http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20091...ademically

INDIANAPOLIS – College athletes are continuing to graduate at a record rate.

For the second consecutive year, the NCAA said Wednesday, the graduation rate was 79 percent for student-athletes entering college in 2002-03, meaning they earned their diplomas within six years. That ties last year's record for a single class.

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Football Bowl Subdivision teams came in at 67 percent (NCAA) and 55 percent (federal).

Of the top 10 teams in the BCS standings, Cincinnati, now fifth in the standings, was the only school to top 70 percent in both reports. Texas, which is third in the standings, and Georgia Tech, which is seventh, had the lowest scores. Both came in at 49 percent (NCAA) and 41 percent (federal).

Half of the top 10 teams in the BCS standings – Florida, Texas, Boise State, Georgia Tech and LSU – failed to reach 50 percent on the federal report.

According to federal statistics, college athletes are still graduating at a higher rate than the overall student body. Those stats shows 64 percent of athletes graduate over the same period, 2 percentage points higher than other students.

Federal numbers are lower because they do not take into account the performance of transfer students. For example, if an athlete enrolls at one school, then transfers to another, neither school receives credit when that athlete graduates. The federal number is also based on the four-class average.

When broken down by sport, women's teams met or exceeded the overall average in both reports in every sport except bowling. Women's basketball teams had an 83 percent graduation rate under NCAA guidelines and 64 percent in the federal report.

The three biggest men's sports – football, basketball and baseball – all failed to top 70 percent in the NCAA report.

Men's basketball and Football Championship Subdivision teams had the lowest rates of any sports, coming in at 64 percent under NCAA calculations. Basketball players scored 48 percent on the federal report, while FCS athletes were at 54 percent.

Baseball produced the lowest number, 47 percent, under federal guidelines. That number is 69 percent in the NCAA report.

Congrats to the Bearcats. That's a great list to be ranked #1 on. It shows you what kind of players Kelly is recruiting...

Those players were actually Minter's recruits.

Well, it looks good for Kelly. After all, he's the current coach...

Nancy Zimpher is already adding this stat to her toolkit.

Sadly, as the USA TODAY noted last year...a ton of players are pushed into "joke" majors...just so they can stay eligible and/or leave school with virtually "worthless" degrees.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2...over_N.htm


College athletes studies guided toward 'major in eligibility'

By Jill Lieber Steeg, Jodi Upton, Patrick Bohn and Steve Berkowitz
USA TODAY
Updated 11/19/2008 11:21 PM

Steven Cline left Kansas State University last spring with memories of two years as a starting defensive lineman for a major-college football team. He left with a diploma, credits toward a master's degree and a place on the 2007 Big 12 Conference all-academic team.

He also left with regrets about accomplishing all of this by majoring in social sciences — a program that drew 34% of the football team's juniors and seniors last season, compared with about 4% of all juniors and seniors at Kansas State. Cline says he found not-so-demanding courses that helped him have success in the classroom and on the field but did little for his dream of becoming a veterinarian.

"I realize I just wasted all my efforts in high school and college to get a social science degree," says Cline, who adds he did poorly in biology as a freshman, then chose what an athletics academic adviser told him would be an easier path.

See link for the complete article.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2...over_N.htm

Here the USA TODAY study/article which breaks down the academic major by sport and by most schools (who reported).


http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2...phic_N.htm

College athletes cluster majors at most schools


By Jodi Upton and Kristen Novak, USA TODAY

When the NCAA adopted new rules in 2003 intended to improve graduation rates of athletes, critics countered that under pressure to keep athletes progressing toward a degree, schools might cut academic corners to help the athletes stay eligible to play.

Teams now can lose scholarships and access to postseason play if enough athletes are not on track to receive a degree or do not graduate.

But giving athletes a more meaningful academic experience also was part of the new rules' intent, NCAA president Myles Brand told USA TODAY for a story in 2003. However, Syracuse University athlete Dylan Malagrino, who had headed the NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, expressed concern that "coaches and academic administrators in the athletic department might be strongly encouraging students to take easier majors or to choose a major and never switch."

