Retention (Fall to Winter)
Attending college for longer than a single term is generally needed for new students to achieve their educational goal. Additionally, when students re-enroll the next immediate term, they are more likely to continue their successful academic progression.
The following retention rates are based on fall to winter enrollments of *first time in college students who began their studies at PCC in a fall term. This was approximately 5,355 students in fall 2025.
| Time Period | F21-W22 | F22-W23 | F23-W24 | F24-W25 | F25-W26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall to Winter | 71.5% | 72.9% | 74.7% | 74.1% | 72.6% |
The percentage of new fall 2025 PCC students who returned to PCC in winter 2026 is lower than the retention rate from the three previous fall to winter time periods.
Equity Gaps
Equity gap refers to any disparity in a metric along racial, socioeconomic, gender or other demographic grouping. These gaps lead the college to ask “what processes, policies or practices are in place that create or exacerbate these disparities?”
| Characteristic | Retention Range (low to high) | Equity Gap |
|---|---|---|
| Gender | 71.3% to 73.4% (Nonbinary to Woman) | 2.1% points |
| Pell Status | 71.2% to 74.5% (No Pell to Awarded Pell) | 3.3% points |
| Race/Ethnicity | 69.9% to 76.9% (Black/African American to Asian) Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (65.6%, 32 students) | 7.0% points |
| Age | 63.3% to 78.2% (20-24 years to < 20 years) | 14.9% points |
| **First Generation | 71.1% to 74.3% (1st Gen to not 1st Gen) | 3.2% points |
| Disability | 71.8% to 80.7% (No reported Disability to reported Disability) | 8.9% points |
| Veteran Status | 62.2% to 72.8% (Veteran to Non-Veteran) | 72.8% points |
Comparisons to Fall 2024-Winter 2025 Retention
- Overall, fall 2025 to winter 2026 retention equity gaps were narrower than fall 2024 to winter 2025 gaps for several groups.
- However, in many cases, this was due to declines in retention among groups that previously had higher retention rates, including students awarded Pell, Asian students and students under the age of 20.
- Unlike other student success metrics where race/ethnicity equity gaps are the widest, age had the widest equity gap when measuring fall to winter retention.
- Retention gaps increased for disability status and veteran status, with higher retention among students reporting a disability and lower retention among veteran students.
- The first generation status retention gap was similar to the prior year.
Fall to Winter Retention by Race/Ethnicity
The table below presents successful credit completion rates by race/ethnicity, along with each group’s five-year range. Fall 2025 to winter 2026 retention did not increase for any group.
| Race/ethnicity (student count) | F25-W26 | 5-Year Range (low to high) |
|---|---|---|
| American Indian/Alaska Native (n=35) | 77.1% | 66.7% (F22W23) to 89.3% (F24W25) |
| Asian (n=364) | 76.9% | 76.2% (F23W24) to 80.9% (F24W25) |
| Black/African American (n=335) | 69.9% | 66.4% (F21W22) to 72.4% (F23W24) |
| Hispanic/Latino (n=1,514) | 70.5% | 69.2% (F21W22) to 75.8% (F24W25) |
| Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (n=32) | 65.6% | 55.6% (F24W25) to 79.1% (F22W23) |
| Two or more races (n=415) | 72.5% | 72.5% (F25W26) to 75.1% (F21W22) |
| Not Reported (n=175) | 74.9% | 71.3% (F22W23) to 82.2% (F23W24) |
| White (n=2,474) | 73.4% | 71.3% (F21W22) to 74.8% (F23W24) |
*Students were designated as first time in college if they did not previously attended PCC and did not provide a transcript from another institution. This methodology differs from that used in IPEDS reporting.
**First generation students are from families where neither parent nor guardian have completed a four-year degree.
Data Source: Argos, YESS, Retention Report, February 2026