Sep 20, 2021

Northwest Tech ranks in top 3% in national graduation rates

Posted Sep 20, 2021 10:15 AM

News release

Northwest Tech is moving up the national graduation rate rankings according to a recent report published by the Chronicle of Higher Education. The Almanac, an annual publication produced by The Chronicle of Higher Education, provides national insights on data and trends throughout higher education. The college has maintained steady success with graduation rates, and this year Northwest Tech was ranked #20 among 851 two-year publicly-funded colleges in the United States. The new ranking places Northwest Tech among the top 3% in success rates in the nation.

“We are excited about our ability to maintain high graduation rates, and it serves as a reflection of the commitment by our faculty and staff to provide pathways and support for our students to reach graduation,” said Northwest Tech President Ben Schears. “We are small, responsive, and provide a personalized, hands-on experience for our students that larger institutions simply cannot deliver.” Schears indicated the small campus and classes, combined with the high amount of contact time students have with faculty members is the real key for the college. “When students walk down our hallways, we know them and often know aspects of their personal story. If they miss class, we are willing and able to reach out and see why,” said Schears.

According to the latest Almanac, Kansas public two-year colleges had a total of three institutions in the rankings – all of whom were Kansas technical colleges: Flinthills Tech (#1), NCK Tech (#9) and Northwest Tech (#20). “Kansas technical colleges have incredibly high success rates and frankly, we’re very effective at the work we do,” said Schears. “Our role is to develop skilled labor for a hungry workforce, and it is great to see that reflected in national graduation rankings.”