2 year schools v.s 4 year schools...

Although the retention rates seem to be on a downward spiral overall, two year public schools are the exception. As reported by ACT, Inc, two year public schools are at 54% up from 51%. Four year public schools are in second place at 71% while four year private schools are at number one with 73%. Although the four year schools, both public and private have a higher retention rate, their rates are a part of the steady decrease. Two year public schools have the lowest retention rate but they are also the only ones with a growing retention rate. People attending two year schools are beginning to return to the same school for their sophomore year. This may seem strange to some people.

The question is why are the two year schools seeing an increase in their retention rate but the four year schools are seeing a decrease? This may have something to do with the declining economy. People may be finding themselves in a situation where they can't pay for a four year school. The two year public schools are significantly cheaper than four year schools. In my opinion, you get the same education at a two year school as you would at a four year school. For the same education, you pay a much smaller amount for two years. My question is, why pay more? For the students and families of the students, cost has become more of an issue in the past few years. This may be the reason that more and more people are returning to community colleges for their second year of college. Some may wonder if we will continue to see a rise in retention rates in two year schools. According to ACT, there is no proven reason that retention rates in two year schools are rising and decreasing in four year schools. For now all we can do is wonder.