Do you want to play collegiate soccer? If you answered yes, it is time to just relax and have a little fun with the process of finding the right school based on your academic, social and athletic needs. This process will take some work and research on your part. Let your dreams guide you but accept the reality of academic and athletic restrictions. Cost of attendance will also play a major role in your selection process. It is not wise nor do we recommend that you broadly recruit the whole spectrum of collegiate athletic programs.

• Establish a sense of your academic desires and look for schools that offer your area of interest.
• Evaluate the admission standards and cost of each school.
• Realistically evaluate your ability to compete at the various NCAA, NAIA and Junior College levels. Have your coaches help with this process.
• Determine what size school you feel comfortable attending. Some are small cities, while others mirror your high school experience.

• Look closely at the cost of attending schools far away and at the issues involved in separating from your family.
• Do some serious research into scholarship possibilities because every school offers different types of grants and aid. Start with grants and academic money and see athletic offers as a bonus.
• Few schools will fully fund soccer players on athletic grant in- aid alone.
• Register with the NCAA Clearinghouse after completion of your junior year in high school.
• Check the NCAA website for more detailed information at www.ncaa.org.
• Take the ACT or SAT on a National Testing Date.
• Now take the initiative and contact the schools that fit your profile. First, write an introductory letter to the coach and the soccer program that interests you the most. Follow up with an e-mail to the programs recruiting coordinator.
• You should receive a questionnaire from each program you contact but some may not be interested in you as a perspective student athlete because of academic or athletic reasons.
• Have a dream school or two as targets but also allow for realistic school choices as back ups. Many low profile schools offer excellent opportunities!
• The letter should focus on your academic status and on your playing experience.
• You should start contacting coaches by your junior year but be aware that many programs in the country do not finalize their recruiting class until the end of your senior season.
• Be aware that top programs recruit very early and that many look at the regional ODP pool for prospects.
• If you are a serious recruit, many programs will invite you on an official visit to see the campus and meet the staff.
• You are allowed as many unofficial visits as you like but only five official visits during your senior year.
• Most coaches will let you know whether you are a perspective student athlete for them or not.
• If you have the means, recruiting services provide a variety of tools for a fee.

Let us look at a college recruiting Myth versus the Reality. It seems that the majority of parents and high school athletes believe that talented athletes are actively recruited and will be offered “full ride” athletic scholarships by Division I college coaches. This is not the truth. The reality is that only the top 2% of all high school athletes are actively recruited by leading college coaches. This will leave the other 98% to find ways to recruit themselves.

Let us briefly look at the issue of so called Showcase and Marquee Club Tournaments. Most collegiate coaches will be aware of them but rarely recruit at these events in a blind manner. The coaches will have a list of recruits that they are interested in evaluating. Most events are too large for coaches to evaluate many players effectively. It becomes overwhelming. If your team participates in these events invite coaches to come see you play but do not count on the coach’s attendances. Use these tournaments for the experience of travel and competition, not as a must collegiate recruiting tool. It will be more effective to use travel money on unofficial visits to have a look at the campus and meet the staff.

College Address Book (includes major NCAA programs contact information)

NCAA Links

www.thesportssource.com
www.collegesource.com
www.ncaa.org
www.nscaa.com
www.collegeboard.org
www.act.org
www.soccerinfo.com
www.ed.gov
www.naia.org
www.soccerbuzz.com
www.collegesoccer.com
www.socceramerica.com
www.usyouthsoccer.org

Player Profile Form (.pdf)