The College Choice Process

So you are a newborn baby and your parents are explaining to you that you will have to go to school, do your homework, and get good grades so that you can get into a top college. "Why" you ask them (in baby talk of course)? "So that you will be able to get a high paying job and hopefully one day move out of our house and take care of yourself". Let's not forget to make a million dollars and donate something back to the Blues.

When you realize all you must do to prepare yourself for this process you may ask yourself if it is worth it? Speaking from personal experience I would tell you that attending college and perhaps playing college soccer will be one of the most rewarding experiences of your lives. You will want to put some thought into it as this will be at least four years of your life...in my case it was a little longer since I was having so much fun:).

Along the way you will get tons of advice as there is no "one" path to take to get where you want to go. My best advice is for you to follow your own path based on your own goals and aspirations. Remember this is not a race or a competition against others. It is not necessary to compare scholarship amounts if you are talented and lucky enough to be offered one. Once you make your decision don't look back and think what if? I for instance had several ways I could have gone and I never regret the decision I made because that decision allowed me to do what I do, and to meet and work with all of the great people who have been part of my life.

The Blues are not in the habit of recommending a particular college program over another recognizing that this decision is up to you. If you want personal opinions feel free to ask your coaches but I personally would never want to be the determining factor in a person's decision about where to go to college. Anyway I have put together this guide along with some other recourses for information which you may find helpful along the way.

Steps To Take

1. Download and carefully read the NCAA Guide For The Student Athlete which I have put on line for you in pdf format.

2. Before and especially during your Junior year in high school you need to gather information. There are various sources of information about the many great schools you have to choose from. There are books and magazines that list the different colleges with soccer programs, many give academic rankings, as well as descriptions of the soccer program including contact information for the coaches. The two listings that first come to mind are "The Sport Source" and "Soccer America's College Choice". The Sports Source is extremely comprehensive and has work books you can order as well as on line services with lots of useful info. If you want to contact the Sport Source directly ask for Charlie Kadupski, go ahead and mention the club and use my name...I hope he doesn't hang up on you. Seriously Charlie has been in this business as long as anyone and can answer any questions about their services. The titles above are also links to their sites. No doubt I have left many good sources of information out, that is what the internet is for. The one thing you should not do is spend a lot of money for a private recruiting service when you can find this information out for yourself.

3. Once you get one of the directories for the college programs go through the listings and put together a decent wish list of options which seem to be a good fit and meet your needs. I am always available to provide you with further insight about these options if you request it and if I have any information.

4. After putting together your list of schools, gather the relevant information from the universities you are interested in either by phone, email, or by direct mail concerning their academic programs and entrance requirements. If you know what your future course of study will be then you may want to find out if they offer a program in that area and if it is a strong one. While academic standards should be your primary consideration in choosing a college, you will also need information about financial obligations, housing arrangements, the social environment, and the general atmosphere of the university. Ask yourself if you will be happy at the university if you never get to play soccer there. A lot of this information can be found on the university's web site.

5. Next you will want information about the athletic and in particular, the women's soccer program. Evaluate your ability to make the team and eventually play. You want to be in a position to contribute to your team whatever level they compete at. Many of the programs are still in their early years and are starving for competent players. Others are well established and are only looking for players who will have immediate impact as freshman. Consider the financial support the program receives, the coach and his or her philosophy in regards to soccer and team conduct. If you are serious about your soccer and plan to keep improving yourself as a player and person, look at the level of seriousness among the people you will be playing with. Are you committed enough to want to play on a team that will be competing on a regular basis for the national championship? If soccer is important to you, this is where I would want to be; it is a matter of personal choice.

6. Narrow down your list to anywhere from 5-10 schools that best meet your needs. Don't put all you eggs in one basket, you will need a back-up plan or two in case you don't get admitted to the school of your choice. Your education should be your first priority!

7. Prepare a short and informative letter of introduction expressing your interest in possibly attending that particular university and your desire to perhaps play soccer there. Ask for information about application procedures, financial aid, and your desire to have the coach in question evaluate your ability. Include personal information, your ODP, Club, High School, and list your coaches names and phone numbers. Let them know when you will be graduating, if you have information about your cumulative GPA and or SAT scores I would include that as well. Gather information for the coach about where you will be performing throughout the season, tournaments, times and dates. Mail or email this information to your choices and await any responses. Please be considerate about the time and effort these coaches put in and follow up the response they send you. Feel free to call them by phone once you have established contact. Also don't get discouraged if you don't hear from them right away, especially if they are in the middle of their season.

8. Sort out the universities which most interest you and go on your campus visits. I will be available with advice about your choices only if you request it. The rest will be up to you and your parents to communicate with the coach and school of your choice. Please be professional and responsible in your correspondence with these programs, you may open the door for other players from our club in future years. Be proud of your affiliation with the Blues and be an example for others. Remember we want to take pride in you; communicate and conduct yourself in an honest way.

