Your Step-by-Step Guide to NCSA’s Premium Packages

One thing we’ve learned over the years is that every recruiting journey is truly different. That’s why we’ve created several membership options to help better serve the recruiting and budgetary needs of our families. With options, of course, comes the very good question: “Which one is right for us?”

We’re glad you asked and what we think would be most helpful is to show the primary differences between each of our membership packages and describe who they best serve.

Free tools: DIY recruiting for families who generally know how the process works

Our free tools are great for families who don’t need much guidance in the recruiting process. There are plenty of athletes who’ve really taken advantage of our free offerings to help find their best college fit. Here are the most important features for the do-it-yourself crowd:

• Online recruiting profile: Every aspiring collegiate athlete should, at the very least, create their free online recruiting profile. This is where you keep all your recruiting information, such as athletic and academic stats, personal statement, highlight or skills video, contact information and more. College coaches searching for recruits online can find your profile, review your information and determine if they are interested in recruiting you. You can also share this profile when contacting coaches by email or social media.
• Recruiting articles: Throughout our blog, Recruiting Guides and USA Today High School Sports articles, you’ll find great recruiting advice from former college coaches and athletes.
• NCSA University: You can access some content in our NCSA University through your free, online profile. Here, you’ll find information to guide you through every stage of the recruiting process.

Champion: Breaking down the process into manageable steps

The Champion package is the next step up from free. It’s a great option for families who are still comfortable taking on the majority of the recruiting process but could benefit from a bit of extra guidance. Here are some of the most-used features:

• NCSA Message Center: Keep all your coach communications in one simple, centralized location. We also provide the latest contact information for college coaches, so you don’t have to hunt around for it on your own.
• Recommendation Engine: Based on your key stats and what colleges are looking for, our algorithm will tell you how well you match with a particular program. This is incredibly helpful to identify the best programs for you, so you can focus your efforts.
• Coach Activity Report: Get weekly updates on which coaches are viewing your profile, following you and searching for athletes with your criteria.

Elite: Fully leverage NCSA’s vast network of college coaches

An Elite membership includes all the offerings of Champion, with more tools to help you better connect with college coaches, understand the best schools for you and create your personal recruiting game plan. Here’s why some families go with an Elite Membership:

• NCSA College Coach Network: All Elite members benefit from improved search rankings. This means that when college coaches search for athletes like you, your profile will appear higher up on the list of recruits, increasing your chances of getting discovered by college coaches.
• Evaluation session: You get the opportunity to have a 60-minute, one-on-one meeting with a recruiting expert. They will help you create your personalized recruiting game plan based on your skill level, academics and where you’re at in the recruiting process.
• Target list: A recruiting expert in your sport will review your key information and send you a hand-picked list of schools to pursue.
• Direct promotion to college coaches: NCSA will contact schools on your target list—as well as schools you have a high match percentage with—to help you connect with those coaches.

MVP: Monthly support, personalized guidance throughout the recruiting process

In addition to providing all the features in the previous packages, MVP’s real strength comes from its hands-on monthly assistance from our team of recruiting coaches. If you really aren’t sure how recruiting works—or you want to limit the amount of research you need to do on your own—MVP is a great option. Here’s what sets MVP apart from the rest:

• Personal recruiting coach: Your coach will check in with you each month and serve as your point of contact for all your recruiting questions.
• Recruiting coach sessions: You’ll have scheduled calls with your recruiting coach to evaluate where you’re at in the process and what you should be doing to move your recruiting forward.
• Evaluation sessions: These in-depth discussions with your recruiting coach provide detailed instructions on how to create highlight videos, target schools and market yourself as a student-athlete.
• SAT/ACT prep: Athletes with this package get access to Princeton Review SAT/ACT test prep, as well as a consultation with Smart Track College Funding to help your family create a four-year financial aid strategy.
• Four professionally edited highlight videos: Our staff of video experts will edit down your raw video footage into coach-ready highlight or skills videos.

Insider tip: You can always upgrade

If you’re still not sure what membership is right for you, remember: You can always start out with Champion and level up over time if you aren’t getting enough interest from college coaches, have more questions or just don’t have the time. The key takeaway here? You have options!