The race toward retention

The retention rate in a college is a very important number. It is the measure of the number of college freshman that return to that same college for their sophomore year. Every school in the U.S measures their retention rates annually. The schools analyze these rates and try to come up with ways to increase their rate. When looking into colleges, many students look up the retention rate of their prospective schools to find out if they think that school will be a good choice for them.

The American College Testing Program (ACT,Inc) also measures the retention rates annually, but unlike the colleges, they measure the rates world-wide. In a recent measure done by ACT,Inc, it showed that in 2007 and 2008 the average retention rates were at about 65%. This number factors in different reasons students may not return to college. The main factors include the students that simply drop out and students that transfer to other schools. Although most freshman college students probably have it in their minds that they will return for their sophomore year, the overall retention rates are on a steady roller coaster proving that many students do not return to school for one reason or another.