UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa – Penn State student-athletes continue to excel in the classroom and surpass Division I national averages, according to Academic Progress Rate (APR) data released today by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
The NCAA reported that a school-record 20 Penn State teams earned perfect APR scores of 1,000 during the 2018-19 academic year, an increase of seven from the previous year. Penn State’s all-sport APR average for 2018-19 was 990, which meets one of the academic achievement unit benchmarks for the NCAA.
A total of 22 teams (out of 29) equaled or surpassed their multi-year (four-year) APR score from the 2019 NCAA APR report, an increase of three from last year. Eight squads have a multi-year APR that is at least 10 points higher than the Division I sport average.
Six Teams Post Perfect Multi-Year 1,000 APR Scores
Six Penn State squads, three more than last year, earned perfect multi-year (2015-16 through 2018-19) APR scores of 1,000: women’s cross country, women’s fencing, men’s golf, women’s golf, men’s hockey and women’s track & field. The women’s cross country team has delivered a perfect multi-year APR score in nine of the 15 years the NCAA has released APR data. The women’s golf team has posted a multi-year 1,000 APR score seven times.
The men’s hockey team earned a multi-year APR score of 1,000 for the first time to become the 16th different Nittany Lion squad to post at least one perfect 1,000 APR score.
“Balancing a full academic schedule, demanding daily practices, service work, and fierce competitions is the challenge for student-athletes, and it’s incredibly difficult,” said Penn State President Eric Barron. “The APR scores are evidence of the discipline, commitment to excellence, and the dedication to success that is practiced by our student-athletes and reinforced by the coaches, faculty, advisors and staff who support them. Congratulations on another exceptional year!”
“Our Penn State student-athletes never cease to amaze me in their dedication to academics, as well as their performance in athletic venues,” stated Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour. “I am so proud and appreciative of the commitment our students make to ensure they have the complete student-athlete experience and are prepared to have a lifetime of impact. We would not be in position to have 20 teams with a perfect yearly APR score without the collective efforts of our coaches, Morgan Academic Center staff, faculty and support staff. I could not be more thankful for their contributions to our academic success.”
School-Record Twenty Teams Earn Perfect 1,000 APR Scores in 2018-19; Football Posts First Single-Year 1,000 APR Score
The 20 Penn State teams that earned perfect APR scores of 1,000 in 2018-19 were: women’s basketball, men’s cross country, women’s cross country, women’s fencing, field hockey, football, men’s golf, women’s golf, men’s gymnastics, women’s gymnastics, men’s hockey, women’s hockey, men’s lacrosse, women’s lacrosse, men’s volleyball, softball, women’s swimming & diving, women’s tennis, women’s track & field and women’s volleyball.
The football team posted its first 1,000 single-year APR in program history, topping the previous high of 993 in 2014-15. The women’s cross country, women’s fencing, men’s golf, women’s golf and women’s track & field teams have perfect 1,000 yearly APR scores in four consecutive reports.
Nittany Lions’ Multi-Year APR Average Again Exceeds Division I Average
The average multi-year APR score for Penn State’s 29 varsity teams is 986, above the Division I average of 983, according to the NCAA. The men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track & field teams are combined in the APR data, reducing the number of Penn State teams from 31 to 29 in the compilation.
The Penn State women’s tennis team has earned 12 multi-year 1,000 APR scores in the 15 years the NCAA has announced multi-year data. The field hockey squad has earned nine multi-year 1,000 APR scores, followed by women’s cross country with eight, and women’s golf and wrestling with seven.
Football Earns 3-Point Multi-Year APR Improvement; Men’s Cross Country Up 34 Points
The Penn State squads that delivered the biggest improvements to their multi-year APR scores from the 2019 report were: men’s cross country (+34), women’s gymnastics (+20), women’s basketball (+16), men’s track & field (+15), women’s golf (+7), men’s lacrosse (+4), softball (+4), men’s swimming & diving (+4), women’s track & field (+4), football (+3), field hockey (+3), men’s hockey (+3) and women’s swimming & diving (+3).
Penn State Teams with Multi-Year APR 10+ Points Higher Than Division I Sport Average (through 2018-19)
APR Div. I Avg. Difference
Football 982 964 +18
Women’s Track & Field 1000 984 +16
Men’s Hockey 1000 985 +15
Baseball 990 977 +13
Men’s Golf 1000 987 +13
Men’s Lacrosse 996 984 +12
Wrestling 986 975 +11
Women’s Cross Country 1000 989 +11
Overall Highlights from Penn State’s Academic Progress Report for 2018-19:
- Penn State’s overall single-year average APR is 990.
