Sept. 29, 2000
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Graduation rates for Purdue student-athletes continue to improve and rank above the national average according to NCAA statistics.
"We are doing very well but need to continue striving," says Chris Ribnek, athletic academic services director. "We need to pay particular attention to the different learning styles of our student-athletes. When we develop more plans to address those special needs, our average will continue to soar."
The eighth-annual NCAA study analyzes college students who enrolled in 1993-94 and graduated in six years. Students who transferred to another university counted against the rates for the school originally attended.
Current Boilermakers have fared extremely well in the classroom. The athletic department's cumulative GPA is 2.88. The overall university average is 2.78. The athletic department has been even with or above the entire university mark for each of the last four semesters. Setting the standard is the women's tennis team, which received the President's Cup for having the highest team cumulative GPA last year (3.51).
"Being a student-athlete is a tough balance between coursework and team demands," Ribnek says. "We don't ever compromise academic programs, but instead work hard to find a blend between the two. We look at each individual's long-term academic plan of study and attempt to adjust their class and athletic schedules around each other."
Seventy percent of Purdue student-athletes from the six-year study graduated, slightly down from last year's record of 73 percent. Purdue's average rated above 59 percent for all NCAA Division I-A student-athletes and 58 percent for all NCAA Division I student-athletes. Purdue student-athletes were also above the averages for the university general student body (65 percent), as well as at all NCAA Division I-A institutions (56 percent) and all NCAA Division I institutions (56 percent).
In addition, a total of 88 percent of Purdue student-athletes who exhausted their eligibility in the 1998-99 academic year graduated.
Purdue University NCAA Division IA Category Graduation Rate Graduation Rate All Students 65% 56% All Athletes 70% 58% Male Athletes 66% 52% Female Athletes 78% 68%