The college recruiting process can be fun but also confusing for many high school student athletes. It can also be stressful in your academic performance, but in the end you may be rewarded with playing your favorite sport at the next level

“It’s a roller coaster of a process” says Junior volleyball player Maddie Appleton, “and trying to make such a huge decision like that is daunting.” Understanding the admissions process can help remove some of the stress. While most colleges will follow the same evaluation process, each will have its own way of doing things and that is how students become stressed.

Some universities are more selective than others depending on their academic prominence. Even the least selective colleges will generally require at least a 2.5 grade point average to be considered in the evaluation process.

Though the process seems the same for all sports they are in fact not. There are only certain sports a university can give scholarships for depending on money and strength of the program. The “money makers”, football and basketball, bring in the most money in a university but they are  also the hardest men’s sports to receive a scholarship for.

The transcript is the most important part of the evaluation process. It will tell a “story” of your sports career, academics, and also personal preferences. This is a main source of information for recruiters at each university.

Your college application will include high school transcripts that will tell a lot about your potential to succeed in college. A transcript will reveal all of your academic experiences, including how challenging a course load you took. Most universities prefer a hard-earned “B” grade in an honors course over an easy “A” in a less-challenging class.

There are now many resources for athletes to use online to get a jumpstart on the process such as NCSA which is a site that can connect high school athletes directing to coaches and recruiters.

“As a high school coach I try to lead my players in the direction that is best for them to succeed as a college student athlete.” says Varsity Hockey coach Dennis Gagnon. It is always best for players when their head coach is involved in the process, it becomes a lot easier and you can focus more on school.

Many seniors will take relatively easy classes as their high school career winds down. A university evaluation may look at this skeptically as it may signal a not-so-serious student.
It is important to know that one bad grade won’t be too harmful to your chances. If your grade in that particular subject trends upward, it might even help you.

“Though it is a difficult process trying to be recruited it will all work out in the end.” says Appleton. For most student athletes they will unfortunately not make it to the second level. For some college athletics is a dream and it helps to get a start on it early.