NCAA APR Rates (Who’s Going To School and Who Isn’

More and more students are going to, and finishing, classes across the country. The NCAA just released their APR list for the school year. The APR rates schools on how many student athletes finish school in a timely manner.

Here’s the list for the CHA this year, and what the NCAA has to say about the APR:

The NCAA member colleges and universities have adopted a comprehensive academic reform package designed to improve the academic success and graduation of all student-athletes.

The centerpiece of the academic reform package is the development of a new academic measurement for sports teams, known as the Academic Progress Rate, or APR.

Why was APR established?
The Academic Progress Rate (APR) is a tool the NCAA developed for every Division I sports team. Since it is calculated term-by-term, it provides a near real-time assessment of student-athlete and team academic performance. With APR, schools no longer have to wait for graduation day to see how student-athletes are doing academically.

Why was APR established?
Presidential leadership on campuses across the nation recognized a need to track how student-athletes are doing academically prior to graduation. APR has changed how schools approach academics, recruit, and manage academic programs for the student-athlete.

What does the APR measure and who does it affect?
The APR is a dual measurement. It is calculated based upon individual student-athlete academic progress but is reported as a composite team measurement. If a team’s APR falls below the 925 benchmark, the team could be sanctioned. Penalties start with the loss of scholarships and only get worse. The NCAA works with APR-challenged schools because the goal is improvement, not punishment.

How is APR calculated?
Each Division I sports team receives an APR. An APR of 925 roughly projects to a 60 percent graduation success rate. To calculate the APR, every student-athlete is tracked by eligibility and retention, the two most reliable factors in predicting graduation. Those who do well in the classroom and stay in school earn two points. Those who pass but do not return to school earn one point. If a student-athlete fails academically and leaves school, their team loses two points. If a student-athlete returns to school later and graduates, the school earns one bonus point. The team’s APR is calculated by dividing the total points earned in a year by the total points possible.

How are teams doing across the board?
The average APR is 961 out of a perfect 1,000. Of note, more student-athletes are staying in school and graduating, especially in football and baseball.

How are football, baseball and men’s basketball doing?
There’s good news for all three. The four-year APR figures for these three sports are all above the 925 cutoff. In fact, no single sport is below the bench mark.

How does the NCAA assist teams with APR challenges?
When a school has APR challenges, they are encouraged to present the NCAA a get-well plan. The NCAA national office staff then works with the school to make sure the plan is a bona fide way to achieve the necessary improvement.

CHA Team		Score	
Niagara			981
Bemidji State		965
Robert Morris		963
Huntsville		952

The average APR in NCAA Division 1 hockey is 971.