This paper compares efficiency results and performance targets for academic departments in a local private college using DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis). Because of an aging society, a smaller school-age population entering colleges, and enhanced accreditation standards by the government, colleges and universities are not recruiting and retaining sufficient students and therefore are struggling for survival. In contrast to popular four-year undergraduate universities concentrated in Seoul and its satellite cities, retaining students is critical for the survival of local private colleges in poor or remote regions. Therefore, it is very important to identify the factors involved in the retention of students in the various departments of a college. However, given the different characteristics of the departments, it is difficult to identify one unique or robust set of standards to evaluate their performance. The purpose of this paper is to maximize student retention capabilities by ensuring that additional resources are assigned to efficient DMUs, while, inefficient DMUs are given benchmarked targets. Based on previous studies and college accreditation standards, this paper presents indices to be used in evaluating the efficiency of academic departments in a college. In evaluating relative efficiency, this paper uses the output-oriented BCC model. To define target levels to be achieved for efficient DMU, a multi-stage DEA procedure is used.