50 state universities with best, worst grad rates

(MoneyWatch) College is expensive, but it costs even more for the students who don't graduate in four years (and the odds of pulling this off aren't good).

At public universities, 31.3 percent of students graduate in the traditional four years, versus 52.4 percent for those at private, nonprofit institutions. An excellent place to find and compare graduation rates is at the College Completion section on the website of The Chronicle of Higher Education. 

Not surprisingly, the state schools with the best graduation rates tend to be the wealthier state flagships, while the institutions with the rates are regional universities that could be characterized as drop-out factories. The Following lists state universities with the best and worst six-year graduation rates:

Best state university graduation rates

1. University of Virginia, 92.7 percent
2. University of California, Berkeley, 91.1 percent
3. University of California, Los Angeles, 89.8 percent
4. University of Michigan. 89.7 percent
5. College of William and Mary, 89.7 percent
6. United States Naval Academy, 88.6 percent
7. University of North Carolina, 88.1 percent
8. College of New Jersey, 86.2 percent
9. University of California, San Diego, 86.1 percent
10. United States Military Academy, 85.7 percent
11. Pennsylvania State University, 85.3 percent
12. University of Florida, 84.5 percent
13. University of Illinois, 84.4 percent
14. University of Wisconsin, 83.0 percent
15. University of California, Irvine, 82.6 percent
16. James Madison University, 82.5 percent
17. University of California, Davis, 82.3 percent
18. United States Air Force Academy, 81.5 percent
19. University of Maryland, 81.5 percent
20. University of Connecticut, 80.7 percent
21. University of Washington, 80. 4 percent
22. University of Texas, 80.3 percent
23. Miami University (Ohio), 80.2 percent
24. Texas A&M University, 79.9 percent
25. Virginia Tech University 79.9 percent
    

1. Vincennes University, 0 percent
2. University of Houston-Downtown, 12.4 percent
3. Texas Southern University, 13.3 percent
4. Chicago State University, 13.9 percent
5. Cameron University, 14.1 percent
6. Utah Valley University, 15 percent
7. Coppin State University ,16.3 percent
8. Central State University, 19.4 percent
9. Indiana University-Northwest, 19.4 percent
10. CUNY York College, 19.5 percent
11. University of Texas at Brownsville, 19.6 percent
12. University of New Orleans, 20 percent
13. Northeastern Illinois University, 20.1 percent
14. Metropolitan State College of Denver, 20.5 percent
15. Shawnee State University, 20.5 percent
16. University of Arkansas Little Rock, 20.8 percent
17. Southern University and A&M College, 21.2 percent
18. Clayton State University, 21.9 percent
19. Kent State University -- Stark, 23.1 percent
20. Alabama State University, 24 percent
21. Eastern New Mexico University 24.1 percent
22. University of Arkansas at Monticello, 24.2 percent
23. University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff,  24.2 percent
24. Augusta State University, 25.5 percent
25. Auburn University at Montgomery 24.5 percent

Lynn O'Shaughnessy

View all articles by Lynn O'Shaughnessy on CBS MoneyWatch»
Lynn O'Shaughnessy is a best-selling author, consultant and speaker on issues that parents with college-bound teenagers face. She explains how families can make college more affordable through her website TheCollegeSolution.com; her financial workbook, Shrinking the Cost of College; and the new second edition of her Amazon best-selling book, The College Solution: A Guide for Everyone Looking for the Right School at the Right Price.

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