Which March Madness teams have the best (and worst) scores when it comes to academics?

With the NCAA men’s basketball tournament underway and March Madness in full swing, we decided to take a look at one way the NCAA evaluates Division I sports teams for academic integrity. About six years ago, the National Collegiate Athletic Association devised, developed, and implemented a “scorecard” for keeping track of how Division I sports programs were doing in terms of graduation rates. The Academic Progress Rate system was launched in 2005 to “predict” the graduation rate of teams playing in the NCAA. The APR is meant to be a predictive index of any given team’s overall progress toward graduation. The score is calculated by combining the eligibility and retention rates of a particular NCAA Division I team. Teams are given a score based on a 1,000 point system. Any team with a score under 925 (which translates to a 50% Graduation Success Rate) may be penalized by losing scholarships and facing restrictions on practice time and competition eligibility. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Academic Progress Report, March madness, NCAA basketball
Posted in College Search | 2 Comments »

One of the best things about college life is getting caught up in school spirit. And right now school spirit is rampant and brackets are everywhere – it’s March Madness!  The great thing about the NCAA tournament is that nearly every school, big or small, with a Division-1 basketball team participates.  There are always the upsets and the little known teams that make it farther than expected.  There’s the heartache of the seniors who lose in the Final Four and the triumph of the young team that beat all odds.  It’s a competitive tournament wrought with spirit, drama, and talent.

College sports, more so than professional sports, have heart.  The arena  is packed with students.  Pride and electricity fill the air.  There’s really nothing else like it. In my junior year, my college team, University of Maryland, made it to the Final Four and suffered a devastating loss to our rivals  I will never forget the friends who decided to randomly drive to the tournament in Minneapolis and try to get tickets. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Final Four, March madness, NCAA basketball
Posted in Life at College | 2 Comments »