Athletes Set Records in the Classroom

San Diego State University athletes are setting records – not only on the field, but also in the classroom. The NCAA released its 2007-08 Academic Progress Report (APR) scores for all schools and SDSU teams boasted some of its best scores in school history.

Red color indicates an SDSU school-record set in 2007-08 in that category.

Record-setting year

Of San Diego State’s 18 intercollegiate sports, 11 set school records for their highest multi-year APR rates. For the first time in school history, all 18 sports had a single-year score of 900 or better, including 17 sports that surpassed a 925 single-year rate.

A school record-tying four programs – women’s basketball, women’s cross country, women’s golf and softball - received a perfect 1,000 score. The women’s golf program, which had a perfect 1,000 score for its multi-year rate, received an NCAA public recognition award.

"It is important for our student athletes to be successful in the classroom and to complete their college education," said SDSU President Stephen L.Weber. 

"For the majority of our athletes, sports will not be their profession after they graduate, so it is crucial that they are prepared to enter the workforce. These new scores show that the education and graduation of our student-athletes remains the top priority. I am proud of the hard work of our athletes and our colleagues in athletic support services."

About the APR

The APR rating is assigned to a sport program and is based on eligibility/graduation and retention. Each student-athlete accrues two, one or zero points per semester.

If a student-athlete is in good academic standing, including being on schedule toward making progress toward a degree, and if they are enrolled, the sport receives two points. If the student-athlete is meeting one and not the other component, the program receives one point, and if neither is achieved, the program receives a zero.

The score is calculated by dividing the total points received by the total points possible. Teams with an APR score below 925 are subject to contemporaneous penalties.

The multi-year score is for the 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08 academic years.

San Diego State athletic teams that set school program records for their highest multi-year APR rates this year are:

• Baseball
• Football
• Men’s soccer
• Women’s basketball
• Rowing
• Women’s golf
• Softball
• Indoor track
• Outdoor track
• Volleyball
• Water polo

In addition to the four programs that received perfect scores for the 2007-08 academic year, men’s tennis received a perfect mark in the eligibility/graduation category and volleyball received a perfect mark in retention.

Most improved

Two-thirds of San Diego State’s athletic programs improved their multi-year APR rate this season, with many making significant jumps. Eleven programs bettered their four-year rate by 10 or more points, including nine sports that improved by 15 or more points.

Five programs – baseball, football, women’s basketball, women’s golf and water polo - improved their multi-year rate by 24 points or more.

Despite remarkable improvements this past year, football (914) and baseball (903) both remain below the NCAA threshold and will receive minor scholarship reductions this season.

Football, which increased its multi-year score from 889 last year to 914 this year, will be penalized a single scholarship this season, while baseball, which improved from an 879 score last season to 903, will lose four-tenths of a scholarship this season.

“We have diligently worked to raise awareness and educate coaches and athletic staff, as well as academic departments about APR,” said Colleen Evans, director of student-athlete academic support services.

“The student-athlete academic support staff gets tremendous support from SDSU's leadership, coaches and faculty to help us improve the academic performance of our student-athletes. These efforts are paying off with improved scores.”

APR: By the Numbers