Scholarships
All About Athletic Scholarships
A scholarship is money awarded to a student to help finance a college education. In contrast to loans, scholarships do not have to be repaid. There are three compelling reasons to apply for scholarships:
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They help you pay for college.
- There is always the chance that the financial aid award you are offered once you have been accepted to a college will not be enough to cover all your costs, from tuition to books to room and board.
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They are good to put on your resume and may help you meet people who could eventually help you find a job.
Most colleges and universities offer scholarships to attract excellent athletes. The biggest scholarships usually go to athletes in major sports such as football, basketball or baseball. Scholarships are offered in other sports as well. If you show promise as a high school athlete, you may be eligible for an athletic scholarship. Athletic scholarships are rarely based on academic performance.
It is important to research scholarship opportunities outside the university as well. There are many options out there, many groups that offer funds independent of colleges and universities.
How to get an athletic scholarship
In order to be considered for an athletic scholarship you need to have exceptional talent in a particular sport. Remember, only 1 to 2 percent of college-bound student athletes qualify for athletic awards. You need to assess your athletic ability to help identify the collegiate level at which you will be most successful. Also, it is in your best interest to have a good relationship and communicate frequently with your current coach since college coaches will contact him/her. In order to be considered you should be involved in either club sports or high school team sports. Two factors you need to investigate are:
1. Which level of competition you are eligible for: NCAA Division I, II, III, or NAIA;
2. Which schools at that level you are interested in attending.
The different divisions of sports have different requirements and different allocations of athletic scholarship money. You need to check with each coach, in each sport, in each school, to discover what athletic positions are being recruited and what scholarship money is available for you the year you will be applying. In order to be recruited you need to register with the NCAA Clearinghouse. At the end of your junior year you need to fill out the registration form, send an official transcript, and officially send your SAT or ACT test scores to the Clearinghouse. There is a fee to process your registration. The forms are available at your high school career center or guidance office.
Schools that offer athletic scholarships
Many two-year and four-year schools offer athletic scholarships. They are divided into different levels of competition; NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, and NAIA. The different divisions offer different numbers of scholarships. For instance, Division I offers athletic scholarships, Division II offers scholarships, but not as many, Division III is not allowed to offer scholarships but still scout for talent, and the NAIA offers scholarships, but not many.
Sometimes, one school may offer different NCAA divisions for individual sports. For example, a school with a NCAA Division II soccer team may have a Division III baseball team.
Here is an article written in the New York Times about the reality of sports scholarships - to view
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