Sports Scholarships: Score Big!

Playing sports in college is one level of competition. Landing sports scholarships is in a whole other league. Athletic awards are made through colleges and applying for one is like marketing yourself as the lead role for a film. If you are interested in winning an athletic scholarship go to the NCAA website and read up on their regulations and policies. You’ll need to apply with NCAA Eligibility Center.

According to the NCAA, athletic scholarships for undergraduate student-athletes at Division I and Division II schools are partially funded through the NCAA membership revenue distribution. These scholarships are awarded directly by each college and not the NCAA. About $1 billion in athletic scholarships are awarded each year and over 126,000 student-athletes receive either a partial or full athletic scholarship. Division III schools offer only academic scholarships and not offer athletic scholarships.

If you enroll in a Division I college before August 1, 2008, and want to participate in athletics or receive an athletics scholarship during your first year, you have to graduate from high school and complete 14 core courses. You’ll also want to contact the financial aid office of the school you hope to attend. They should have lots of information about available awards.

Make yourself known to coaches. While the actual athletic scholarship is awarded through the college’s financial aid office, it’s the coaches who decide who get the cash. You can go visit the coaches if that’s possible or send them a video of you playing sports, and doing drills, along with a personalized letter.

So you’ve definitely got your work cut out for you if you want to compete for athletic scholarships. But you already like competition, don’t you?

By: CampusCompare