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Retention Rate

BRCC’s retention rate is the percentage of students from the fall cohort who either returned to BRCC in the following spring/fall semester or graduated from BRCC before the end of fall.

Fall-to-Spring Retention Rate

Target: We will attain the VCCS’s average retention rate from Fall to Spring.

Threshold of Acceptability: BRCC’s Fall-to-Spring retention rate will be no more than 5% lower than VCCS’s average retention rate from Fall to Spring.

Source: VCCS Retention Reports

Frequency of Assessment: Annually

Academic YearFall-to-Spring Retention PercentageVCCS Average Retention Percentage
2014-2015
74% ✔
72%
2015-2016
73% ✔
73%
2016-2017
73% ✔
73%
2017-2018
72% △
73%
2018-2019
71% △
74%
2019-2020
72% △
73%
2020-2021
66% ✖
72%
2021-2022
71% △
73%
2022-2023
72% ✔
72%
2023-2024
74% ✔
74%

Legend:
: Met Target
: Above Threshold
: Below Threshold

Line graph illustrating the above data table

Conclusion: The retention rate from Fall 2023 to Spring 2024 was 74%, meeting the target set by BRCC.

Fall-to-Spring FTIC Retention Rate

Target: We will attain the VCCS’s average FTIC retention rate from Fall to Spring.

Threshold of Acceptability: BRCC’s Fall-to-Spring FTIC retention rate will be no more than 5% lower than VCCS’s average FTIC retention rate from Fall to Spring.

Source: VCCS Retention Reports

Frequency of Assessment: Annually

Academic YearFTIC Fall to Spring Retention PercentageVCCS Average Retention Percentage
2013-2014
76% ✔
75%
2014-2015
76% △
76%
2015-2016
73% △
76%
2016-2017
73% △
77%
2017-2018
71% △
75%
2018-2019
70% △
76%
2019-2020
76% △
77%
2020-2021
65% ✖
73%
2021-2022
71% △
74%
2022-2023
70% △
72%
2023-2024
74% ✔
74%

Legend:
: Met Target
: Above Threshold
: Below Threshold

Line graph illustrating the above data table

Conclusion: During the 2023-24 academic year, the retention rate for first-time-in-college (FTIC) students from Fall to Spring was 74%, which met the target set by BRCC.

Fall-to-Fall Retention Rate

Target: We will attain the VCCS’s average retention rate from Fall to Fall.

Threshold of Acceptability: BRCC’s Fall-to-Fall retention rate will be no more than 5% lower than VCCS’s average retention rate from Fall to Fall.

Source: VCCS Retention Reports

Frequency of Assessment: Annually

Academic YearFall-to-Fall Retention PercentageVCCS Average Retention Percentage
2014-2015
53% ✔
51%
2015-2016
53% ✔
52%
2016-2017
54% ✔
52%
2017-2018
51% △
52%
2018-2019
51% △
53%
2019-2020
50% △
52%
2020-2021
50% △
52%
2021-2022
51% △
52%
2022-2023
50% △
52%
2023-2024
55% ✔
54%

Legend:
: Met Target
: Above Threshold
: Below Threshold

Line graph illustrating the above data table

Conclusion: In the academic year 2023-2024, the Fall-to-Fall retention rate was recorded at 55%, which exceeds the average retention rate of 54% for the Virginia Community College System (VCCS).

Fall-to-Fall FTIC Retention Rate

Target: We will attain the VCCS’s average FTIC retention rate from Fall to Fall.

Threshold of Acceptability: BRCC’s Fall-to-Fall FTIC retention rate will be no more than 5% lower than VCCS’s average FTIC retention rate from Fall to Fall.

Source: VCCS Retention Reports

Frequency of Assessment: Annually

Academic YearFTIC Fall to Fall Retention PercentageVCCS Average Retention Percentage
2014-2015
55% ✔
54%
2015-2016
55% ✔
55%
2016-2017
56% △
58%
2017-2018
51% △
57%
2018-2019
48% ✖
56%
2019-2020
51% △
55%
2020-2021
50% △
55%
2021-2022
52% △
56%
2022-2023
50% △
54%
2023-2024
55% △
56%

Legend:
: Met Target
: Above Threshold
: Below Threshold

Line graph illustrating the above data table

Conclusion: During the 2023-24 academic year, the Fall-to-Fall retention rate for first-time-in-college (FTIC) students was 55%. This figure is 1% lower than the average FTIC retention rate for Virginia’s Community College System (VCCS), which stands at 56%. Nevertheless, it remains within the acceptable range, remaining within 5% of the VCCS average retention rate.