Retention Rates Drop as More Students Leave

3.54 percent of last spring’s student body did not return to the college this year, marking the highest attrition rate since 2003, according to the college.

This rate is nearly double last fall’s 1.88 percent rate. From 2003-2007, the rate had held constant in the neighborhood of 2.9 percent and since 2007 has consistently decreased. Registrar Victor Egitto, however, does not see the larger rate as abnormal.

“We usually lose about 50 to 60 students a semester,” Egitto said. “This one might be a higher than normal attrition rate. But some leave with one course left, or transfer or take a couple of years off and come back. We generally have about 78 percent of students graduating in four years, which is pretty good.”

Egitto explained that the attrition rate is not just a measure of transfers out of the college but rather of students who have ceased to attend, whether for financial reasons, medical concerns or  job opportunities. “It includes transfers, drop-outs, people taking a few years off, all sorts of things,” Egitto said. “We just keep track of how many people have left, not exactly the number of transfers. We like to know why people leave, and we’re in the process of figuring that out now.”

There was also a drop in the transfer-in rate this semester. Usually around 50 new students are admitted per fall semester, but the number fell this year to 40. In spite of the drop, Egitto is confident that transfers will remain an important part of the Occidental community.  

“We take transfer students pretty consistently, it’s good to have them. Even when we don’t need them, we try to take them,” he said.

Nevertheless, there has been a decreasing incoming transfer rate. Associate Dean of Admission Pati Pineiro-Goodenberger explained that incoming slots are competitive because, unlike many colleges, Occidental offers financial aid to transfers. During the spring, admissions typically admits about 10 transfers, but this year the college may use transfers as an opportunity to refill the class, according to Egitto.

“We very well might admit more students than normal in the spring semester to make up for this.”

Pineiro-Goodenberger explained that decisions regarding transfers come from recommendations made by the Enrollment Planning Committee.

“After the census, the Enrollment Planning Committee has some projections for student body size,” Pineiro-Goodenberger said. “All different departments, financial aid, admissions, everyone, looks at these and adds their own considerations. Based on all that, the Enrollment Planning Committee makes a decision about the direction of the school in the next years. This includes admissions and transfers.”

Despite the high attrition rate, the student population is larger than ever before, with 2,123 students. The fall 2011 census showed growth of 15 percent since 2008. Pinero Goodenberger and others in the Office of Admissions attribute this growth to Obama’s election. Prior to 2008, the student body hovered between 1800 and 1900 for nearly a decade.