Women's golf is one of the four sports at UTSA with a perfect graduation success rate.

Oct. 18, 2019—The NCAA released the latest Division I graduation rate data on Wednesday and UTSA Athletics reported a Graduation Success Rate of 82% for the second straight year. Additionally, four programs ranked at the top of Conference USA in their respective sports by posting a GSR of 100%.

UTSA has earned a GSR of 82% in each of the last two reports and that follows an increase in its GSR for the five prior reports, when it climbed from 66% to three straight years of 80% or better. UTSA also posted a GSR above the NCAA average in seven sports in the most recent report.

Four UTSA programs—women’s basketball, women’s golf, women’s tennis and volleyball—posted a perfect GSR of 100% in the latest report. Two additional programs ranked in the league’s top five in their respective sports.

“This most recent GSR data shows that our student-athletes have been committed to their work in the classroom,” said Lisa Campos, UTSA’s vice president for intercollegiate athletics. “Their dedication to degree progress, along with the tireless support from our academic services staff, has helped UTSA trend in a positive direction over the last four reporting periods. We’re encouraged by this report and will continue to focus on ensuring that our student-athletes continue to develop into champions in the classroom.”

⇒ Explore the NCAA report on student-athletes' record-high graduation rates.

This GSR figure comes on the heels of a successful report for UTSA’s latest Academic Progress Rate in May.

The men’s cross country, men’s golf, women’s golf and volleyball programs received NCAA Public Recognition Awards for having multiyear rates in the top 10% nationally in their sport. All four programs achieved a perfect multiyear rate of 1,000.

Additionally, five UTSA programs—baseball, men’s cross country, men’s golf, women’s golf and volleyball—recorded a perfect 1,000 APR while a total of nine sports registered an APR figure of 970 or better for the 2017–2018 academic year.

The Division I board of directors created the GSR in 2002 in response to Division I college and university presidents who wanted data that more accurately reflected the mobility of college students beyond what the federal graduation rate measures. The federal rate counts as an academic failure any student who leaves a school, no matter whether he or she enrolls at another school. Also the federal rate does not recognize students who enter school as transfer students.

The GSR formula removes from the rate student-athletes who leave school while academically eligible and includes student-athletes who transfer to a school after initially enrolling elsewhere. This calculation provides a more accurate appraisal of student-athlete success.

The rate also allows for a deeper understanding of graduation success in individual sports than the federal metric, which provides only broad groupings.

“College athletes continue to meet and exceed the benchmarks set for academic achievement,” NCAA President Mark Emmert said. “They have surpassed the original goal by nearly 10 percentage points, a phenomenal achievement that highlights the commitment these students have to succeed in all areas of life.”

The data released Wednesday reflect the six-year graduation rates for college athletes who entered school in 2012.