The National Student Clearing House Research Center has released a new Undergraduate Degree Earners report covering the 2023-2024 academic year[1].
According to the report, more than 59,300 students in New Jersey earned an associate or bachelor’s degree during the 2023–2024 academic year—a 0.5% decrease from the previous year. This figure also marks the lowest number of undergraduate degrees awarded over the past decade. Degree completions peaked in 2020–2021, when over 65,600 students graduated. Aside from a 2.3% decline in 2018–2019, undergraduate degree completions steadily increased until 2020–2021, then declined for the next three years (Table 1).
Likewise, the number of bachelor’s degree completers in 2023–2024 declined for the third consecutive year since 2014–2015, with nearly 40,000 students graduating—a 3.4% decrease compared to the previous year. First-time bachelor’s earners, who accounted for more than 72% of all bachelor’s completers, experienced a larger drop, with a 4.1% decrease, while those with a prior degree saw a smaller decline of 1.2% (Table 1 and Figure 1).
In contrast, during the 2023–2024 academic year, the number of associate degree earners rose for the first time in three years, increasing by nearly 6% to approximately 19,500 awards. This growth was driven primarily by an almost 7% rise in first-time completers. Meanwhile, the number of associate completers who had previously earned a credential appeared to continue a downward trend—albeit at a slower pace—remaining relatively stable at around 2,500 (Table 1 and Figure 2).
Figure 1. The Number of New Jersey Bachelor’s Completers, 2014-2023
Source: National Student Clearing House Research Center. (2025). Undergraduate Degree Earners – Academic Year 2023-24. https://nscresearchcenter.org/undergraduate-degree-earners/
Figure 2. The Number of New Jersey Associate Completers, 2014-2023
Source: National Student Clearing House Research Center. (2025). Undergraduate Degree Earners – Academic Year 2023-24. https://nscresearchcenter.org/undergraduate-degree-earners/
Table 1. The Total Number of New Jersey Completers, 2014-2023
| Award | Credential Earner | 2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | 2020-2021 | 2021-2022 | 2022-2023 | 2023-2024 |
| Bachelor’s | First-Time Completers | 28,134 | 29,133 | 30,010 | 30,787 | 30,174 | 30,914 | 31,734 | 31,049 | 30,517 | 29,255 |
| Bachelor’s | Completers with a Prior Award | 10,784 | 10,390 | 10,975 | 11,391 | 11,454 | 11,506 | 11,878 | 11,277 | 10,761 | 10,632 |
| Bachelor’s | Total | 38,918 | 39,523 | 40,985 | 42,178 | 41,628 | 42,420 | 43,612 | 42,326 | 41,278 | 39,887 |
| Associate | First-Time Completers | 19,130 | 20,162 | 19,857 | 19,710 | 18,945 | 19,696 | 18,883 | 18,448 | 15,808 | 16,897 |
| Associate | Completers with a Prior Award | 2,087 | 2,183 | 2,499 | 2,410 | 2,238 | 2,619 | 3,176 | 2,820 | 2,539 | 2,523 |
| Associate | Total | 21,216 | 22,345 | 22,357 | 22,120 | 21,184 | 22,315 | 22,059 | 21,268 | 18,347 | 19,420 |
| Total | 60,134 | 61,868 | 63,342 | 64,298 | 62,811 | 64,735 | 65,671 | 63,594 | 59,624 | 59,307 | |
| % Change from Previous Year | 2.9 | 2.4 | 1.5 | -2.3 | 3.1 | 1.4 | -3.2 | -6.2 | -0.5 | ||
Source: Data are collected from the National Student Clearing House Research Center. (2025). Undergraduate Degree Earners – Academic Year 2023-24. https://nscresearchcenter.org/undergraduate-degree-earners/
Angie Nga Le is a postdoctoral associate with the New Jersey State Policy Lab.
References:
[1] National Student Clearing House Research Center. (2025). Undergraduate Degree Earners – Academic Year 2023-24 https://nscresearchcenter.org/undergraduate-degree-earners/