worcester, MA

94%
Brandeis University

Waltham, MA

93%
George Washington University

Washington, DC

93%
Northeastern University

Boston, MA

93%
Ohio State University–​Columbus

Columbus, OH

93%
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Troy, NY

93%
University of Connecticut

Storrs, CT

93%
University of Washington

Seattle, WA

93%

1 2 3 .. 6>

U.S. News College Compass

Expanded Profiles for 1,600 Schools

SAT Scores and GPAs

Comprehensive Financial Aid Info

Advertisement
Most Popular Slideshows
Top 10 National Universities

See the top schools in the 2013 Best Colleges rankings.

Top 10 National Liberal Arts Colleges

Explore the top liberal arts schools in this year's rankings.

College Search

State/Region

Region

State

Include out-of-state costs
Knowledge Centers

Looking at colleges? Find out what you need to know.

Applying to College
Finding the Right School
Paying for College
Studying in the United States
Find Online Programs