University of Iowa four-year graduation rates remain over 50 percent for second year

IOWA CITY - The University of Iowa's four-year graduation rate remains above 50 percent, which it achieved for the first time in recent history last year, and highest among the state's three public universities.

But, while four-year graduation rates at other institutions increased year over year, UI's percentage remained mostly static - dropping slightly from 51.1 percent to 50.9 percent, according to a new Board of Regents report.

Iowa State University's four-year graduation rate for students who entered in 2010 was 43.2 percent, up from 40.7 percent. University of Northern Iowa's most recent four-year graduate rate was 39.2 percent, up from 37.6 percent, according to regent documents.

The new report also shows progress on one-year retention rates. UI saw a slight increase from 85.8 percent of the entering class in 2012 to 86.1 percent of the entering class in 2013. UNI saw a rise in students who remain on campus after the first year from 82.9 percent in 2012 to 84.7 percent in 2013.

Iowa State's one-year retention rates dropped from 87.1 percent in 2012 to 86.4 percent in 2013.

Those graduate and retention figures matter under a new funding model approved by the Board of Regents last year. The board is asking lawmakers to approve the new way of allocating state dollars to Iowa's public universities that ties a majority of the money to resident enrollment and a lesser portion to metrics like degree completion and progress to degree.

Iowa State's one-year retention rates remain highest among the three public universities. UI's four-year graduation rates are highest among the institutions, as is its six-year graduation rate, which increased slightly from 69.6 percent to 70 percent, according to the most recent report.

Iowa State's six year graduation rates rose to 68.9 percent from 68 percent, while UNI's six-year rates dropped from 66.5 percent to 63.8 percent.

According to the report, the regent average six-year graduation rates and one-year retention rates have 'consistently exceeded the national averages.” The average six-year graduation rate for the 2008 entering classes at the regent universities was 68.4, compared to the national average of 49.7 percent.

The regent universities one-year retention average was 86.1 percent, compared to the national average of 77.9 percent for all public four-year colleges.