INDIANAPOLIS—A common misperception is that student-athletes perform poorly in the classroom. The evidence is quite the contrary.

NCAA student-athletes are completing their bachelor’s degrees at rates higher than the American college student population at large.

According to the most recent data collected by the NCAA using the federal calculation for graduation rates, 63 percent of NCAA Division I student-athletes who started college in 1999 graduated within six years. College students nationally graduated at a 61-percent rate in the same time period. Both rates increased one percentage point from last year.

The federal graduation rate is the only measurement to compare student-athlete academic success with the overall student body at a national level. It does not count transfer students.

The NCAA’s new Graduation Success Rate, however, counts transfer student-athletes in its calculation and presents an even more impressive picture of student-athlete academic success. The most recent GSR data show that 77 percent of Division I student-athletes graduated and earned their degrees, 14 points higher than the federal rate.

“The academic achievement of our student-athletes continues to improve,” said NCAA President Myles Brand. “It is becoming one of our greatest success stories.”

Brand stressed there is always room for improvement but added student-athletes perform better academically than the student body in most categories.

Key findings from the latest Division I graduation rate data:

MALE STUDENTS

• Male student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 56 percent, an increase of one percentage point over the previous year.
• This is slightly below the male student body federal rate of 58 percent.
• GSR for male student-athletes is 70 percent.
• African-American male student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 48 percent, compared to 37 percent for African-American male students in general.
• GSR for African-American male student-athletes is 55 percent.

FEMALE STUDENTS

• Female student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 71 percent.
• This is seven points higher than the female student body federal rate of 64 percent.
• GSR for female student-athletes is 86 percent.
• African-American female student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 66 percent, up three points from last year and significantly higher than the 50-percent federal graduation rate for African-American female students in general.
• GSR for African-American female student-athletes is 74 percent.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

• Division I men’s basketball student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 46 percent, up from 43 percent the previous year.
• GSR for men’s basketball student-athletes is 59 percent.
• Division I African-American men’s basketball student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 42 percent, up from 38 percent the previous year and five points higher than the rate for African-American male students in general.
• GSR for African-American men’s basketball players is 51 percent.
• White Division I men’s basketball players graduated at a federal rate of 52 percent, a one-point drop from the previous year and below the federal rate of 61 percent for white male students in general. GSR for white men’s basketball players is 76 percent.

FOOTBALL

• Division I-A football student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 55 percent, unchanged from last year. GSR for football student-athletes is 66 percent.
• Division I-A African-American football student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 49 percent, the same rate as the previous year. GSR for African-American football student-athletes is 56 percent.
• Division I-A white football student-athletes graduated at a 64-percent federal rate, up from 63 percent the previous year. GSR for white football student-athletes is 79 percent.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

• Division I women’s basketball student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 64 percent, up one point from the previous year.
• GSR for women’s basketball student-athletes is 82 percent.
• Division I African-American women’s basketball student-athletes graduated at a 63-percent federal rate, a seven-point increase over last year’s 56-percent rate.
• GSR for African-American women’s basketball student-athletes is 72 percent.
• Division I white women’s basketball student-athletes graduated at a federal rate of 66 percent, down three points from the previous year. GSR for white women’s basketball student-athletes is 89 percent.

Data were also released for NCAA Division II and III institutions. In Division II, the data continue to show student-athletes are significantly outpacing the general student body in terms of graduation.

Using the federal calculation, student-athletes entering Division II schools in 1999 graduated at a rate of 55 percent, compared to 46 percent for the general student body.

But under the new Division II Academic Success Rate, announced for the first time, student-athletes are graduating at a 69-percent rate. The Division II ASR not only counts transfer students like the Division I GSR but also includes in its calculation student-athletes not receiving athletics financial aid.  Overall, the Division II ASR includes more than twice the number of student-athletes counted in the federal rate.

Most Division III student-athletes are not covered by the federal methodology, because it only includes student-athletes who receive athletics financial aid.  Therefore, the data for Division III are used to analyze success rates within the student bodies.  In all, students who entered those institutions in the fall of 1999 showed a federal graduation rate of 63 percent.