Athletic Scholarships

If you plan to participate in an intercollegiate sport you should consider the following suggestions:

• Ask your coach at what level does he/she think you can play.

• Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center at NCAA Eligibility Center (eligibilitycenter.org)

• Ask your coach if he/she will recommend you to several of the schools you are considering.

• Discuss with your school counselor, which schools have the academic or vocational/technical programs you want.

• Write to the coaches of the school/s you are interested in and tell them of your interest. (Sample letter is available in the counseling office)

• Apply to several schools at your suggested ability level AND BELOW. Example: if your suggested ability level is NCAA Division IAA, apply to several of these schools plus other colleges that compete on a lower level, e.g. NAIA schools or community colleges.

Keep in mind that most colleges DO NOT give full scholarships for sports. These are limited chiefly to Division I and Division II schools. Few athletes qualify for this level. However, many colleges will give talent awards, or give the student preferred status with the financial aid office. These awards of preferred student status could mean up to several thousand dollars depending on the school.

NCAA ELIGIBILITY CLEARINGHOUSE

Students who want to participate in NCAA Division I or II athletics must be certified by the clearinghouse. To be certified they must:

• Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center

• Request at the time of your SAT or ACT test that score reports be sent to NCAA Eligibility Center using code: 9999

• Complete and earn a minimum 2.3 GPA in sixteen academic core courses.

• Ten of the sixteen core courses must be completed before the 7th semester of high school

• Seven of the ten core courses must be in English, math, or science

• Earn ACT/SAT score matching your core-course GPA on the Division I sliding scale

• Graduate from high school

NCAA High School Timeline |