Many athletic students believe they must set the top scores or outperform their peers in order to qualify for an athletic scholarship. That is not the case, and a basic scholarship search for funding or support intended to reward athletic participation will reveal a huge range of opportunities. This can include a full scholarship package, partial scholarships or many other awards intended to support the student’s educational ambitions.
Athletic scholarships are not limited to the most well-known or competitive sports and include baseball, basketball, football, soccer, softball, swimming, gymnastics, and even golf, track, fencing and water polo!
A student performing a scholarship search for their particular sport or athletic event should begin by drafting a list of the schools they would like to attend. Does this particular college or university have a highly competitive team or background with the sport? Is the student hoping to attend for academics or to play on the team? Regardless of the motives behind choosing a school and seeking an athletic scholarship, a student must realize that they will need to have the grades as well as the athletic talent to make the best impression.
Once a student has selected their schools they will need to create a good collection of information about themselves, their academic and athletic career, and submit it to the appropriate coaches. Generally a college coach will need to know the student’s intended major or field of study, the sporting teams the student played on and what their position(s) were, they will also need to know if a student attained a varsity or junior varsity status during their years of participation. Other information of great importance include all relevant statistics for the preferred sport of the student, a listing of any awards for academic, athletic or community achievement and service, and any testing scores, advanced placement courses taken, or those the student will take.
The information forwarded to a college coach must also include a statement from the student, and their high school coach, about the level of the student’s athletic ability and whether they will be able to compete at an advanced level such as Division II at the start of their college career. A student should provide documentary evidence to support any claims, and this can include clippings from high school or local newspapers, images or videos of a student playing their game, a schedule of all the games or events the student has or will participate in and any other letters of recommendation.
During a scholarship search a student should not contact any athletic departments or coaches prior to their own junior year of high school. Instead they should be gathering all of the necessary data, such as coach names, email and postal addresses, and any special requirements or preferred information for each school. It is perfectly acceptable to send an email to a coach letting them know you are forwarding your information. Always be cordial and very careful about all spelling and grammar in any communication. Patience is encouraged in a scholarship search for athletes, since most coaches receive thousands of letters and applications for each single scholarship, and may not get back to a student immediately.