BLACKSBURG - Virginia Tech Athletics' track record of academic success was proved once again Thursday as the department recorded an overall Graduation Success Rate of 90% in a report released by the NCAA.
The NCAA developed the formula for its Graduation Success Rate, or GSR, metric as part of its 2003 academic reform initiatives to better measure student-athlete academic success. It differs from the federal graduation rate in several ways, most notably by not penalizing schools that have transfers who depart in good academic standing and by counting transfers who enroll into a school in good academic standing. The GSR also takes into account the academic standing of mid-year enrollees, whereas the federal formula does not.
The NCAA's GSR metric allows student-athletes six years to earn their degrees. This year's rate is based on the average of student-athletes who enrolled in 2011, 2012, 2013 and the most recent data of 2014 and also graduated within six years following their enrollment. Thus, those in the 2011 freshman class would have graduated by 2017, those in the 2012 class by 2018, those in the 2013 class by 2019, and those in the 2014 class by 2020.
For the sixth consecutive year, Virginia Tech's overall GSR was at least 90 percent, and the athletics department has been at or above that threshold in seven of the past nine years.
Six Virginia Tech sports recorded a perfect GSR of 100 – baseball, men's golf, women's golf, softball, women's tennis and wrestling. The Hokies' women's tennis program has recorded a 100 percent score ever since the NCAA went to the GSR formula, while the men's golf team extended its streak of perfect 100 percent scores to 13 consecutive years.
Seven other Virginia Tech sports finished above 90%. The list consists of men's cross country/track (94), women's cross country/track (94), lacrosse (97), men's soccer (90), women's soccer (92), women's swimming (93) and volleyball (92).
Tech's men's swimming program came in at 89%, men's tennis at 83%, women's basketball at 82%, football came in at 80% and men's basketball registered 77%.
For those interested in reading more about the NCAA and the latest GSR report, please click here.
