Understanding College Graduation Rates Why Student Population Matters

Illustration comparing traditional college graduation rates with broader outcome measures for first-time, transfer, full-time and part-time students.

The same graduation-rate metric can tell different stories depending on who is included in the population being measured.

Illustration showing how traditional IPEDS Graduation Rates and broader Outcome Measures represent different student populations. The image highlights first-time, non-first-time, full-time and part-time students and the importance of understanding who is included when interpreting college graduation data. Created for the Understanding College Outcomes series.