The four-year rate for almost every category of graduate also rose from 2017 to 2018. “We applaud the educators who remain steadfast in their commitment to continually increasing the graduation rate for students of all backgrounds.” Repollet, the state education commissioner, in a statement. “This continual improvement in our graduation rate translates to a tangible impact on real lives,” said Lamont O. The first year the state used the new methodology, its graduation rate was 83 percent. This method compares the number of graduates against the number of freshmen who enrolled four years earlier, as well as students who transferred into and out of a school over the four-year period. The 2018 graduation rate was the highest since New Jersey began using a federally-mandated methodology to calculate graduation rates in 2011. Last year, 96,955 students graduated from New Jersey public high schools. It is 1.4 percent higher than the 89.67 percent of seniors who graduated in 2015. That is a slight improvement over the Class of 2017, which posted a 90.5 percent rate, according to data posted by the state Department of Education. New Jersey’s high school seniors graduated at the highest rate in recent years, with 90.9 percent of the Class of 2018 graduating in four years. Source: NJ Spotlight analysis of NJ Department of Education data. Hover over or click on a municipality to see detailed data. To find a district, zoom in and move the map or use the magnifying glass to search by town and include NJ.