Academic Eligibility for NCAA Division I Universities

In the event you are too lazy to search the NCAA website for this information or read the NCAA guide for the student athlete, I have posted some of the eligibility requirements for Division I here along with some recruiting rules and requirements.

Here is what you have to do to be eligible for Division I if you enroll in 2008 or later...glad I'm out of school.

  1. Graduate from high school
  2. Complete a core curriculum of at least 16 academic courses (below)
  3. Achieve a combined SAT or ACT sum score that matches your core-course GPA & test score sliding scale (see chart on left).

A Core Course is a recognized academic course that offers fundamental instruction in a specific area of study.

Graduates Core Course Requirements

  • 4 years English
  • 3 years Math ( Algebra 1 or higher)
  • 2 years Natural or Physical Science (including at least 1 laboratory class)
  • 2 years Social Science
  • 1 additional year in English, Math, or Natural or Physical Science
  • 4 years of extra core courses (from any category above, or foreign language, non doctrinal religion or philosophy).

* No athlete will be eligible for NCAA competition at any level without a minimum SAT score of at least 820.

BASIC DIVISION I RECRUITING RULES

Players become "prospective student athletes" when they begin ninth-grade classes. Players become "recruited prospective student athletes" at a particular college if any representative of the college's athletic interests approaches them about enrolling and participating in athletics at that college.

Activities that cause a student athlete to consider themselves recruited: (1) Official visits to that college (2) Getting phone calls from a representative of that college (3) An off campus visit by a representative of that college.

A student-athlete is eligible to receive "general" university information through the mail at any time. Phone calls from faculty or coaches (not boosters) are not permitted once in March of your junior year and then not again until July 1 after completion of the junior year of high school and are limited to one per week with the following exceptions where calls may be unlimited:

  • During the five days prior to the "official" visit to the college.
  • On the day of a coach's off campus contact with the student athlete.
  • On the initial date for signing the National Letter of Intent through the two days after the signing date.
  • A student-athlete may call a coach as often as she likes.

Letters from coaches, faculty members and students are not permitted until September 1 at the beginning of the junior year of high school.

A college coach may "contact" a student athlete in person off campus only after July 1 after completion of the junior year in high school. Any face to face meeting between a college coach and the player or parents of a player, during which any of you say more than "hello" is considered a "contact". Coaches are permitted no more than three off campus contacts.

An evaluation is any off campus activity used to assess a student athlete's academic and or athletic qualifications. A college coach may not make more than four evaluations during each academic year.

During a student athlete's senior year they are eligible to go on "official" visits to a campus if they are invited and notified by mail. Players should make it clear to the coach in question if they want to accept the invitation as a student-athlete is limited to a total of five "official" visits. It would be my personal suggestion that players save those "official" visits for universities where extended travel is necessary. An "official" visit (no more than 48 hours) simply means that the costs are covered by the university. During any time, student athletes may go on "unofficial" campus visits as often as they like. During these "unofficial" visits players may contact the coach and receive any information requested including a campus tour. Nothing may be paid for by the coach or program in question or the visit becomes "official". Players can not go on an "official" visit until they give the college their academic transcripts and a score from the SAT taken on a national test date. The transcript may be a photocopy of official high school transcripts and in most cases the college will use the services of the Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse to validate credentials.

Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse

A central clearinghouse will certify athletic eligibility. If as a college freshman you intend to participate in college athletics, you must register and be certified by the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse. This should be done at the end of your junior year in high school. High School counselors can obtain registration materials at no cost by calling the clearinghouse at (877) 262-1492 or on line at the link below. In order to be registered, student athletes must complete the student release form (SRF), mail one copy of the form to the clearinghouse along with the $50 registration fee (sometimes you can get the fee waived), give two other signed copies to your high school counselor, good idea to make a third copy for your records. You can also register on line at http://www.ncaaclearinghouse.net. Make sure one of your high school officials works with you on this because they have forms they must submit as well. The high school must send in a copy of the form, along with an official copy of transcripts to the clearinghouse. After graduation the school must send in the other form along with a copy of final transcripts that confirms graduation. I think I have most of this right but if you have questions go on line or use the customer service number to ask questions (877) 262-1492.

The high school must also annually file one Form 48-H with the clearinghouse listing the school's core courses.

National Letter of Intent

If players are offered an athletic scholarship they may be asked to sign a "Letter of Intent". This is a binding agreement between an institution and the player stating they will accept the scholarship offer and are committing to the college for that year. Once a player signs the agreement, it becomes the player's responsibility to notify all coaches who continue to recruit them, that they are bound to the college in question. Be aware there are certain dates between which you are able to sign these agreements. This agreement protects the coach and his/her scholarship investment, it also protects the player so that the scholarship cannot be withdrawn and offered to another player. There is also a website to answer questions about the letter of intent http://www.national-letter.org.

No doubt there is more you should no but this covers the basics. Again if you have questions about the process feel free to give me a shout and I will see if I can be of some help. Good luck and don't forget to donate once you earn that million!