NCAA math

I was a little nebulous before in using "graduation rate" in relation to the Academic Progress Report, so here's some more information:

"An APR of 925 projects to an NCAA Graduation Success Rate of approximately 60%." —NCAA

"An APR score of 925 correlates to an expected graduation rate of approximately 50%, using the federal graduation rate methodology."  —NCAA

Turns out there are two different commonly used formulas. Unlike the federal rate, the Graduation Success Rate accounts for transfers into an institution or those who leave in good academic standing (including those who leave for the pros but are academically eligible to return).

The NCAA contends that the GSR is more accurate, and that seems like a fair assessment. Even the best student would be pretty dumb to turn down an NBA lottery selection.

Of course, not everybody thinks the APR is perfect. Spencer Hall of the Sporting News calls it "the NCAA's own road to hell, paved with good intentions."