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Highest first-year retention
2,737 colleges in the U.S. with this figure reported (500+ students).
561School of the Art Institute of Chicago · IL · Private (nonprofit)82%562Shenandoah University · VA · Private (nonprofit)82%563Simmons University · MA · Private (nonprofit)82%564Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary · NC · Private (nonprofit)82%565Southern Adventist University · TN · Private (nonprofit)82%566Southern Virginia University · VA · Private (nonprofit)82%567Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Jackson · TN · Public82%568Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Murfreesboro · TN · Public82%569Thomas Jefferson University · PA · Private (nonprofit)82%570University of Alabama at Birmingham · AL · Public82%571University of Detroit Mercy · MI · Private (nonprofit)82%572University of Mary Washington · VA · Public82%573University of Massachusetts-Lowell · MA · Public82%574University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire · WI · Public82%575Wagner College · NY · Private (nonprofit)82%576Washington Adventist University · MD · Private (nonprofit)82%577Washington & Jefferson College · PA · Private (nonprofit)82%578Wayne State University · MI · Public82%579Arcadia University · PA · Private (nonprofit)81%580Aviation Institute of Maintenance-Teterboro · NJ · Private (for-profit)81%581Beaufort County Community College · NC · Public81%582Bob Jones University · SC · Private (nonprofit)81%583Bryan College of Health Sciences · NE · Private (nonprofit)81%584California Lutheran University · CA · Private (nonprofit)81%585California State University-Sacramento · CA · Public81%586Carroll College · MT · Private (nonprofit)81%587Colby-Sawyer College · NH · Private (nonprofit)81%588CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice · NY · Public81%589DeSales University · PA · Private (nonprofit)81%590Farmingdale State College · NY · Public81%591Florida International Training Institute · FL · Private (for-profit)81%592Freed-Hardeman University · TN · Private (nonprofit)81%593Fresno Pacific University · CA · Private (nonprofit)81%594Geneva College · PA · Private (nonprofit)81%595Hunter Business School · NY · Private (for-profit)81%596Illinois State University · IL · Public81%597Institute of Technology · CA · Private (for-profit)81%598Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Guayama · PR · Private (nonprofit)81%599Joyce University of Nursing and Health Sciences · UT · Private (for-profit)81%600Kettering College · OH · Private (nonprofit)81%
Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS (latest survey year). Sorted only by highest first-year retention — this is not an overall quality ranking. Open-admission colleges do not report an admit rate and are not listed here.