- Twenty teams had a multi-year APR higher than the NCAA overall average score of 983.
- Six Penn State teams – women’s cross country, women’s fencing, men’s golf, women’s golf, men’s hockey and women’s track & field – earned NCAA Public Recognition Award for posting multi-year APR scores in the top 10 percent nationally for their respective sport through the 2018-19 academic year (data from 2015-16 through 2018-19).
- The six teams earning national recognition are the most for the Nittany Lions since seven squads were honored in 2015.
- Among Penn State’s 29 varsity teams, 17 have a score equal to or above the NCAA Division I average for their respective sport.
Team Highlights from Penn State’s Academic Progress Report for 2018-19:
- The 2020 Big Ten regular-season champion men’s hockey program earned a perfect 1,000 multi-year APR score, 15 points above the Division I average of 985. The Nittany Lions, who won their first Big Ten regular-season crown to go along with their 2017 Big Ten Tournament title, posted their first perfect score and earned their first NCAA Public Recognition Award.
- Men’s hockey is one of 11 Division I men’s hockey programs to have a perfect multi-year APR score.
- The 2019 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Championship football team earned a multi-year APR score of 982, an increase of three points from last year and 26 points higher (956) from four years ago (end of sanctions period). The 982 score is the highest since the NCAA established the APR reports 15 years ago.
- The Nittany Lions’ multi-year APR is 18 points above the overall Division I football average of 964 and 21 points higher than the Division I football public institution average of 961. The squad’s four-year APR score has been above the Div. I football average in all 15 annual NCAA APR reports.
- The football program’s 1,000 APR for 2018-19 is the first perfect single-year APR in program history.
- Penn State is one of only three teams with a perfect 2018-19 single-year APR score to have finished in the top 25 of the final 2019 College Football Playoff poll (Minnesota, Wisconsin).
- The men’s golf team is one of seven Big Ten programs to have a perfect 1,000 multi-year APR score.
- Men’s gymnastics’ 995 multi-year APR score is tied for first in the Big Ten.
- Women’s golf is one of 10 Big Ten teams with a perfect 1,000 multi-year APR score.
- The women’s cross country squad is one of nine Big Ten programs with a perfect 1,000 multi-year APR score.
- The perfect 1,000 multi-year APR for women’s track & field is three points higher than any other Big Ten school.
- Penn State is the only Big Ten school and one of 32 Division I programs to have women’s cross country and women’s track & field both record a perfect multi-year APR score.
Academic Progress Rate
The NCAA released data through 2018-19 as the 15th set of APR results, a formula introduced as part of the Division I Academic Performance Program. The NCAA released sport-specific data for 2018-19 to each institution, as well as the most recent four years of collected data used to determine a rolling four-year (multi-year) APR score for all athletic teams to provide a meaningful assessment of a team’s academic performance.
The NCAA’s APR is designed to track the academic progress of each student-athlete on scholarship at a particular institution. It accounts for eligibility, retention and graduation each term to provide a clear measure of each team’s academic performance.
The APR is based on four years of data, with the most current year’s data added and the oldest year removed, to create a four-year (multi-year) rolling rate. Penalties can be applied if an athletic team’s multi-year APR score is below 930.
Penn State Among the Nation’s Most Comprehensive and Successful Athletic Programs
Under the leadership of Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour, Penn State has one of the nation’s most comprehensive and successful athletic programs, featuring 800 student-athletes across 31 varsity programs (16 men’s, 15 women’s). The Nittany Lions’ 31 programs are tied for the fourth-highest number of sports sponsored by a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) institution.
Record-Breaking NCAA Graduation Success Rate
The 2019 NCAA’s annual graduation rates study of institutions across the nation revealed Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 91 percent to break the school’s all-time record of 90, which was previously set in the 2010, 2017 and 2018 NCAA reports. Nittany Lion students posted a 91 percent graduation rate compared to the 88 percent average for all Division I institutions for students entering from 2009-10 through the 2012-13 academic year.
Penn State student-athletes have delivered a Graduation Success Rate in the 88-91 percent range during each of the past 13 NCAA reports, improving from 88 percent in the 2015 report, to 89 percent in 2016, to 90 percent in 2017 and 2018, and a record-breaking 91 percent figure in 2019. Ten Nittany Lion programs earned 100% graduation rates and 18 programs were above the national average.
Penn State student-athletes have led the athletic department to 34 Big Ten championships and nine NCAA National Championships since October 2013. For the 20th time in the last 26 years the Nittany Lions finished in top 15 in the Learfield IMG College Director’s Cup.
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