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If you're planning on using your athletic talent to pay for college, you may want to think again. In sports such as football, basketball, baseball and softball, only one or two of every high school athlete is offered money to play in college. If you're talented, however, there are things you can take to increase your odds. Read on to learn how to get an athletic scholarship.
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How to Get an Athletic Scholarship: The Recruiting Timetable
This video waks through the four years of high school, discussing what you should be doing in each year in order to get recruited. The expert recommends that in your freshman year you do research about schools and programs to decide what you're interested in. You should begin contacting schools to tell them of your interest, even though NCAA rules restrict how they can respond. In your junior year, you need to get focused, contacting and visiting schools. During your senior year, you'll be making decisions about which offer to accept.
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Introduction
- Athletic scholarships are not easy to get. The NCAA dictates which school may offer athletic scholarships, and how many scholarships will be awarded for each sport. Some schools or leagues do not offer athletic scholarships, even when authorized to do so by the NCAA. Even when they are available, most awards do not cover full tuition; the average award is approximately $8,000 a year.
Step 1: Understand the NCAA Recruiting Rules
- The NCAA has very detailed rules that need to be followed by both coaches and prospective student athletes. Violation of the rules can result in a student being declared ineligible to participate in collegiate athletics for a period of time. The specifics vary by sport, and can be found on the NCAA website.
Step 2: Start Early
- College coaches begin looking to fill their teams two to three years ahead of time. To maximize your chances, you need to get noticed early. You should start thinking about getting exposure to college coaches in your freshman year. While NCAA rules limit the official recruiting contacts you can have with coaches, there are "legal" ways you can get yourself noticed.
- If you are on a team sport which has elite programs outside of school, such as AAU Basketball, ASA Softball, or ODP Soccer, you should be participating on a team at that level. Coaches are more likely to see you in these competitions than they are to watch your high school games.
- Begin attending athletic showcases as a freshman.
- Most serious college athletic programs sponsor camps and clinics, ostensibly to instruct younger players and earn money for their programs. These are also used by the coaches to learn more about individual players, so sign up for and attend any that are being held at schools you may be interested in.
Step 3: Get a Skills Video Made
- Not all coaches will be able to see in you in person during the early stages of the recruiting process, so you should have a skills video made.
- This can be a DVD made from videos your parents have taken, or you can spend approximately $500 to have one prepared professionally.
- Professional DVDs usually also host your video so you can provide coaches will a url; you can do the same thing by uploading your home video to YouTube.
Step 4: Contact Coaches
- By the beginning of your junior year you should have contacted college coaches. The goal is to make sure all coaches who might be in a position to offer you a scholarship are aware of you, and that they understand why you are a great prospect for their school and for their team.
- The first mailing should go to as many coaches as possible.
- Determine which schools in your sport offer athletic scholarships, and send out a very broad mailing.
- Even if you are not particularly interested in a school, the coach should get a letter.
- Coaches move frequently, so the more coaches that have seen your information the better.
- Include information about your position, your athletic achievements, your GPA and standardized tests scores, and the link to your skills video.
- You will receive responses from schools who have a preliminary interest in you. The responses will usually have a questionnaire requesting more detailed information. Complete the questionnaire and send it back.
- Follow up with all schools that responded to you, and any schools that you are seriously interested in attending that you did not hear back from initially. The follow up note can mention any showcases you are attending, or include a copy of your high school game or competition schedule.
- Continue sending a note to coaches every one to two months, including new information about updated GPA, SATs, or competitions where they will be able to see you.
Conclusion
- Aside from the hard work it took to reach the level of excellence in your sport that would lead you to be considered by a coach for a scholarship, you need to work hard to be noticed. Communicating with coaches,letting them know why you would be successful at their school and on their team, will help increase the odds that you will be offered an athletic scholarship.
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