How USC Improves the Graduation Rate

There has been a significant improvement in the graduation rates of USC football players since the low mark of 1984 as reported in a recent edition of The Times (March 27).

USC’s 1985 football recruits had a 50% unadjusted rate (doubling the 1984 figure) and the 1986 class is on track to be at 71% by the end of this academic year.

Among the reasons: The athletic department’s increased academic standards for recruits (from 1984 to 1986, SAT scores went up 160 points and grade-point averages rose a half point); added academic programming; and more rigorous academic requirements for enrolled athletes, such as the department’s self-imposed 27-units-per-year rule (the NCAA requires only 24).

Next year, the NCAA will compute graduation rates over a six-year period, a span many students need to obtain a degree. As a result of USC’s post-eligibility programs in which former athletes return to school, our six-year rates for 1984-85-86 increase significantly.

USC feels strongly about the academic achievements of its student-athletes and we will continue to work diligently in this area.

JAMES M. DENNIS,

Vice President

Student Affairs, USC