Northwestern student athletes are making the grade, both on and off the court. Their graduation rates are significantly higher than those at the national level.
Eighty to 90 percent of all NU football players met the academic eligibility requirements to play in their team during 2004-05, according to that year’s academic progress rates. Fifty to 60 percent of all NU basketball players met their academic requirements during the same year.
Academic progress rates measure the number of students who meet the grade point average requirements necessary to play on a team, according to Maureen Harty, assistant athletic director for compliance at NU.
The 2005 graduation success rate was 97 percent, about 30 percent higher than the national average of all Division I schools, according to Mark Murphy, NU athletic director. The 2005 graduation success rate is based on the entering classes of 1995-96 through 1998-99.
Thirteen of NU’s 18 varsity sports from 1995 to 1998 recorded a 100 percent graduation success rate.
The high rate of graduating student athletes can be attributed to the type of students the university attracts on an academic level and to the admissions process of the school, Murphy said.
“We will not admit anyone unless they can do the work,” Murphy said.
T.J. Jones, a Weinberg junior who is a wide receiver on the NU football team, said student athletes who are admitted to NU also have achieved a certain level of academic success.
“Not everybody can get in because it’s a highly selective (school),” Jones said.
He added that student athletes attending NU are more motivated to do well on and off the field because many were good students in high school.
“If you start off with students that are more proven, then that gives them a better chance for success,” Jones said.
NU athletes have access to specialized academic resources, such as tutoring sessions, advice on choosing courses and time management workshops. Coaches’ expectations of academic achievement also encourage athletes to stay committed to their studies, Jones said.
“Coach Walker wants us to be the best football players we can be, and he also wants us to graduate,” Jones said. “We can’t be our best if we are ineligible to play.”
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