Fordham Tops A-10 in Academics With 10 Perfect Team Scores

Fordham University's student-athletes are acing the classroom just as hard as they're competing on the field, with 10 teams earning perfect 1,000 scores in the NCAA's latest Academic Progress Rate rankings.

The Rams recorded the highest institutional average among all 14 Atlantic 10 Conference schools at 994.2, narrowly edging out Richmond's 994.1. That means Fordham students are staying on track to graduate while balancing the intense demands of Division I athletics.

Ten Fordham teams achieved the perfect 1,000 APR score, including men's basketball, which was the only Atlantic 10 men's basketball program to reach that mark. Women's basketball joined the perfect score club for the first time in program history.

Some teams have made excellence a habit. Women's tennis has now scored perfectly in 19 of the past 20 years, while the water polo squad extended its streak to 10 consecutive perfect scores.

The APR measures whether scholarship athletes stay enrolled and remain on track to graduate each term. Students can earn one point for academic progress and one point for staying in school, with team scores calculated out of 1,000 possible points.

Five additional Fordham programs scored 990 or higher, including baseball, football, and rowing. That means 15 of Fordham's 17 tracked teams are performing at or near the top of national academic standards.

The Ripple Effect

Fordham's success reflects a broader trend of student-athletes taking academics seriously across the country. National sport averages increased across multiple sports this year, with men's basketball jumping 3 points to 971 and women's basketball rising to 984.

The Atlantic 10 Conference as a whole posted a 991 average, tying for fifth place among all 32 Division I conferences. Nearly 61 percent of the league's teams scored at or above the national average in their sport.

These numbers matter because they challenge outdated stereotypes about student-athletes. The data shows that young people can pursue athletic dreams without sacrificing their education or future career prospects.

For current and future Fordham students, the message is clear: you don't have to choose between excellence in sports and excellence in the classroom.