Starting at a community college is attractive financially, but now research shows it can also be a promising path for students who want to earn a four-year degree.
A new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center released last week finds 80 percent of transfer students with an associate’s degree either graduated or remained in a four-year institution, and 71 percent earned a degree within four years.
Among all who transfer from a community college, about 60 percent finished a bachelor’s degree within four years, and another 12 percent were still enrolled but had not graduated.
The new figures were based on data from 3,300 participating colleges and universities included in the Snapshot Report series from the clearinghouse.
Overall, about one in five community college students transfer to a four-year institution, according to the latest reports from the College Board.
