PULLMAN, Wash. - The most recent NCAA Graduation Success Rates (GSR) and Federal Graduation Rates (FGR) were released Tuesday and Washington State University performed well in many areas.
The NCAA report shows that among Washington State's women's programs, golf achieved perfect GSR scores of 100 percent while women's track/cross country and swimming boasted a graduation success rate of 94 percent with rowing and soccer was very strong at 88 percent. On the men's side baseball led the way with an 81 percent graduation rate.
The Cougars' all-student-athlete GSR was 77 percent while the FGR, reflecting those student-athletes entering WSU for the 2004-05 academic year and remaining on campus, had a four-class average, of 65 percent, compared to 67 percent for all University freshmen over the same four-year period (2004-08). The 2007-08 single year graduation rate for freshman scholarship student-athletes was 55 percent, slightly below the all university students' graduating cohort.
"I am pleased with the direction we are heading, particularly with the high caliber student-athletes we have recruited in recent years," said Faculty-Athletic Representative Ken Casavant. "Future success is expected as we continue to build upon attracting quality student-athletes."
Additional highlights contained in the NCAA 2007-08 single year FGR report include:
- The graduation rate for football freshman scholarship student-athletes is 12 percent higher than the all university mark for the 2007-08 graduating cohort (73 percent for football student-athletes versus 61 percent for all university males);
- The graduation rate for African-American football freshman scholarship student-athletes is 16 percent higher than the all university African-American males 2007-08 graduating cohort (63 percent versus 47 percent);
- Football's single-year graduation rate of 73 percent is the second-highest single-year graduation rate recorded (2002-03 cohort was 79 percent);
- The graduation rate for men's basketball freshman scholarship student-athletes is 14 percent higher than the all university male 2007-08 graduating cohort (75 percent versus 61 percent);
- The graduation rate for women's cross country/track and field freshman scholarship student-athletes is 18 percent higher than the all university women's 2007-08 graduating cohort (88 percent versus 70 percent).
"The 2007-08 NCAA graduation rates reflect Washington State University's continued commitment to providing tools to help student-athletes achieve their academic goals," said Chris Cook, Associate Director of Athletics, Student-Athlete Development.
The NCAA's Graduation Success Rate includes transfer students and student-athletes who leave in good academic standing, unlike the federal graduation rate, which does not count transfers. The GSR and federal rate calculations measure graduation over six years from first-time college enrollment.
The federal graduation rate, while less inclusive than the GSR, provides the only measure of historic academic comparison between student-athletes and the general student body. By this standard, student-athletes consistently outperform nearly all their peers in the student body.
The GSR should not be confused with the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate, which uses a series of formulas related to student-athletes retention and eligibility to measure the academic performance of all participants who receive grant-in-aid on every team at every NCAA Division I college and university.