Over the past six years, the NCAA has published both the Graduation Success Rate (GSR) and federal numbers to gauge each school. For the second year in a row Notre Dame led the nation in all five GSR categories:

• 99 percent graduation for all student-athletes
• 98 percent for male student-athletes
• 100 percent for female student-athletes
• 98 percent for black student-athletes
• 96 percent for football student-athletes

Meanwhile, Notre Dame also ranked No. 1 in the federal numbers for all student-athletes (91), male student-athletes (87) and female student-athletes (97).

The difference in the two systems is the federal graduation rates are based on the raw percentage of student-athletes who entered an institution and graduated within six years. Students who leave or transfer, regardless of academic standing, are considered “non-graduates.”

For example, if an Irish football recruiting class brings in 20 players and four of them transfer, the highest percentage the school could still achieve is 80 (16 out of 20 ) — even if the four who departed graduate from other schools.

The GSR was created to more accurately reflect actual graduation rates by including transfer data in the calculation. Also, all military academies are exempt from the federal survey because they do not offer grants-in-aid to student-athletes.

The federally mandated NCAA Graduation-Rates Report covers students who enrolled between 2000 and 2003 at all Division I institutions.

2010 NCAA Graduation Rates All data for student-athletes who enrolled between 2000 and 2003 (numbers are percentages)

All Student-Athletes
Federal Rate
1. (tie) Notre Dame, Stanford, 91
3. Northwestern, 88
4. Duke 87
5. Boston College, 85
6. Rice, 83
7. Penn State, 80
8. Wake Forest, 79
9. (tie) Miami (Ohio), Virginia, 77

GSR
1. Notre Dame, 99
2. (tie) Duke, Northwestern, 97
4. (tie) Boston College, U.S. Naval Academy, 96
6. Rice, 95
7. Stanford, 94
8. (tie) Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, 93
10. (tie) Penn State, U.S. Air Force Academy, U.S. Military Academy, 90

Male Student-Athletes
Federal Rate
1. (tie) Notre Dame, Stanford, 87
3. Northwestern, 86
4. Duke, 84
5. Boston College, 80
6. Rice, 77
7. (tie) Penn State, Vanderbilt, 74
9. Miami (Ohio), 73
10. (tie) Southern Mississippi, Wake Forest, 71

GSR
1. Notre Dame, 98
2. (tie) Duke, Northwestern, 96
4. U.S. Naval Academy, 95
5. Boston College, 94
6. Rice, 93
7. Vanderbilt, 92
8. Stanford, 91
9 (tie) U.S. Air Force Academy, Wake Forest, 90

Female Student-Athletes
Federal Rate
1. Notre Dame, 97
2. Stanford, 95
3. Wake Forest, 94
4. (tie) Northwestern, Rice, 92
6. Duke, 91
7. Tulane, 90
8. Boston College, 89
9. Penn State, 88
10. North Carolina, 87

GSR
1. Notre Dame, 100
2. (tie) Boston College, Duke, U.S. Naval Academy, Wake Forest, 99
6. (tie) Northwestern, Rice, 98
8. (tie) Clemson, Miami (Ohio), Pittsburgh, Stanford, 97

Black Student-Athletes
Federal Rate
1. Rice, 89
2. Notre Dame, 86
3. Northwestern, 83
4. Vanderbilt, 79
5. (tie) Duke, Penn State, Stanford, Wake Forest, 75
9. Boston College, 74
10. Rutgers, 71

GSR
1. Notre Dame, 98
2. Northwestern, 96
3. Rice, 94
4. Vanderbilt, 92
5. Duke, 91
6. Boston College, 88
7. (tie) Penn State, U.S. Naval Academy, 87
9. Wake Forest, 86
10. Rutgers, 85

Football Student-Athletes
Federal Rate
1. Boston College, 87
2. (tie) Duke, Northwestern, 86
4. Notre Dame, 85
5. Rice, 84
6. Stanford, 82
7. Penn State, 77
8. Southern Mississippi, 73
9. (tie) Cincinnati, Miami (Ohio), 72

GSR
1. Notre Dame, 96
2. (tie) Duke, Northwestern, 95
4. Rice, 93
5. U.S. Naval Academy, 92
6. Boston College, 90
7. Vanderbilt, 89
8. Rutgers, 88
9. (tie) Stanford, U.S. Air Force Academy, 86

The 2010 rankings mark the fourth straight year Notre Dame’s GSR for all-student-athletes has ranked number one and the second consecutive year that Notre Dame’s GSR numbers for male student-athletes, black student-athletes and football players all have ranked first.

Only five schools ranked in the top 10 in all 10 categories, and here are their average figures:
1. Notre Dame, 93.7
2. Northwestern, 91.7
3. Duke, 90.1
4. Rice, 89.8
5. Boston College, 88.2