The NCAA has released its annual graduation rates and Northeastern’s 2009 freshmen cohort continued the tradition of academic excellence paired with athletic ability.

For the second straight year, Huskie athletes had a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 93% compared to the overall Federal Graduation Rate (FSR)of 73%. What’s the difference between these two statistics?

Per the NCAA:

“Graduation Success Rate (GSR) begins with the federal cohort, and adds transfer students, midyear enrollees, and nonscholarship students (in specified cases) to the sample. Student-athletes who leave an institution while in good academic standing before exhausting athletics eligibility are removed from the cohort of their initial institution (essentially passed to another squad’s GSR cohort if they transfer).”

The typical Federal Graduation Rate only looks at first-time, full-time freshmen who graduate from their initial institution of enrollment within six years and makes no attempt to reflect students who transfer in or out of the school. Regardless of whether they graduate in six years or not. For student athletes, this is especially important with athletics representing a strong non-academic reason to change schools.