Academics & admissions
Best first-year retention
The share of full-time first-years who come back for a second year — the earliest signal that students are happy and supported.
99%
#1 · Brown University
Division I · The Ivy League · Providence, RI
78%
Median
of 1,085 schools, all divisions
1.3×
Top vs median
how far the leader sits above the middle
98%
10th place
the cut for a top-ten list
Top 15
Every school, all divisions
#1 · Brown Universityevery school
The spread across 1,085 schools; the median is 78%.
How it is measured
Full-time retention rate, fall to fall.
Related
The full list · top 100
| # | School | Return for year two | Graduate | Student–faculty | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brown University Division I · The Ivy League · Providence, RI | 99% | 96% | 6:1 | |
| 2 | Harvard University Division I · The Ivy League · Boston, MA | 99% | 97% | 7:1 | |
| 3 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology Division III · New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference · Cambridge, MA | 99% | 96% | 3:1 | |
| 4 | University of Chicago Division III · University Athletic Association · Chicago, IL | 99% | 95% | 5:1 | |
| 5 | U.S. Coast Guard Academy Division III · New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference · New London, CT | 99% | 88% | 7:1 | |
| 6 | Yale University Division I · The Ivy League · New Haven, CT | 99% | 96% | 6:1 | |
| 7 | Bowdoin College Division III · New England Small College Athletic Conference · Brunswick, ME | 98% | 96% | 9:1 | |
| 8 | California Institute of Technology Division III · Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conf. · Pasadena, CA | 98% | 93% | 3:1 | |
| 9 | Cornell University Division I · The Ivy League · Ithaca, NY | 98% | 95% | 9:1 | |
| 10 | Dartmouth College Division I · The Ivy League · Hanover, NH | 98% | 96% | 7:1 | |
| 11 | Georgia Institute of Technology Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Atlanta, GA | 98% | 92% | 18:1 | |
| 12 | Johns Hopkins University Division III · Centennial Conference · Baltimore, MD | 98% | 95% | 6:1 | |
| 13 | Northeastern University Division I · Coastal Athletic Association · Boston, MA | 98% | 90% | 16:1 | |
| 14 | Rice University Division I · American Conference · Houston, TX | 98% | 96% | 6:1 | |
| 15 | Stanford University Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Stanford, CA | 98% | 93% | 6:1 | |
| 16 | University of Michigan Division I · Big Ten Conference · Ann Arbor, MI | 98% | 93% | 11:1 | |
| 17 | University of Notre Dame Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Notre Dame, IN | 98% | 97% | 9:1 | |
| 18 | University of Pennsylvania Division I · The Ivy League · Philadelphia, PA | 98% | 97% | 8:1 | |
| 19 | Amherst College Division III · New England Small College Athletic Conference · Amherst, MA | 97% | 93% | 7:1 | |
| 20 | Carnegie Mellon University Division III · University Athletic Association · Pittsburgh, PA | 97% | 93% | 5:1 | |
| 21 | Columbia University-Barnard College Division I · The Ivy League · New York, NY | 97% | 95% | 6:1 | |
| 22 | Georgetown University Division I · BIG EAST Conference · Washington, DC | 97% | 94% | 11:1 | |
| 23 | Northwestern University Division I · Big Ten Conference · Evanston, IL | 97% | 96% | 6:1 | |
| 24 | Princeton University Division I · The Ivy League · Princeton, NJ | 97% | 97% | 5:1 | |
| 25 | Swarthmore College Division III · Centennial Conference · Swarthmore, PA | 97% | 94% | 8:1 | |
| 26 | University of California, Berkeley Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Berkeley, CA | 97% | 93% | 18:1 | |
| 27 | University of California, Los Angeles Division I · Big Ten Conference · Los Angeles, CA | 97% | 93% | 18:1 | |
| 28 | University of Florida Division I · Southeastern Conference · Gainesville, FL | 97% | 91% | 16:1 | |
| 29 | University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Chapel Hill, NC | 97% | 92% | 15:1 | |
| 30 | University of Southern California Division I · Big Ten Conference · Los Angeles, CA | 97% | 92% | 9:1 | |
