TEMPE, Ariz. – Sun Devil Athletics has tied its all-time high 87 percent Graduation Success Rate (GSR) for its student-athletes, a mark set last year, announced by the NCAA on Wednesday.
 
Sun Devil Athletics has either tied or surpassed its all-time best GSR since the metric was released and ranks fourth in the Pac-12. Three ASU teams lead the conference in GSR, with all three at 100 percent – men's swimming & diving, softball, and women's tennis.
 
"We are proud to announce that for the second consecutive year, Sun Devil Athletics reports an 87% Graduation Success Rate," said Jean Boyd, Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director. "This ties our all-time high and remains in the upper echelon of the Pac-12 Conference."
 
Sun Devil Athletics' GSR has risen 18 percent since the metric was first introduced by the NCAA in 2005 and ASU set a new goal of 90 percent after surpassing its original goal of 80 percent in 2012.
 
ASU ranks third in the conference in graduation rates of African American student-athletes (83 percent). Among female student-athletes, GSR is 93 percent while among males, its 81 percent, elevating from 56 percent in 2005.
 
Baseball established its all-time high GSR (94 percent), while men's basketball finished its second consecutive year at an all-time high 93 percent. Women's tennis and softball also continue nine and three year streaks, respectively, in which they've recorded 100 percent GSR.
 
"The Office of Student Athlete Development led by Andrea Lore continue to be catalysts for this outstanding work, in partnership with our coaches, the campus community and student-athletes," Boyd continued. "We will remain relentless in these efforts and look forward to reaching our target of 90 percent."
 
GSR is the NCAA's primary tool for measuring academic success in Division I athletics and, unlike the federal government's methodology, accounts for student-athlete transfers from one instution to another. It's designed to show the proportion of student-athletes on any given team who earn a college degree.
 
This is the 27th release of institutional graduation rates since national "right-to-know" legislation was passed in 1990. In 2005, the NCAA DI Committee on Academic Performance released the first set of GSR data.