Student Athletes Fact Sheet
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Most student-athletes have an opportunity to play their sport in college. Some teams accept all interested players while others are very selective. The one thing all levels of play at the college level have in common is that they require students to carefully manage their time to balance academic demands as well as team commitments. College athletes must meet academic requirements to earn and keep sports scholarships as well as to maintain eligibility to play their sport.
Let’s take a closer look at the numerous opportunities to play sports in college!
First, be sure to check the organization’s websites for your specific sport to learn the rules that apply to you, such as:
• When can college coaches initiate communication with you? This will vary by sport.
• Are there specific academic requirements that apply to you?
• How do official visits work? How many can you take? When can coaches
invite you for an official visit?
Intramural Sports: Most colleges offer an opportunity for all students to participate in their favorite sports through intramural sports on campus. These teams typically accept all students. In fact, participation in intramural sports is a good way to stay fit, have fun, and meet other students. Intramural athletes compete with other teams from the same university. Sports include the traditional, such as basketball, soccer, and volleyball as well as the less traditional, such as dodgeball and frisbee golf.
Club Sports: Some schools offer club sports for their students to participate in. You are typically required to pay your own expenses to play on a club team and there are no scholarships offered. Athletes compete with club teams from other colleges and often compete at regional conferences in an attempt to bring home the national championship.
Sports Associations: The highest intensity of competition is typically found in teams managed by sports associations. The role of the various associations is to regulate and watch over college sports. It is important to get to know each association and how it might impact your life as a potential student-athlete. As a collegiate athlete, understand that you will likely travel around the country with your team and that you will, at all times, represent your school. For this reason, your character can oftentimes be as important as your athletic prowess in team selection.
NCAA: The National Collegiate Athletic Association is the largest and most well-known college sports association. The NCAA has three divisions, each of which carries its own regulations. There are 24 sports included in the NCAA and over 1,100 colleges participate each year. There are very specific academic requirements to participate in Division I (DI) or Division II (DII) of the NCAA. If you are interested in playing either DI or DII in the NCAA, you should register with the NCAA Eligibility Center for an NCAA ID number during the beginning of your junior year. The organization will certify you academically and classify you as an amateur so that you can play college sports. The cost is $65, and there are fee waivers available for those students who have also qualified for a fee waiver for the SAT or ACT.
The NCAA publishes a quarterly magazine entitled Champion. You might find it both informative and inspirational; the annual cost is $12, and you can subscribe to it right off the NCAA website. You can learn more about the NCAA on the website: http://www.ncaa.org/.
Action Steps:
- Download and review the Student-Athlete Recruitment fact sheet.
- Download and review the Student-Athlete Glossary.
- Download and share with your parent or guardian the Game On! College Athletic Recruitment parent article.
- Upload the fact sheet, glossary, and parent article to your Unit 13 folder.
