USU Student-Athletes Highly Ranked in Graduation Rates

Utah State University student-athletes work hard in academics as well as athletics, as is shown by recently released graduation rates.

Current statistics from the National Collegiate Athletic Association show that Utah State’s graduation success rate for student-athletes is ranked first in the Western Athletic Conference and second among peer institutions.

 

Utah State leads the WAC with a graduation rate of 78 percent. Its graduation rate also exceeds the average for division I schools.

 

“This is a great honor for the university and for the student-athletes themselves,” said Stan L. Albrecht, president of Utah State University. “The numbers offer compelling evidence that our student-athletes are applying themselves in every aspect of their college career. We take pride in ensuring that our student-athletes will have a bright future no matter which path they chose in life.”

 

When compared with peer institutions, other land-grant universities and universities with a similar profile, Utah State is ranked second among several prominent universities, such as Pennsylvania State University and Texas A&M.

 

Student-athletes must graduate within six years of entering the university to be counted toward the graduation rate. The current graduation statistics are based on four, six-year periods. The most recent period counted in the statistics includes student-athletes who came to Utah State as freshmen during the 1999-00 school year and graduated during, or before, the 2004-05 school year.

 

“We are extremely proud of our student-athletes,” said Randy Spetman, USU athletic director. “They work very hard both in the classroom and in the athletic arena. The knowledge they gain at Utah State is something they will take with them throughout their lives.”

 

Utah State has implemented various guidelines to encourage student-athletes to focus on academics and graduation.

 

Strict requirements for eligibility encourage student-athletes to graduate in a timely fashion, said Brian Evans, associate athletic director for student services. These requirements include a deadline for declaring a major, course completion requirements and a minimum grade point average.

 

Student-athletes are required to declare a major by the end of their second year at Utah State, said Evans. By the end of their third year they must have 60 percent of their degree requirements completed and at least 80 percent completed by the end of their fourth year.

 

Utah State student-athletes exceed the minimum 2.0 GPA requirement with an average composite GPA of 3.07.

 

Study hall sessions are held to assist student-athletes in keeping up on their academic work. Freshmen and new transfer students are required to log a certain number of study hall hours each week. According to Evans, the students are required to clock in and out, and tutors are available for nearly all of the general subjects required by the university.

 

“One of the main challenges student-athletes face is that their time commitment to sports can leave less time to focus on academics,” said Evans. “The study hall time is set aside to ensure that their academics are receiving adequate attention.”

 

Traveling is another aspect of athletics that can detract from academics. To minimize this time constraint, when student-athletes travel on university business faculty make arrangements to accommodate their travel requirements. The university has a policy that faculty are required to accommodate any student traveling on university business.

 

The graduation success rate was developed by the NCAA to provide a more accurate measure of student-athlete graduation success than the federal graduation rate.

 

The graduation success rate includes student-athletes who transfer to and graduate from Utah State; the federal graduation rate does not. Graduation success statistics do not include student-athletes who leave Utah State in good academic standing; the federal graduation rate considers them non-graduates.

 

For more information on USU athletics students, visit the Athletics Web site. 

 

Contact: Brian Evans 797-1868

Writer: Leisa Meadows 770-5432