Graduation rates have improved as the rules have phased in over the past few years. Whether that has been due to students taking easier majors has not been studied.

See link for rest of article/study plus the graph broken down by school and/or sport.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2...phic_N.htm

Knightlight did you ever find those posts of mine where I bashed UConn for football scheduling with ND?

(11-18-2009 07:24 PM)mlb Wrote:  Those players were actually Minter's recruits.

Are you sure about this?

Most of UC's athletes are criminal justice majors. UC has one of the top ranked criminal justice programs in the country. It is one of the easier programs at the school, but a criminal justice degree from UC goes a long way.

(11-18-2009 07:03 PM)SuperFlyBCat Wrote:  http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20091...ademically

INDIANAPOLIS – College athletes are continuing to graduate at a record rate.

Of the top 10 teams in the BCS standings, Cincinnati, now fifth in the standings, was the only school to top 70 percent in both reports.

Congratulations to the Bearcats, that is great positive publicity to rank so high in academics, but too bad there wasn't a way for you to erase the top link in the related articles box on the right side of that page

Here is the GSR for 2009 for BE schools. Edsall is recruiting great talent that are graduating. I suspect UCONN's GSR is probably close to or higher than general student population. Cincy's 75% is pretty high as well. What's up with UL? Bad football team and players don't graduate. Is this all Kthrop's fault?

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The University of Connecticut football program has the top Graduation Success Rate (GSR) among the eight football playing members of the BIG EAST Conference in statistics released on Wednesday. The 2009 release of the GSR marks the second-straight year that UConn has held the top position in the BIG EAST.

The GSR measures graduation rates at Division I institutions and includes students transferring into the institutions. The GSR also allows institutions to subtract student-athletes who leave their institutions prior to graduation as long as they would have been academically eligible to compete had they remained.

This year's GSR measured the incoming freshman classes of 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002.

Here's the BIG EAST breakdown:

UConn - 82 percent
Rutgers - 81 percent
Syracuse - 77 percent
Cincinnati - 75 percent
Pittsburgh - 68 percent
West Virginia - 61 percent
South Florida - 60 percent
Louisville - 59 percent

ATHLETICS NEWS
Irish Athletes Again Set Pace in 2009 NCAA Graduation Success Rate Survey
Nineteen of 22 Irish athletic programs analyzed post graduation rates of 100 percent, and none post a percentage lower than 93


Nov. 18, 2009

Nineteen of 22 athletics programs at the University of Notre Dame compiled graduation rates of 100 percent, and none were below 93 percent, according to the fifth year of Graduation Success Rate measurements developed by the NCAA and released today.

None of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly NCAA Division I-A) programs in the country had a higher percentage of 100 GSR scores than did Notre Dame with its .863 figure (19 of 22). This marked the fourth time in the five years of the survey that Notre Dame has ranked number one in percentage of teams with 100 scores.

Here are the top institutions in that category (these are the only 11 institutions with 50 or more percent of their sports registering 100 marks):

Institution Percentage 100 Scores/Sports Rated
1. Notre Dame .863 19/22
2. Boston College .785 22/28
3. Northwestern .736 14/19
4. Wake Forest .714 10/14
5. Stanford .592 16/27
6. Duke .590 13/22
7. SMU .533 8/15
8. U.S. Naval Academy .500 10/20
Rice .500 6/12
Tulane .500 6/12
Bowling Green .500 9/18


NCAA figures released today showed that all 11 Irish women's programs posted a GSR of 100 percent -- basketball, cross country/track, fencing, golf, lacrosse, rowing, soccer, softball, swimming/diving, tennis and volleyball.

Among Notre Dame's men's sports, baseball, basketball, cross country/track, fencing, golf, lacrosse, soccer, and swimming/diving achieved 100 percent GSR scores. Ice hockey scored 96 percent, football scored 96 percent, and tennis was at 93.

Overall, that's the exact same number of perfect scores as a year ago (also 19 of 22 sports) for the Irish programs, after Notre Dame recorded 18 100 percent GSR scores (of 22) in 2007.

