For the third year in a row Syracuse University Athletics ranks in the top 10 among Power 5 schools’ Graduation Success Rate (GSR). Syracuse’s 93% GSR is tied for the fifth highest score among Power 5 schools, and the Orange are one of 25 Power 5 schools nationally to score 93% or higher.
Syracuse’s GSR of 93% ties for the third-best score in program history, trailing only 95% in 2021 and 94% in 2020. It ties the mark set in 2019.
For the fifth time in the last six years, more than half of Syracuse’s teams achieved a perfect 100% score. GSR measurement reflects Orange student-athletes who enrolled in 2015-16 and earned degrees within six years.
Syracuse’s 93% GSR is above the national GSR of 89%, and the Orange are one of eight Atlantic Coast Conference schools to achieve a 93% or better.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) started measuring GSR, which includes those who entered midyear, as well as student-athletes who transferred into the institution, in 2004.
Syracuse’s women’s tennis and women’s volleyball programs achieved a perfect 100% for the 11th consecutive year, the longest active streaks in the athletics department. The Orange men’s cross country and men’s track and field teams have scored a perfect 100% for nine years in a row, and the women’s rowing and men’s lacrosse teams have a five-year streak of perfect scores.
In addition to those teams, men’s and women’s soccer and women’s basketball all scored a perfect 100%.
“These excellent scores are a testament to the dedication of Syracuse University student-athletes to their academics and to their sport, an incredibly demanding balancing act,” says Faculty Athletic Representative Mary Graham, professor of sport management in the Falk College. “Student-athletes have amazing competitive experiences here, while at the same time earning degrees in a diverse array of majors that prepare them exceedingly well for their future endeavors. Congratulations to Athletics Director John Wildhack and his team, especially all of the talented coaches, academic support staff and, of course, our highly-regarded student-athletes. Well done.”
The volleyball program leads all Syracuse programs with 13 perfect GSR scores, followed by the men’s cross country, men’s track and field, and women’s tennis programs, which have posted a perfect 100% GSR 11 times. Women’s soccer has each achieved a 100% GSR on 10 occasions.
“In the ever-changing world of higher education and collegiate athletics, one thing has remained constant: A degree from Syracuse University will set up our student-athletes for opportunities to thrive on a national and international level,” says Assistant Provost for Student-Athlete Academic Development Tommy Powell. “I have had the privilege to see many of these graduates enter as first-year students and leave the University prepared to serve and contribute positively to our society.”
The NCAA instituted the GSR to more accurately reflect the mobility of college students as compared to the Federal Graduation Rate. The federal rate counts any student who leaves a school as an academic failure, whether or not the student enrolls at another school. The federal rate also does not consider students who enter as transfer students. The GSR formula provides a more complete and accurate picture by removing from the rate student-athletes who leave school while academically eligible and including student-athletes who transfer to a school after being enrolled at another university.
