The average graduation rate over the past 10 years (2015-2025) is 82.30% where the last year rate was 86%.
The average retention rate of the last 11 years is 94.50% for full-time students and 76.80% for part-time students.
Judging by its graduation rate and retention rate, many students at Cal Poly continue to enrolled each semester and complete their studies in time.
The average graduation rate of the last 11 years is 82.30% where the current academic year rate is 86%.
The following table and chart show the changes of graduation rate at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo over the past 10 years (2015-2025).
| Year | Total | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 76% | 71% | 82% |
| 2016-17 | 80% | 75% | 85% |
| 2017-18 | 79% | 76% | 82% |
| 2018-19 | 82% | 78% | 86% |
| 2019-20 | 82% | 77% | 86% |
| 2020-21 | 83% | 79% | 86% |
| 2021-22 | 85% | 82% | 88% |
| 2022-23 | 85% | 81% | 89% |
| 2023-24 | 85% | 81% | 88% |
| 2024-25 | 86% | 84% | 88% |
| Average | 82.30% | 78.40% | 86.00% |
The average transfer-out rate of the last 11 years is 1.80% where the current year rate is 1%. The following table and chart illustrate the change of transfer-out rate at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo from 2015 to 2025.
| Year | Transfer-out Rate |
|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 4% |
| 2016-17 | 2% |
| 2017-18 | 3% |
| 2018-19 | 2% |
| 2019-20 | 2% |
| 2020-21 | 1% |
| 2021-22 | 1% |
| 2022-23 | 1% |
| 2023-24 | 1% |
| 2024-25 | 1% |
| Average | 1.80% |
The average retention rate of the last 11 years is 94.50% for full-time students and 76.80% for part-time students.
The following table shows the changes of retention rate at Cal Poly from 2015 to 2025.
| Year | Full-time | Part-time |
|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 93% | 64% |
| 2016-17 | 95% | 87% |
| 2017-18 | 95% | 88% |
| 2018-19 | 94% | 92% |
| 2019-20 | 94% | 93% |
| 2020-21 | 94% | 73% |
| 2021-22 | 95% | 83% |
| 2022-23 | 94% | 64% |
| 2023-24 | 95% | 64% |
| 2024-25 | 96% | 60% |
| Average | 94.50% | 76.80% |
The average student to faculty ratio over the last 11 years is 20.50 to 1 where the current academic year ratio is 19 to 1. The following table and chart illustrate the change of student to faculty ratio at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo since 2025.
| Year | Student to Faculty Ratio |
|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 22:1 |
| 2016-17 | 21:1 |
| 2017-18 | 22:1 |
| 2018-19 | 21:1 |
| 2019-20 | 20:1 |
| 2020-21 | 21:1 |
| 2021-22 | 21:1 |
| 2022-23 | 20:1 |
| 2023-24 | 18:1 |
| 2024-25 | 19:1 |
| Average | 20.50:1 |
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