The 20 top-ranked US colleges and universities with the most dropouts

Andy KierszJun 13, 2019, 19:10 IST

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Not everyone who starts college finishes on time.
We ranked the top schools on U.S. News & World Report's 2019 Best National Universities and Best National Liberal Arts Colleges lists by the share of students who did not complete their degrees within six years of starting college.
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Not everyone who starts college finishes on time.

We took the top 50 schools on U.S. News & World Report's 2019 Best National Universities and Best National Liberal Arts Colleges lists and found the share of first-time, full-time, degree-seeking undergraduate students who completed a four-year degree within six years for each school using data from the US Department of Education.

The group of students used in this analysis started college during the 2011-2012 school year, six years before the 2017-2018 year, the most recent year for which data was available.

We ranked the top-rated schools by the share of that group that did not complete a degree at the school within six years. That share includes students who withdrew, transferred to other schools, or did not finish within six years for some other reason.

Here are the 20 highly rated colleges and universities with the lowest six-year graduation rates:

See The 20 top-ranked US colleges and universities with the most dropouts >>

20. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: 15.0% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 46th among national universities

Location: Champaign, Illinois

18. University of California – Irvine: 15.1% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 33rd among national universities

Location: Irvine, California

18. Pepperdine University: 15.1% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 46th among national universities

Location: Malibu, California

17. Connecticut College: 15.2% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 46th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: New London, Connecticut

16. University of California – San Diego: 15.5% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: 41st among national universities

Location: La Jolla, California

15. Occidental College: 15.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 39th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Los Angeles, California

14. Gettysburg College: 16.4% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 49th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

13. New York University: 16.5% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 30th among national universities

Location: New York, New York

12. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: 16.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 49th among national universities

Location: Troy, New York

11. Bryn Mawr College: 16.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 27th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania

10. Tulane University: 16.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 44th among national universities

Location: New Orleans, Louisiana

9. Pitzer College: 16.9% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 41st among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Claremont, California

8. University of Texas at Austin: 17.2% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 49th among national universities

Location: Austin, Texas

7. Case Western Reserve University: 17.4% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 42nd among national universities

Location: Cleveland, Ohio

6. Centre College: 17.7% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 46th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Danville, Kentucky

5. University of California – Santa Barbara: 18.5% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 30th among national universities

Location: Santa Barbara, California

4. Trinity College: 19.0% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 46th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Hartford, Connecticut

3. Thomas Aquinas College: 20.7% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 43rd among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Santa Paula, California

2. United States Air Force Academy: 22.4% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 30th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: USAF Academy, Colorado

1. Sewanee-University of the South: 22.7% of students did not graduate within six years.

U.S. News & World Report rank: Tied for 49th among national liberal arts colleges

Location: Sewanee, Tennessee

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The 20 top-ranked US colleges and universities with the most dropouts

20. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: 15.0% of students did not graduate within six years.

18. University of California – Irvine: 15.1% of students did not graduate within six years.

18. Pepperdine University: 15.1% of students did not graduate within six years.

17. Connecticut College: 15.2% of students did not graduate within six years.

16. University of California – San Diego: 15.5% of students did not graduate within six years.

15. Occidental College: 15.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

14. Gettysburg College: 16.4% of students did not graduate within six years.

13. New York University: 16.5% of students did not graduate within six years.

12. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: 16.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

11. Bryn Mawr College: 16.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

10. Tulane University: 16.6% of students did not graduate within six years.

9. Pitzer College: 16.9% of students did not graduate within six years.

8. University of Texas at Austin: 17.2% of students did not graduate within six years.

7. Case Western Reserve University: 17.4% of students did not graduate within six years.

6. Centre College: 17.7% of students did not graduate within six years.

5. University of California – Santa Barbara: 18.5% of students did not graduate within six years.

4. Trinity College: 19.0% of students did not graduate within six years.

3. Thomas Aquinas College: 20.7% of students did not graduate within six years.

2. United States Air Force Academy: 22.4% of students did not graduate within six years.

1. Sewanee-University of the South: 22.7% of students did not graduate within six years.