Sports Reelz

Student athletes,
how to choose my college

What makes your unique filter

  1. Academic fit: Grades actually do come first. Being offered an athletic scholarship doesn’t guarantee your acceptance into a school if you don’t have the grades to be academically qualified. If your GPA or test scores were to go up a few points, how many new doors might open? You can use Parchment’s website to easily compare where your grades and test scores stand among other students and see your chances of being admitted into a specific college. Also, think about what you’d like to study in college and how much time you need to focus on academics outside of your sport. Ask the college coaches how other athletes manage their course loads and find out if potential teammates are studying your major. Hear from a D1 college coach about how critical academics are in the recruiting process. 
  1. Athletic fit: While Division 1 offers a high level of competition, less than 2% of high school athletes go on to play at that level. Focus your efforts on finding the division level that is the best fit for you. How do you know which level is right for you? Talk to your current coaches about your realistic play level. Ask them to be honest with you! Target schools where you can make a valuable contribution to the team. That might be Division 2, Division 3, NAIA or even junior colleges, all of which offer great opportunities and scholarships. Learn the differences between divisions to understand which one is right for you. Again, watch this video to hear a D1 coach share how college coaches determine whether a recruit is the right athletic fit for their team. 
  1. Financial fit: How much can you afford and how much aid are you eligible to receive at each school? Athletic scholarships are only one form of financial aid, and amounts can vary depending on a number of factors including sport, team size and equivalency vs. headcount sports. Cost should be top-of-mind when pursuing programs—be sure to find out what kind of financial aid and scholarship options are available at each school you consider. Each college website (inside admissions) will have what is called a scholarship calculator. This will give you a snapshot of what it will cost at that particular school.
  1. Social fit: This will be your home for the next four years, so you’ll want to choose a school where you’ll be comfortable and find success. Soak in the environment when you go on campus visits, including the location, size, dorms and social vibe. Ask other students what they like about living on campus to see if you can picture yourself there. This is skipped over a lot of times. It’s beneficial to keep a checklist of which personal topics matter to you most as you research schools. 
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How to search for colleges

Student athletes typically have a couple dream schools in mind when they begin their recruiting journey. But the chances of coaches at those schools recruiting your position and offering a scholarship might be slim. Stay positive because there are tons of other great programs out there you haven’t even heard of! That is why we tell every student athlete to keep their options open, research several programs and build a school list to maximize opportunities and find their best college fit. 

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sports reelz tip Go to our finding schools section, where you can easily filter through schools based on your specific athletic, academic and college fit criteria.

Starting early in high school, student athletes should begin to build a list of potential colleges. This list should include five safety schools, ten target schools and five dream schools. 

  • Target schools: These are the schools where you have the most realistic chance of getting in and will be the right fit not only athletically, but academically, financially and socially. 
  • Dream schools: Maybe these schools are a stretch academically, where you will need to improve significantly to qualify athletically or maybe too expensive without significant financial aid. You should have these dream schools on your list but recognize they might be a stretch. 
  • Safety schools: These are the schools you have on your list as your back-up plan. Keep your options open and consider schools that you otherwise might not have before starting your research. While these schools may not be your first choice, they’re still a good fit.