College of William and Mary
05/07/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/07/2026 11:43
W&M Athletics shines in NCAA Academic Progress Rate
W&M Athletics shines in NCAA Academic Progress Rate
William & Mary Athletics registered strong numbers in the latest Academic Progress Rate released by the NCAA.
Published May 7, 2026
The following story originally appeared on the website for William & Mary Athletics. - Ed.
William & Mary Athletics registered strong numbers in the latest Academic Progress Rate released by the NCAA on Tuesday. The Tribe ranked second nationally among NCAA Division I public schools in both perfect APR scores and NCAA Public Recognition Awards and among the top 12 nationally overall.
Tribe programs garnered 12 Public Recognition Awards, which were the most in the CAA and the state of Virginia. The Tribe's total awards trailed only the University of Michigan among public schools and ranked 12th overall nationally. It marked the third-straight year in which W&M produced 12 or more Public Recognition Awards and the sixth such season overall.
Public Recognition Awards go to teams earning multiyear Academic Progress Rates in the top 10% of all squads in their respective sport. The list of Public Recognition Award winners for W&M includes: Men's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Men's and Women's Golf, Men's and Women's Gymnastics, Lacrosse, Women's Soccer, Women's Swimming, Women's Tennis and Volleyball.
W&M has received 157 Public Recognition Awards all-time. Men's and Women's Gymnastics, and Women's Golf have each produced 14 awards in the history of the APR, while Men's Golf has 13 honors. Women's Swimming and Volleyball each earned nine awards followed by Men's Basketball (eight), Women's Tennis (seven), Women's Cross Country (six), Men's Cross Country (five), Lacrosse (five) and Women's Soccer (five).
In total, W&M had 12 programs earn perfect multi-year APRs, which also trailed only Michigan's 13 among public schools. Overall, the Tribe ranked ninth nationally among all DI intuitions, while also leading the state of Virginia and the CAA.
As a department, W&M's APR for 2024-25 was 992.9 among its 21 programs (indoor and outdoor track and field are combined), while its multi-year APR was 994.95, ahead of the national average of 986. The APR included data from the 2021-22 academic year through the 2024-25 academic year.
In total, 16 Tribe programs achieved perfect APRs in 2024-25. It marks the fifth-straight year with at least 16 perfect yearly APRs. The 16 teams that sported 1,000 APRs in 2024-25 included Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Men's and Women's Golf, Men's and Women's Gymnastics, Lacrosse, Men's and Women's Soccer, Women's Swimming, Men's and Women's Tennis, Women's Track & Field, and Volleyball.
Each academic year, every Division I sports team's APR is calculated using a simple and consistent formula. Scholarship student-athletes can earn 1 point for staying on course for a degree in their chosen major and 1 point for being retained (or graduating) at the end of each academic term. A team's total points are divided by points possible and then multiplied by 1,000. For schools that do not offer athletics scholarships, recruited student-athletes are tracked.
The Academic Performance Program has established an essential framework for academic excellence. The program provides measurable goals to ensure schools are fulfilling their commitment of equipping student-athletes with the tools and resources necessary to achieve academic success.
In the past 22 years of the Academic Performance Program, over 22,400 student-athletes have gone back to school to earn their degrees and APR points for their former team. In football (6,518), baseball (2,457), and men's (1,691) and women's basketball (771), more than 11,000 former student-athletes have returned to college and earned their degrees. These student-athletes are typically not counted in the federal graduation rate or Graduation Success Rate calculations.
The APR is another example of the Tribe's exceptional performance in the classroom. During the fall, W&M ranked second among NCAA Division I public schools in NCAA Graduation Rate, marking the 21st-straight year it was first or second. The department's 87% FGR was well ahead of the national average for all student-athletes (68%) and ranked eighth overall among all Division I schools. W&M's 96% Graduation Success Rate equaled its best in the 21-year history of the report and ranked fourth nationally among Division I public school. A total of 14 Tribe programs reported a 100% GSR for the cohort, including every women's program.
W&M Athletics posted a department GPA of 3.33 during the fall semester. It marked the eighth consecutive semester that W&M achieved a GPA of 3.25 or higher. All 23 Tribe programs posted a cumulative GPA above 3.0 for the second-straight semester. Additionally, 205 W&M student-athletes earned Provost Awards with a GPA of 3.5 or higher.
College of William and Mary published this content on May 07, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on May 07, 2026 at 17:43 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]