Sept. 27, 2006
Seventeen of 22 athletics programs at the University of Notre Dame compiled graduation rates of 100 percent, and none were below 90 percent, according to the second year of Graduation Success Rate measurements developed by the NCAA and released today.
The GSR was created a year ago by the NCAA to more accurately reflect actual graduation rates by including transfer data in the calculation. The graduation rate methodology used by the Department of Education counts all student-athletes who transfer from or leave an institution for any reason as non-graduates from their initial school, even if they leave in good academic standing.
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.
NCAA figures released today showed that, among Notre Dame’s men’s sports, baseball, cross country/track, fencing, ice hockey, soccer, swimming and tennis achieved 100 percent GSR scores. Lacrosse scored 97 percent, football scored 95 percent, golf was 92 percent and basketball was 91 percent. The same seven Irish men’s programs also scored 100 percent in the 2005 data.
The Irish women’s programs with a GSR of 100 percent were basketball, cross country/track, fencing, golf, lacrosse, rowing, softball, swimming, tennis and volleyball. Soccer scored a 94 percent GSR. Rowing, like men’s lacrosse, was included for the first time in 2006 for Notre Dame because the University offered grants in aid during the years covered in the survey. Beyond rowing, the other 10 Irish women’s programs earning 100 percent ratings in 2006 also earned 100 percent figures in 2005.
In 2005, among the 119 NCAA Division I-A institutions, Notre Dame had the highest percentage of its sports with 100 percent scores, with a .800 figure (16 of 20). The 2006 data puts Notre Dame’s percentage at .773 (17 of 22).
The 2006 national GSR for Division I-A is 77 percent, up one percent from a year ago.
The 2006 GSR data is based on entering classes from 1996 to 1999. The 2005 first-year GSR data was based upon the entering classes from 1995 to 1998.
The GSR should not be confused with another 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 will continue to compile data and release results based upon the federally mandated methodology.