NCAA Recruitment
How does it work and how can I help?
by Lauren Rosenfeld
College sports attract hundreds of thousands of fans and make billions of dollars for colleges and universities all over this country. None of this success would be possible without the hard-working student athletes that make up these beloved sports teams. But how did these student-athletes land a spot on these teams? How does NCAA recruitment work?
To be honest, it is a chaotic process that differs for each sport and each individual athlete. As the parent of a now D1 athlete, the entire recruitment process felt like a blur; we were pulled in so many different directions and given so much varying advice. But the one consistent component of the entire process was the academic piece. Regardless of student athletic success, student-athletes MUST meet the academic requirements that are laid out by the NCAA to be eligible for a potential athletic scholarship. Fortunately for my daughter and I, we had a knowledgeable school counselor who kept close tabs on her academic progress and ensured that all required documentation was made available at the correct times. Without that crucial component, a spot on a D1 roster would not have been possible.
School counselors may not realize how big of a role they have in the recruitment process, but it is crucial that their role is understood, proper procedures are in place, and the high school academic offerings conform to all stated NCAA policies.
So what is it you can do as a school counselor to ensure your student-athlete will be as academically prepared as possible? Here are a few tips:
Review your school’s course offerings and check eligibility.
NCAA Division 1 and Division 2 eligibility requires that students enroll in and receive credit for specific course offerings. Each high school should have a NCAA point person who is responsible for ensuring that the necessary courses are offered, course descriptions are complete and submitted to the NCAA for review and approval.
If you are unsure of your school’s NCAA status, you can contact the eligibility center here:
Identify your potential student-athletes and review their transcripts.
As seen above, there are specific courses that a student-athlete needs to take, and a minimum overall GPA required to be academically eligible. Starting early, preferably in the 9th grade, students should have a conversation with their guidance counselor about their potential level of recruitment. Courses should be discussed to ensure that all requirements will be met by senior year. Guidance counselors should meet with their student-athletes regularly throughout their HS career to review course progress, grades and GPA. It’s important to have realistic and straightforward conversations about academic progress with students. Regardless of their level of athletic ability, the academic requirements must be met to be eligible!
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Encourage your counselees to enroll in the Eligibility Center.
The NCAA eligibility center is the starting point for all possible recruitment. Students should enroll as early as 9th grade so that all account information can be updated as needed. It is the responsibility of the athlete and their guardians to complete this enrollment process, but the guidance counselor should be recommending this step to the family to facilitate the process.
Academic eligibility is an extremely important portion of the recruitment process and cannot be overlooked or underplayed. Student athletes who do not meet the NCAA standards will be deemed a final nonqualifier and will be ineligible for an athletic scholarship; they will not be allowed to practice or compete at the D1 or D2 level. If this occurs, student-athletes will have to explore other options to try and meet the academic requirements. This may necessitate filing an academic waiver with the NCAA to try and gain extra time to meet requirements or attending community or junior college in order to become eligible. Not being academically eligible is a crucial blow to a student-athletes recruitment process and can lead to lost opportunities.
While much of the college recruiting process falls on the athlete and their athletic coaches, school counselors most definitely fill an important role. If you’d like to learn more about the recruitment process, please visit the NCAA Eligibility Center school counselor guide: Guide for Counselor
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