Five Things You Need To Know About Recruitment…!
Get smart about College Recruiting. Study the Athletic Scholarship process. Know the NCAA rules. Set appropriate expectations. Understand the responsibilities of everyone involved.
- The Recruiting Process Starts Freshman Year.
- Coaches Don’t “Discover” You! Make Yourself Known.
- College Coaches Do Their Homework Online.
- Be Realistic: Less Than 1% Get A DI Full Ride!
- Your Coach Cannot Get You A Scholarship!
1. Start Early!
The recruiting process started yesterday!
Myth: Recruiting begins when you are contacted by a college coach during junior or senior of high school.
Reality: Due to the rise in athletic scholarship need and the increase of available information for college coaches, the recruiting process is starting earlier than ever before. According to the NCAA, college coaches are starting to identify 7th and 8th graders as recruits and are even starting to offer scholarships to prospects before their freshman year.
Start early! Freshmen year is not too soon to get evaluated.
2. Where Do Coaches Recruit?
Recruiting Starts with Verified Information & Purchased Lists!
Myth: Colleges coaches discover talent by attending camps, combines, showcases, tournaments, and high school games.
Reality: College coaches depend on verified information from reliable sources and purchase lists of prospects as young as 7th grade. Most coaches attend tournaments, games, and camps with a list of student athletes they will evaluate, not with the hopes of discovering prospects.
84% of Division I prospects are identified by the end of sophomore year. You need to be pro-active in getting your name, academic scores and athletic achievements in front of coaches.
Take advantage of credible sources to get your name in front of college coaches!
3. How Do Coaches Evaluate?
College coaches evaluate prospects online.
Myth: College coaches initially evaluate talent by attending high school games and watching unsolicited video sent from students and families.
Reality: College coaches do a majority of their initial evaluation by looking at video – requested or received from reliable sources – often delivered online or digitally. After watching video, a coach may decide to have a member of his or her staff make an in-person evaluation.
Make sure to have your edited highlight video and full game footage online in a format that can be easily distributed to college coaches.
Your video must make it easy for coaches to identify you and your play.
4. Where Can I Play?
Be realistic: Less than 1% get a DI full ride!
Myth: NCAA Division I is the only viable option for collegiate athletics
Reality: There are over 1,800 U.S. colleges and universities that sponsor collegiate athletics and are able to offer financial packages. More than 94% of those opportunities fall outside of DI.
Have clear expectations of the college programs you qualify for based on athletic and academic performance, whether that’s DI, DII, DIII, NAIA, or NJCAA. (And, yes, DIII schools provide financial packages, too!)
Great schools exist at all levels. Expand your horizons and increase your odds. The more schools in your pool, the better your chances.
5. Who Is Responsible?
Your coach cannot get you a scholarship!
Myth: Many student athletes believe their high school or club coaches are responsible for their recruiting process and getting them scholarships.
Reality: The average high school coach has contact with fewer than five college coaches and most of them are local. Student-athletes and their families are ultimately responsible for connecting with college coaches.
Don’t eliminate 99% of your options by relying solely on your high school coach. Meet with your coaches and gain a clear understanding of who will be responsible for every aspect of your recruiting process.
Take ownership of your effort. Show as much desire in the recruiting process as you do in your sport!
Five Things You Must Do To Get Recruited…!
Get Recruited: The 5 Things You Must Do
Now that you understand more about how the recruiting game is played, it’s time to put that knowledge to use with these five key action steps.
- Get Evaluated
- Post Your Academic/Athletic Resume Online
- Create A Winning Highlight/Skills Video
- Contact 100 Coaches Minimum
- Start Building Relationships And Following Up With College Coaches Now
1. Get Evaluated
Every student athlete needs an objective, third-party evaluation to determine “best fit” qualifications for various college programs. A knowledgeable third party helps set realistic expectations on programs, competition levels, academic fit and schools, helping you target 100 to 200 realistic opportunities.
There are Over 1,700 Colleges that offer collegiate athletic opportunities, but it is almost impossible to get the right schools to contact you without an evaluation from an expert.
2. Build a Recruiting Profile
The days of delivering paper résumés through the mail are over. Coaches now view websites that contain all the athletic and academic information needed to recruit a prospect. Coaches need to be able to see more athletes, more efficiently.
There are companies like NCSA Sports that developed a Recruiting Profile to help student-athletes to eliminate the hassle of sending hundreds of packages across the country. The Recruiting Profile allows college coaches to view all your necessary up to date athletic and academic information instantly. There are other companies that may of similar services. It is good to compare price and service.
Find a reliable and economical recruiting profile system!
3. Create a Video
Every student athlete needs a highlight and skills video to convey their athletic abilities to college coaches. These videos are now typically streamed online and sent through e-mail. The best videos are digitally enhanced, sequenced properly and have spot shadowing. The difference in a quality enhanced video and a simple homemade video can be a deal breaker.
Your video must focus on what college coaches want to see. Make them want to watch you!
Learn how to properly showcase your talent!
4. Connect with Coaches
Student athletes need to understand that receiving a few letters from college coaches does not constitute serious recruitment. College coaches contact thousands of student athletes in order to have enough options to fill needs. Student athletes need to play the same game: market to a minimum of 100 college coaches, preferably, 200!
It’s a numbers game. The more “right fit” schools and coaches you’re contacting, the more likely you are to succeed at being recruited. There are other companies that can help you navigate the recruit and match process for a fee. Find the right affordable profiling system that fits your budget and need. With our networking of college coaches, Education-1st can help provide assistance.
5. It’s a 40 year decision-Get it right!
In an effort to narrow their Recruiting boards, college coaches are always looking for a reason to cross recruits off their lists. Throughout the process every recruit faces countless scenarios that can make or break their recruiting efforts. Every student athlete needs a step by step plan in order to successfully navigate through the recruiting process.
Education-1st staff has been through the recruiting process first hand. They are dedicated to help guide our student athletes to achieve their recruiting goals.
There are many profiling systems available to help student athletes navigate the process with a fee or without. We encourage you to please evaluate and do your research to identify the best fit according to your budget and needs.
*Information for things you need to know and do for recruitment was complied and gathered from ncsasports.com and ncaa.org.
Here are a few list of profiling systems that can assist:
