Freshman retention rose across the system at WSU, with 4,040 first-time, full-time freshmen returning to WSU in the fall of 2020 from the 2019 fall class of 4,716 (80.6%). The retention rate increased 1.6% over the 2018 class.

Retention rate increased at three of the four WSU campuses that admit first-time, full-time freshmen students:

• WSU Pullman posted a retention rate of 81.5%, an increase of 1.6%.
• WSU Tri-Cities posted a retention rate of 74.1%, an increase of 1.4%.
• WSU Vancouver posted a retention rate of 73.8%, an increase of 1.9%.
• WSU Global posted a retention rate of 56.3%, a decrease of 2.0%, though among part-time students, retention rose to 42.9%, an increase of 19.8%.

Vice Provost for Academic Success Mary Wack was pleased to see retention on the rise. She stressed the need to continue to address students’ financial need, as it plays a major role in student success. Systemwide, Pell Grant-eligible students were retained at a rate of 73.9%, an increase of 1.0% compared to the 2018 class.

“The role of financial need as a contribution to student loss remains evident in the data,” Wack said. “On most campuses students who are Pell-eligible are disproportionately impacted by need such that they are retained at rates 6 % lower or more on most campuses.”

First-time, full-time transfer students were retained at a rate of 82.7%, a slight decrease from 83.1% in 2018.

For further information, visit Institutional Research’s Student Retention and Graduate dashboard.