A Timeline for getting recruited for college scholarships!
The college recruiting process does not start in the athlete’s senior year! That is where most people make their mistakes. The recruiting process starts in the freshman year. As a freshman you need to start sending your information in to college coaches. The more you send the better. If you receive questionnaires from a school, fill them out as soon as possible and get them back to the coaches. That shows your interest. Even if you are not sure you want to go to that school, send it back because you may change your mind later. Never close a door at this point! Also send in your information to the free recruiting sites. NEVER pay for a recruiting service.
Academically, keep your grades up. This is critical because college coaches figure if you are not disciplined enough to do your high school work, you will definitely not be disciplined enough to keep up your grades in college when there are no parents there. Take practice ACT and SAT tests. Start preparing to take these tests now as it is a process to do well on them.
Sophomore year you will want to update schools with your improved stats. You will also want to go on unofficial visits. See what the schools are like, meet the coaches and get a feel of their level of interest in you as a potential student athlete. Keep in contact with the coaches by sending emails or letters, so they know you are still interested in them. Keep taking those practice tests, and work on vocabulary and any weaknesses you feel you may have on the test. Remember academics are just as important as your athletic ability.
In your junior year, you will need to register with the NCAA Clearinghouse. If you are not familiar with it go to www.ncaaclearinghouse.org and read all the pertinent information about registering. Continue to go on unofficial college visits. Stay in contact with the coaches and keep them updated on any big stats you have as well as any improvements in your current stats. Call them and determine if they are interested in offering you a scholarship. Remember that it is very rare to get a full ride. Most schools offer a partial scholarship for athletics unless it is a sport like basketball or football that only offer full ride scholarships. Send out additional letters and fill out additional questionnaires on school websites of any new schools that you maybe interested in.
Senior year is where it all comes together. If you have not registered with the NCAA Clearinghouse, you need to do that ASAP! You should go on the last few unofficial visits and then go on official visits from schools that are serious about recruiting you. Don’t forget that if you can’t go on official visits, you should still go on the unofficial visits to Division 1, 2, 3 and NAIA schools as they can all offer scholarships of some sort. A lot of people are under the misconception that Division 3 schools can not offer scholarships. They can! They can not offer athletic aid, but D3 schools have more ‘other’ money to offer so they can often put together a better financial aid or scholarship package for you, it just can’t be called an athletic scholarship! Lastly, Sign your letter of intent after you have been offered a scholarship.
De Pinnick is an assistant track coach with the AuroraFlyers track club. She has helped hundreds of students secure college scholarships. She also owns a taxi service MyPersonalTaxi Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/a-timeline-for-getting-recruited-for-college-scholarships-1768096.html
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