| 31 | University of Virginia Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Charlottesville, VA | 97% | 95% | 15:1 | |
| 32 | Williams College Division III · New England Small College Athletic Conference · Williamstown, MA | 97% | 97% | 6:1 | |
| 33 | Bucknell University Division I · Patriot League · Lewisburg, PA | 96% | 86% | 9:1 | |
| 34 | Carleton College Division III · Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference · Northfield, MN | 96% | 91% | 8:1 | |
| 35 | Claremont McKenna-Harvey Mudd-Scripps Colleges Division III · Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conf. · Claremont, CA | 96% | 95% | 8:1 | |
| 36 | Duke University Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Durham, NC | 96% | 96% | 6:1 | |
| 37 | Emory University Division III · University Athletic Association · Atlanta, GA | 96% | 92% | 9:1 | |
| 38 | Florida State University Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Tallahassee, FL | 96% | 83% | 17:1 | |
| 39 | Hamilton College Division III · New England Small College Athletic Conference · Clinton, NY | 96% | 91% | 9:1 | |
| 40 | Hillsdale College Division II · Great Midwest Athletic Conference · Hillsdale, MI | 96% | 85% | 8:1 | |
| 41 | New York University Division III · University Athletic Association · New York, NY | 96% | 89% | 8:1 | |
| 42 | Pomona-Pitzer Colleges Division III · Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conf. · Claremont, CA | 96% | 93% | 7:1 | |
| 43 | Tufts University Division III · New England Small College Athletic Conference · Medford, MA | 96% | 93% | 10:1 | |
| 44 | University of Maryland, College Park Division I · Big Ten Conference · College Park, MD | 96% | 88% | 18:1 | |
| 45 | University of Texas at Austin Division I · Southeastern Conference · Austin, TX | 96% | 88% | 18:1 | |
| 46 | U.S. Air Force Academy Division I · Mountain West Conference · USAF Academy, CO | 96% | 88% | 7:1 | |
| 47 | U.S. Military Academy Division I · Patriot League · West Point, NY | 96% | 85% | 7:1 | |
| 48 | U.S. Naval Academy Division I · Patriot League · Annapolis, MD | 96% | 92% | 8:1 | |
| 49 | Vanderbilt University Division I · Southeastern Conference · Nashville, TN | 96% | 93% | 7:1 | |
| 50 | Washington University in St. Louis Division III · University Athletic Association · St. Louis, MO | 96% | 94% | 7:1 | |
| 51 | Wellesley College Division III · New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference · Wellesley, MA | 96% | 91% | 7:1 | |
| 52 | Boston College Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Chestnut Hill, MA | 95% | 91% | 13:1 | |
| 53 | Boston University Division I · Patriot League · Boston, MA | 95% | 90% | 10:1 | |
| 54 | California Polytechnic State University Division I · Big West Conference · San Luis Obispo, CA | 95% | 85% | 18:1 | |
| 55 | Colorado College Division III · Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference · Colorado Springs, CO | 95% | 86% | 9:1 | |
| 56 | Davidson College Division I · Atlantic 10 Conference · Davidson, NC | 95% | 92% | 9:1 | |
| 57 | Macalester College Division III · Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference · St. Paul, MN | 95% | 90% | 10:1 | |
| 58 | University of Georgia Division I · Southeastern Conference · Athens, GA | 95% | 87% | 17:1 | |
| 59 | University of Washington Division I · Big Ten Conference · Seattle, WA | 95% | 84% | 20:1 | |
| 60 | University of Wisconsin-Madison Division I · Big Ten Conference · Madison, WI | 95% | 89% | 18:1 | |
| 61 | Villanova University Division I · BIG EAST Conference · Villanova, PA | 95% | 92% | 10:1 | |
| 62 | Wake Forest University Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Winston-Salem, NC | 95% | 91% | 9:1 | |
| 63 | Washington and Lee University Division III · Old Dominion Athletic Conf. · Lexington, VA | 95% | 95% | 8:1 | |
| 64 | Wesleyan University (Connecticut) Division III · New England Small College Athletic Conference · Middletown, CT | 95% | 92% | 7:1 | |
| 65 | William & Mary Division I · Coastal Athletic Association · Williamsburg, VA | 95% | 91% | 13:1 | |
