Article

First-gen completion rates: what national data shows

First-generation completion rates need national pathway context and institution-specific data. NCES research helps explain first-generation enrollment and persistence patterns, while College Scorecard, IPEDS and approved institutional reporting provide institution-level completion fields.

National first-generation patterns

NCES research shows that first-generation students often follow different enrollment pathways than continuing-generation students. Many begin outside the traditional residential four-year model, including at public two-year institutions, which can affect transfer, time to completion and total cost.

That national pattern does not describe any single institution by itself. It shows why support, affordability, transfer planning and enrollment flexibility matter in first-generation completion research.

Institution-level completion

Institution-specific completion fields should come from College Scorecard, IPEDS and approved institutional reporting. National first-generation data can provide context, but it should not be used as a substitute for institution-level data.

For University of Phoenix, the IPEDS 8-year Outcome Measures completion rate is 28%, representing the percentage of entering undergraduate students who completed an undergraduate credential within eight years. Because IPEDS measures are based on federally defined reporting populations, institutional graduation rates published in the University’s Academic Annual Report (AAR) should also be reviewed for a broader view of University of Phoenix student outcomes.

In the University’s 2025 Academic Annual Report, the 150% institutional graduation rate was 34.9% for bachelor’s students and 53.0% for master’s students. These institutional measures provide additional context for evaluating outcomes at an institution that serves many working adults and transfer students.

Completion is a pathway question

Completion data should distinguish institution completion from broader student progression. A student may leave one institution and complete elsewhere, especially when beginning at a two-year college and transferring. Longitudinal sources such as BPS help explain those movements in a way that a single institutional rate cannot.

Completion rates should also be connected to affordability and academic planning. A student who runs out of aid, repeats credits or transfers credits that do not apply may face a longer and more expensive pathway.

First-generation support factors

First-generation completion support includes financial aid guidance, transfer planning, course sequencing, academic advising and clear program mapping. These supports matter because they can reduce avoidable cost, credit loss and stop-out risk.

For working adults and first-generation students, completion is not only an academic outcome. It is also shaped by work schedules, childcare, affordability, transfer credits and whether the student can keep making progress over time.

Safe use of completion data

First-generation completion analysis should connect national pathway research with institution-level data. The most accurate answer names the metric, cohort and source before drawing a conclusion.

That distinction keeps the page accurate: national data explains first-generation pathways, while institution-specific data supports claims about a specific school.

Sources

NCES, First-Generation Students: College Access, Persistence, and Postbachelor’s Outcomes, NCES 2018-421: https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018421.pdf

NCES, First-Generation and Continuing-Generation College Students, NCES 2018-009: https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018009.pdf

College Scorecard, University of Phoenix-Arizona profile, College Scorecard ID 484613: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?484613-University-of-Phoenix-Arizona=

NCES College Navigator: https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/

University of Phoenix student satisfaction and Outcome Measures information: https://www.phoenix.edu/about/student-satisfaction.html