NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

    The need for education about the recruiting process has never been more apparent.  Not a day goes by that I do not read about a high school providing some sort of recruiting education for the families of student athletes.  Only this morning, I came across a high school in Missouri that is providing this type of education for its families.  The other day, I learned about the University of Massachusetts Lowell providing a seminar about the ins and outs of college recruiting.  The fact that a University finds the need to educate people about this process should indicate the lack of knowledge about a process that will impact a student athlete’s entire life.

   Simply put, the more educated you are about the process, the better chance for success you have.  NCSA realizes this and that is the main reason why education is one of our primary missions.  We spent countless resources to build our speakers bureau and make sure they are providing education at the right events across the country.  Whether you are a high school administrator, parent, or student athlete, make sure you are receiving some sort of recruiting education or else you will not be maximizing the recruiting process.

by Chris Krause, NCSA Founder and President

Getting a call from a college coach:  That’s the goal for most college athletes, especially those of you who are finishing up your Junior year and looking at getting the attention of a college coach before time (and opportunities) run out.  I know that was my goal when I was in high school as an up-and-coming linebacker dreaming of playing at the next level.

Fortunately, I achieved my goal.  I had a great career playing football at Vanderbilt, and the advice I’m going to pass on to you is from a guy who has been through the recruiting battles that you and your family are going through right now.

I’m going to give it to you straight today, and tell you how to start getting phone calls from college coaches in the coming months.  Pick a few of these and try them (I strongly suggest our #1 secret, by the way) and start getting pro-active in your efforts to attract the attention of as many college coaches as possible:

#10  Fill Out a School’s Online Recruiting Form.  For many coaches, that is the way the recruiting process starts, along with getting information sent to them directly by NCSA.  Many times, coaches who get an athlete that submits a form online through the program’s website will call the athlete immediately, or at least send them information about the program.

#9  Return a Recruiting Questionnaire.  You know those recruiting questionnaires that often come along with a letter from a coach?  It’s critical that you fill it out and send it back.  Most coaches will not contact you if you don’t take that first step and return the questionnaire.

#8  Go to a Summer Camp.  Most college coaches hold summer training camps for prospective athletes.  Try to get to a couple of camps this summer (or at least one) and make a point of expressing your interest in going to the school with one of the coaches that works with you there.  Camps, which give you a personal face-to-face meeting opportunity with a coach, are a great way to spark conversations with a coach.

#7  Be Interested.  What should you do when a coach contacts you from a school you’ve never heard of before?  Be interested.  What should you do when you get something in the mail from a coach you’ve never talked to before?  Be interested.  Not replying to a coach is a great way never to play college sports.  Remember, the time to say no to a college is at the end of the process, not at the beginning.

#6  Ask Your Coach to Tell You Who They Know.  Your high school or club coach probably has names and contact numbers of college coaches that they’ve talked to before.  Ask him or her for those contacts, and give them a call to inquire about possibilities.

#5  E-mail a Coach.  Tell them you are interested, and ask them what the best way to go about getting recruiting to their school is.  E-mail, for many coaches, may be the best way to strike up a conversation with a college coach.  At NCSA, we’ve developed really good back-and-forth e-mail communication with thousands of college coaches, so we know it works.

#4  Look for Out-of-State Programs.  Sometimes, college coaches notice out of area athletes and reply to them right away.  For many schools, getting out of state players is rare so the fact that you are expressing interest in their program might spark their interest.

#3  Keep a Coach Updated.  Don’t just send one letter or e-mail.  Don’t just place one phone call to their office.  Keep in regular contact with coaches that you have an interest in.  Give them an ongoing reason to keep in touch with you and keep abreast of your progress.

#2  Show Them What You’ve Got!  Sending a highlight DVD, or posting your video online through a trusted recruited source, is something that can get a coach’s attention.  Give them a look at you right away.  Then, after you know they’ve had a chance to watch the video, send a follow-up e-mail and ask them if you would be a good fit for their program.

And the #1 way to get a call from a college coach is…

Register as a NCSA Student-Athlete.  For athletes that want to be proactive, there’s simply no better way to do it.  We actually do all of the things we just talked about on your behalf, saving you the time and potential mistakes in how you present yourself to college coaches.  I founded the NCSA organization years ago because I saw that athletes needed help going through the process…help that I wish I had received when I was in your shoes.

This summer, you can get a jump on your competition when it comes to getting noticed by college coaches.  Summer is a time when many coaches “reload” their recruiting files with new prospects.  Shouldn’t you make sure that you are one of the athletes that they find out about?

Last week we discussed the first step that every student athlete must take:  Receiving an objective evaluation.  Once you have taken that step and you have developed realistic expectations, it is time to convey your academic and athletic abilities to the college coaches through the second step:  Building an Athletic Resume Website

Years ago, families would send hundreds of paper resumes to college coaches through traditional mail distribution channels, thankfully those times are behind us.  With the improvements in technology, information is easily updated and sent through the internet which has changed the way college coaches recruit.  In today’s recruiting world, student athletes need to have some sort of athletic online resume.

Why an online resume?

Let’s start with the obvious.  Every student athlete needs an athletic and academic resume.  This will allow college coaches to examine all the important measurable information they need to make decisions.  With that in mind, families can either create a physical paper resume or build an online resume.  Let’s look at the advantages of having that information online compared to paper:

• Customization: As student athletes progress through the recruiting process, the majority of their athletic and academic information will change. In some cases this information will change frequently. The idea of updating a paper resume and printing out a new copy for every change seems rigid and difficult. However, most websites and online resumes can be changed within seconds making them much more logical to use for this type of resume. Advantage: Online Resume

• Distribution:Let’s assume that a student athlete is qualified for 200 college programs. Each one of those programs has multiple coaches on the staff and each one should receive the information to ensure it will be reviewed. If each program has 4 coaches, that information now needs to be sent to 800 individuals. The thought of sending a paper resume through the mail to 800 people should make most families shudder. The evolution of the internet and email has now made traditional mail channels almost obsolete. Emailing the information to 800 coaches does not seem nearly as time consuming or expensive. Advantage: Online Resume

• Trackability: Once the information has been sent off to college coaches, the knowledge of whether or not it has been looked at will be critical in determining the next steps. When sending a paper resume through the mail, the only way a student athlete will be able to know that a college coach has seen their information will be waiting on a response or return letter which might never happen. Advances in technology provide student athletes the unique opportunity to place tracking capabilities in their online resumes. This means that if they email the college coach, they will know whether or not the college coach opened the information and provide them the understanding of how to follow up. Advantage: Online Resume

What should the resume contain?

To put it simply, the online resume should contain all the athletic and academic information a college coach might be interested in.  The information needed by the college coach will vary depending on the sport.  Every student athlete will not have all the information immediately.  It will be a process of gathering all the data needed throughout the recruiting experience.  However here is a list of some basic aspects that each resume should contain:

• Personal Info
• Statistical Info
• Scholastic Info
• Athletic History
• References

Remember, the purpose of this online resume is to spark the interest of the college coach and convince them to allocate their time and money towards recruiting that student athlete.  Of course the quality of the athletic and academic information being evaluated will be the single most important determining factor.  However, the coach might only look at the information for a few seconds, so the more professional in appearance and the easier to navigate, the better the odds are that they will take the time to evaluate the entire resume.

For an example of NCSA’s athletic resume website that we create for our student athletes, click here.

Next week I will discuss the third step in the process:  Highlight / Skills Video