| 66 | Babson College Division III · New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference · Babson Park, MA | 94% | 92% | 16:1 | |
| 67 | Bates College Division III · New England Small College Athletic Conference · Lewiston, ME | 94% | 91% | 10:1 | |
| 68 | Gonzaga University Division I · Pac-12 Conference · Spokane, WA | 94% | 87% | 12:1 | |
| 69 | Haverford College Division III · Centennial Conference · Haverford, PA | 94% | 89% | 8:1 | |
| 70 | Santa Clara University Division I · West Coast Conference · Santa Clara, CA | 94% | 88% | 10:1 | |
| 71 | Stevens Institute of Technology Division III · Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom · Hoboken, NJ | 94% | 90% | 10:1 | |
| 72 | Texas A&M University, College Station Division I · Southeastern Conference · College Station, TX | 94% | 84% | 19:1 | |
| 73 | Texas Christian University Division I · Big 12 Conference · Fort Worth, TX | 94% | 85% | 14:1 | |
| 74 | The Ohio State University Division I · Big Ten Conference · Columbus, OH | 94% | 88% | 18:1 | |
| 75 | Tulane University Division I · American Conference · New Orleans, LA | 94% | 89% | 8:1 | |
| 76 | University of California, Irvine Division I · Big West Conference · Irvine, CA | 94% | 86% | 18:1 | |
| 77 | University of California, San Diego Division I · Big West Conference · San Diego, CA | 94% | 88% | 19:1 | |
| 78 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Division I · Big Ten Conference · Champaign, IL | 94% | 85% | 20:1 | |
| 79 | Vassar College Division III · Liberty League · Poughkeepsie, NY | 94% | 89% | 8:1 | |
| 80 | Wheaton College (Illinois) Division III · College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin · Wheaton, IL | 94% | 87% | 10:1 | |
| 81 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute Division III · New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference · Worcester, MA | 94% | 88% | 13:1 | |
| 82 | Auburn University Division I · Southeastern Conference · Auburn, AL | 93% | 79% | 21:1 | |
| 83 | Bentley University Division II · Northeast 10 Conference · Waltham, MA | 93% | 88% | 12:1 | |
| 84 | Clemson University Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Clemson, SC | 93% | 88% | 16:1 | |
| 85 | Colgate University Division I · Patriot League · Hamilton, NY | 93% | 91% | 9:1 | |
| 86 | College of the Holy Cross Division I · Patriot League · Worcester, MA | 93% | 90% | 9:1 | |
| 87 | Colorado School of Mines Division II · Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference · Golden, CO | 93% | 79% | 17:1 | |
| 88 | Grinnell College Division III · Midwest Conference · Grinnell, IA | 93% | 87% | 9:1 | |
| 89 | Lehigh University Division I · Patriot League · Bethlehem, PA | 93% | 89% | 10:1 | |
| 90 | North Carolina State University Division I · Atlantic Coast Conference · Raleigh, NC | 93% | 85% | 15:1 | |
| 91 | Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick Division I · Big Ten Conference · New Brunswick, NJ | 93% | 85% | 15:1 | |
| 92 | Smith College Division III · New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference · Northampton, MA | 93% | 90% | 8:1 | |
| 93 | University of California, Davis Division I · Mountain West Conference · Davis, CA | 93% | 85% | 21:1 | |
| 94 | University of Richmond Division I · Atlantic 10 Conference · Richmond, VA | 93% | 88% | 7:1 | |
| 95 | University of Rochester Division III · University Athletic Association · Rochester, NY | 93% | 84% | 9:1 | |
| 96 | Yeshiva University Division III · Skyline Conference · New York, NY | 93% | 85% | 7:1 | |
| 97 | Case Western Reserve University Division III · University Athletic Association · Cleveland, OH | 92% | 87% | 9:1 | |
| 98 | Creighton University Division I · BIG EAST Conference · Omaha, NE | 92% | 80% | 10:1 | |
| 99 | Florida International University Division I · Conference USA · Miami, FL | 92% | 74% | 24:1 | |
| 100 | George Washington University Division I · Atlantic 10 Conference · Washington, DC | 92% | 85% | 12:1 |
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