How much does college cost? It depends on when, and if, you graduate

June 4, 6:19 AMCollege Admissions ExaminerLauren Starkey

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“Diplomas and Dropouts,” a recent report by the American Enterprise Institute, found that four-year American colleges had a graduation rate of 53% within six years. “Rates below 50%, 40% and even 30% are distressingly easy to find,” the conservative think tank says. The report is based on data from almost 1400 schools about full-time students who started college in the fall of 2001.

Lead author Frederick Hess notes “while student motivation, finances and ability matter greatly when it comes to college completion, the practices of higher education institutions matter, too.” When similar colleges have a large gap in graduation rates, "it is fair to ask why," the report says.

As reported in USA Today, here are some of those startling gaps:

•In the "most competitive" group, Amherst College in Massachusetts and Reed College in Portland, Ore., graduated 96% vs. 76%, respectively.

•Among colleges that require high school grades averaging a B-minus or better, John Carroll University in Cleveland and Chicago State University in Illinois graduated 74% vs. 16%, respectively.

•Among schools that require only a high school diploma for admission, Walla Walla University and Heritage University, both in Washington state, reported graduation rates of 53% and 17%, respectively.

After a disclaimer that states graduation rates cannot in and of themselves measure the quality of an institution, the AEI report notes, “graduation rates as calculated here do convey important information--information that should be readily available to students selecting a school, parents investing in their child's education, and policymakers and taxpayers who finance student aid and public institutions. We believe that the graduation rate measure included here should be just the beginning of a deeper inquiry into college success.”

Read the full report here.