<p>Am having trouble finding a ranking of student athlete graduation rates by school. The NCAA site has some school-specific info., but for certain colleges (like some of the Ivies) the reports are blank. Apparently there exists such a list, because one school D is researching claims to be number 6 in the country for athlete graduation. </p>
<p>Also, in general I'd like to hear parents' perceptions of how well their student athlete's school supports them academically. My D will not necessarily need to be motivated to study, but if she participates in sports in college, then I'd like her to attend a school that places a high priority on academics and helps their athletes succeed in the classroom, manage their schedule so they can graduate on time, makes sure they get good meals even if they finish practice/game after the cafeterias are closed and all that's open are fast food-type places, and other supports like that.</p>
<p>This is a Stanford-affiliated site that does an annual graduation rate analysis, but it covers the major men's sports (although there is an overall student athlete table too) and not Ivies per se, so it may not be too much help. Scout.com:</a> The Bootleg's Graduation Rate Analysis</p>
<p>Well, at least on the issue of graduation rates ;). Doesn't keep their football team from getting beat up on the field :(. They may be getting their diplomas on crutches.....</p>
<p>lol. So, the question I'd pose next is whether a school like Stanford is doing more to help students balance their academics and athletics, or whether they are just more successful than some other schools in recruiting a higher caliber of student? </p>
<p>Also, the standard for these graduation rates list is 6 years after entry to school. As a parent, I wouldn't be overly happy with my S or D taking 6 years to make it through undergrad. except perhaps if it were a S in a cash sport who was on track to play professionally.</p>
<p>I <em>LOVE</em> seeing this info ... however I believe using the raw graduation rates is not very helpful. To me comparing the graduation rates of athletes versus the general population of students is much more revealing ... the graduation rates of non-athletes is not even close between Stanford and Michigan State ... wyhy would we expect them to be close among athletes? ... the bigger question is within a school what is the gap between athletes and non-athletes. I also like to see the stats based on 4 years, 5 years, and 6 years.</p>
<p>Go to the Academic Integrity section (which is good reading regardless), typically #8 subsection for a description & sometimes table of rates. Note that there are a several Ivy reports in this listing, but a few are very old. Also, some great athlete/non-athlete SAT scores as well, but some schools omit these stats. Usually always a good discussion on what a school does to support the student athletes academically.</p>
<p>I suspect these reports are probably the source for NCAA's own postings on grad rates.</p>
<p>You'll only find the answers to your questions in talking to and spending time with the athletes already there. Even at high-graduation-rate schools, you can expect a lot of athletic pressure on students who are members of a team with high expectations and demanding competition schedules designed to prepare them for post season success. You can also ask in what departments the athletes tend to concentrate. If every female gymnast is in the school of Kinesiology, you may have some conflicts if you intend to major in molecular biology, or even in economics.</p>
<p>If your child is looking at athletically-competitive Division 1 scholarship schools, you can pretty much count on him/her spending 5 years there. Those teams generally "redshirt" their players for one year to maximize their potential. That is why you will see many Div. 1 footall players taking one class in their (5th) senior year.</p>
<p>You should be aware that Stanford raised it's minimum academic acceptance requirements for athletes a few years ago, much to the consternation of many athletic coaches there. In general, athletes who are accepted there these days truly are Scholar-Athletes, and aren't accepted just for their athlete abilities. There was a recent thread on CC about some of Stanford football players, after their shocking win against USC. I think it was based on an article in the LA Times.</p>
<p>You can check majors to some extent on the all-academic lists for the Pac-10and other leagues' teams, by sport. That will only show majors for the team members with the highest GPAs, however. </p>
<p>I think that the redshirting policy varies by team at least at Stanford. Baseball will not redshirt a player except for serious medical reasons. In baseball, the players can be drafted after their junior year but the coach actually has them load up on extra units throughout their 3 years so that if they are drafted, they are close to completing all their units for graduation by that time. Most of the drafted players come back fall quarter after playing pro ball for the season, and are then eligible to graduate.</p>
<p>D-1 recruiting is really competitive in both directions. Wisconsin just turned down a visit from the 17th ranked RB in the US because they were done recruiting for that position. He'll still get a full ride somewhere good but the standards are really high.</p>