For the first time, we can say what those in CUNY Athletics have believed for a long time that student-athletes* generally perform better academically than the total student population. Over the course of several years, the CUNY Athletic Conference and its members have aided CUNY’s Office of Institutional Research in the collection of data pertaining to student-athlete academic performance. The significant undertaking was well worth the effort as the data suggests that a CUNY student-athlete performs better on average than the general student population in first-year GPA, first-year credits completed, graduation rate, and one-year retention rate. The analysis was completed using data on full-time, first-time freshmen in Fall 2005 through 2011 cohorts.
“We now have clear and compelling evidence of the positive relationship between participating in sports at CUNY, at both the senior and community colleges, and better than average retention and graduation rates,” said Frank Sanchez, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs.
At the senior college level, the data suggests that full-time, first-time freshmen student-athletes are consistently more likely to return to CUNY after their first year as compared to the general senior college population of full-time, first-time freshmen. For Fall 2005 and Fall 2007 cohorts, there is a nine percentage point difference in one-year retention rates between student-athletes and the total student population. At the community college level, the pattern is the same but with even larger differences in one-year retention rates between full-time, first-time freshmen student-athletes and the general community college population of full-time, first-time freshmen. For Fall 2005 through Fall 2011 cohorts, the difference between the two groups is at least ten percentage points, with the largest difference (14.3%) seen with the Fall 2006 cohort.
"This review suggests that athletes are better prepared to transition to college life and that athletic programs contribute greatly to the diversity on college campuses ," said Nathaniel Cruz, Hostos Vice President for Student Affairs and the chair of the CUNYAC Performance Management Committee. "Many of the performance indicators were what I expected, where athletes outperform non-athletes, although the diversity within athletics was a pleasant surprise especially at the community college level."
Student-athletes also appear to graduate at a higher rate. For all cohorts analyzed, full-time, first-time freshmen student-athletes in Associate degree programs had higher graduation rates than general full-time, first-time freshmen Associate degree students. In fact, for the Fall 2005 cohort, student-athletes had a four-year graduation rate that was 14% higher than the general full-time, first-time freshmen Associate degree population. Similarly, for Baccalaureate degree students, the data strongly suggests that full-time, first-time freshmen student-athletes have a higher six-year graduation rate than the general population of full-time, first-time freshmen Baccalaureate degree students. The difference between these two groups was substantial in some years: for the Fall 2005 cohort, there was a difference of 13.3 percentage points.
Credits earned during the first year is another area in which student-athletes appear to perform above average. For all cohorts from Fall 2005 through Fall 2011, at both the senior and community colleges, the data strongly suggests that full-time, first-time freshmen student-athletes consistently earn more credits during their first year as compared with all students in that category. At the senior college level, student-athletes averaged 10%, or 2.3, more credits (26.8 vs. 24.5 credits) while at the community college level, student-athletes averaged 20%, or 2.6, more credits (17.3 vs.14.7 credits).
“It is truly great to see the ‘beginnings’ to assess how our CUNY student athletes compare to their fellow students in both academic performance and graduation rates,” said Baruch Faculty Athletic Representatives Ronald Aaron, Chair of CUNYAC FAR Committee. “Ideally the collegiate experience should be more that grades and credits. Students who make the commitment to participate in CUNY’s intercollegiate athletic programs are making athletics their primary extracurricular college based activity. More CUNY students participate in intercollegiate team sports than in any other extracurricular activity on campus. From pre-season conditioning, sanctioned pre-season training, and everything associated to regular season activities (practices, travel, and the athletic contests themselves), student athletes, as a cohort, put in more time in this commitment than any other cohort of students that opt to participate in other extracurricular endeavors. As a University that sponsors Division III intercollegiate programs, our emphasis has to be on supporting our athletes to maximize their ability to become successful students. They should be students first and then athletes.”
For nearly all cohorts from Fall 2005 through Fall 2011, the data also suggests that these full-time, first-time student-athletes consistently earn a higher GPA during their first year. At the senior college, all cohorts analyzed showed higher GPAs among student-athletes while all but Fall 2007 showed that relationship at the community college level.
“These numbers are very encouraging to the entire CUNYAC Family,” said CUNYAC Commissioner Zak Ivkovic. “While they show us a lot of positive signs, we see a lot of opportunity to get better and that is always our goal.”
Individuals interested in seeing the complete study should contact the Zak Ivkovic at zak.ivkovic@mail.cuny.edu.
About The City University of New York
The City University of New York is the nation’s leading urban public university. Founded in New York City in 1847, the University comprises 24 institutions: 11 senior colleges, seven community colleges, the William E. Macaulay Honors College at CUNY, the CUNY Graduate School and University Center, the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, the CUNY School of Law, the CUNY School of Professional Studies and the CUNY School of Public Health. The University serves more than 270,000 degree-credit students and 218,083 adult, continuing and professional education students. College Now, the University’s academic enrichment program, is offered at CUNY campuses and more than 300 high schools throughout the five boroughs of New York City. The University offers online baccalaureate degrees through the School of Professional Studies and an individualized baccalaureate through the CUNY Baccalaureate Degree. Nearly 3 million unique visitors and 10 million page views are served each month via www.cuny.edu, the University’s website.
About the CUNY Athletic Conference
The City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) is an NCAA Division III and NJCAA Division III conference with 15 members that reach across all five boroughs of New York City. Since officially coming into existence in 1987, the conference has been amongst the leaders in Division III with initiatives that focus on the student as much as the athlete in student-athlete. The conference sponsors 19 Four-Year College Championships, 13 Community College Championships, the Michael Steuerman Scholar-Athlete Awards Dinner, the Basketball Press Luncheon at the Water Club, the SAAC Leadership Seminar, a CUNY-Wide Intramurals Championship Series, and the CUNYAC Golf Classic. With the help of nine corporate sponsors, the conference has been ahead of the competition. CUNYAC boasts boasts a successful StudentsFirst Rewards program, award-winning publications, award-winning events, unmatched television exposure, and one of the best websites in Division III while continuously searching for ways to improve the quality of the athletics experience.
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