Document Type
Working Paper
Date of This Version
3-1-2005
Keywords
college sports, sports economics, graduation rates
Abstract
Graduation rates for male athletes overall as well as men’s football and basketball players lag behind those of male non-athletes at Division I colleges and universities. Scholarship athletes, however, are much more likely to be drawn from racial and ethnic groups with lower average graduation rates. After accounting for differences in racial composition, graduation rates for male athletes overall as well football players match or exceed those of their peers, and racial differences account for over one-quarter of the shortfall in men’s basketball graduation rates. This is a classic example of Simpson’s Paradox.
Working Paper Number
0506
Recommended Citation
Matheson, Victor, "Research Note: Athletic Graduation Rates and Simpson’s Paradox" (2005). Economics Department Working Papers. Paper 87.
https://crossworks.holycross.edu/econ_working_papers/87