In football, among the FBS programs, Notre Dame and Duke shared the top score at 96, the Naval Academy was at 93, Northwestern 92, and Boston College and Vanderbilt both at 91.

In 2005, among the 119 NCAA Division I-A football-playing institutions, Notre Dame had the highest percentage of its sports with 100 percent scores, with a .800 figure (16 of 20). The 2006 data put Notre Dame's percentage at .773 (17 of 22), to rank second behind the U.S. Naval Academy. The 2007 data put Notre Dame's percentage at .818 (18 of 22), which again ranked number one.

The GSR data show the percentage of student-athletes earning a degree within six years. The NCAA developed the GSR five years ago to account for transfer student-athletes and others not tracked by the federal graduation rate. The GSR captures about 37 percent more students than the federal rate, resulting in a more accurate assessment of the academic success of student-athletes. However, the federal rate provides the only method by which student-athletes can be compared with the general student body. College and university presidents asked the NCAA to develop a new methodology that takes into account the mobility among students in today's higher education environment. Research indicates that approximately 60 percent of all new bachelor's degree recipients are attending more than one undergraduate institution during their collegiate careers.

The 2009 national GSR (four-class average) for Division I is a record-high 79 percent, up from 78 a year ago. The 2009 GSR numbers are based on entering classes from 1999 to 2002. The 2008 GSR numbers are based on entering classes from 1998 to 2001, the '07 data on classes from 1997 to 2000, the '06 data on classes from 1996 to 1999 - and the '05 first-year GSR data was based upon the classes entering from 1995 to 1998.

The GSR should not be confused with another fairly recent NCAA initiative, the Academic Progress Rate, which uses a series of formulas related to student-athlete retention and eligibility to measure the academic performance of all participants who receive a grant-in-aid on every team at every NCAA Division I college and university.

In addition to the GSR, the NCAA continues to compile data and release results based upon the federally mandated methodology.



Irish Athletes Again Rank Number One
In 2009 NCAA GSR Comparisons

University of Notre Dame athletic programs again rank among the best in the country in graduation rates, based on Graduation Success Rate (GSR) figures released today by the NCAA - including first-place ratings in the sports of football, men's basketball, women's basketball and ice hockey.

Among the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision institutions, Notre Dame had the highest percentage of its sports with 100 percent scores (for the fourth time in five years), with a .863 figure (19 of 22).

In football, Notre Dame achieved a 96 GSR rating, tying Duke for the highest figure among FBS schools.

Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 80 or higher in that category:

Score Institution
96 Notre Dame, Duke
93 U.S. Naval Academy
92 Northwestern
91 Boston College, Vanderbilt
89 Stanford
87 U.S. Air Force Academy
86 U.S. Military Academy
85 Miami (Ohio), Penn State
84 Rice, Southern Mississippi
83 Troy
82 Connecticut
81 Rutgers, Wake Forest
80 North Carolina

In men's basketball, Notre Dame achieved a perfect 100 GSR rating, with only Bowling Green, BYU, Marshall, Utah State, Wake Forest and Western Kentucky also reaching the top slot.

Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 80 or higher in that category:

Score Institution
100 Bowling Green, BYU, Marshall, Notre Dame, Utah State, Wake Forest, Western Kentucky
98 U.S. Military Academy
92 Duke, Northwestern
90 U.S. Air Force Academy
88 Buffalo
86 Central Michigan
85 Alabama, Ohio University, Vanderbilt
84 U.S. Naval Academy
83 Nebraska, Rice
82 UCLA, Oklahoma State, SMU, Troy
80 East Carolina, Florida State, Illinois, TCU

In women's basketball, Notre Dame also achieved a 100 GSR rating, as one of 29 Division I-A football-playing institutions with a perfect score.

Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 90 or higher in that category:

Score Institution
100 Boise State, Boston College, Bowling Green, BYU, Clemson, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Kent State, Miami (Fla.), Miami (Ohio), Nebraska, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon State, SMU, Stanford, Syracuse, Tennessee, Toledo, Tulane, Utah State, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Washington, Western Kentucky
98 U.S. Military Academy
97 U.S. Naval Academy
96 Texas
94 Ball State
93 Colorado State, Memphis, Missouri, Nevada, Rice, Wyoming
92 Akron, California, UCLA, Duke, Kentucky, Middle Tennessee State, New Mexico, Oregon, Pittsburgh
91 Arizona State, Illinois, Indiana, Washington State, Western Michigan
90 Iowa State, Penn State

In hockey, Notre Dame achieved a 96 GSR rating, to lead all Division I-A football-playing institutions.

Here are the FBS institutions with scores of 65 or higher in that category:

Score Institution
96 Notre Dame
92 U.S. Air Force Academy
89 U.S. Military Academy
88 Bowling Green
87 Boston College
81 Connecticut
77 Western Michigan
75 Michigan
72 Michigan State
70 Miami (Ohio)
68 Wisconsin
65 Ohio State

The national GSR for 2008 for the FBS (Division I-A) is 79 percent. Only team rates were released. The fourth-year GSR data is based upon the entering classes from 1999 to 2002.

In addition to men's and women's basketball, other Notre Dame programs recording 100 GSR scores were baseball, men's cross country/track, women's cross country/track, men's fencing, women's fencing, men's golf, women's golf, men's lacrosse, women's lacrosse, rowing, men's soccer, women's soccer, softball, men's swimming, women's swimming, women's tennis and volleyball. Men's tennis received a 93.


Nine Irish Athletic Programs Achieve 100 Federal Graduation Rate Scores

In federal graduation rates released today by the NCAA, the University of Notre Dame ranked among the national leaders in programs producing perfect scores.

Nine Notre Dame sports produced 100 scores in the federal ratings - and only Stanford (with 13) had more programs with perfect scores among NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision institutions. Stanford had 27 sports rated, compared to 22 for Notre Dame.

Notre Dame produced perfect 100s in men's tennis, men's lacrosse, men's swimming, women's cross country/track, women's rowing, women's fencing, women's golf, women's lacrosse and women's tennis. Other highly-rated Irish programs included a 95 for men's soccer, 94 for men's cross country/track, 92 for hockey and volleyball and 91 for women's swimming.

Here's a listing of the NCAA FBS institutions that produced three or more 100 scores in the federal listings:

13 - Stanford (men's fencing, men's golf, men's gymnastics, men's tennis, men's volleyball, men's water polo, women's rowing, women's golf, women's gymnastics, women's soccer, softball, women's swimming, women's water polo)
9 - Notre Dame (men's tennis, men's lacrosse, men's swimming, women's cross country/track, women's rowing, women's fencing, women's golf, women's lacrosse and women's tennis
7 - Duke (men's cross country/track, men's golf, men's tennis, women's cross country/track, field hockey, women's golf, women's lacrosse)
7 - Northwestern (men's golf, men's tennis, women's basketball, women's fencing, softball, women's tennis, women's volleyball)
5 - Penn State (men's gymnastics, women's cross country/track, women's fencing, field hockey, women's soccer)
5 - Virginia (men's tennis, women's cross country/track, women's lacrosse, women's tennis, women's volleyball)
4 - Boston College (baseball, women's cross country/track, women's lacrosse, women's tennis)
4 - Bowling Green (women's golf, women's gymnastics, women's tennis, women's volleyball)
4 - Michigan (field hockey, women's golf, softball, women's tennis)
4 - Nevada (men's tennis, women's skiing, softball, women's tennis)
3 - Connecticut (men's tennis, women's lacrosse, men's tennis)
3 - Iowa State (women's golf, women's gymnastics, women's swimming)
3 - Miami, Fla. (men's cross country/track, men's swimming, women's golf)
3 - North Carolina (women's rowing, women's gymnastics, women's swimming)
3 - Wake Forest (men's golf, women's basketball, women's volleyball)
Notre Dame Athletics - Athletics News

Good job Bearcats. That really is a first class program you've got going.

Most of UC's players are in Criminal Justice or Business classes. Unless you consider those classes jokes, UC's is legitimate.

Great job Bearcats!