Understanding
Soccer Scholarships
Football or Soccer is a sport that’s growing at an incredible rate in the United States, and college scholarships are great ways to continue your development as a player while getting a university degree.
It has become more and more popular for talented players to go to the US to continue their development as soccer players, and there are no other places in the world you can combine university studies with soccer and get a scholarship at the same time. You’ll have a wonderful life-changing experience as a student-athlete in the United States! Most Soccer scholarships are one-year agreements that must be renewed each year and your offer does not become official until you sign the National Letter of Intent (NLI).
If you see yourself in college sports, it’s important to know whether or not you’ll be able to get a soccer scholarship. That’s why our experienced advisors are here to help evaluate your opportunities.
OUR
SCHOLARSHIP
SERVICE
Athlete+ Scholarship Consulting is a service tailored for international Student-athletes who are seeking the best possible academic and athletic opportunities in the USA.
LEVELS OF SOCCER
HIGH
SCHOOLS
If you’re looking for a way to fund your education, a high school soccer scholarship might be the answer. There are several different types of soccer scholarships, and they come from different sources. Athletic scholarships are typically awarded to players who have a strong record of achievement on the court and also have good grades. If you’re interested in pursuing a college degree and playing soccer in college, then it’s important that you consider all of your options carefully before making any decisions about what kind of scholarship is right for you.
PREP
ACADEMIES
Post-graduate soccer programs afford players a chance to develop as both players and people before heading off to college. Rather than playing at a junior college and giving up a year of NCAA eligibility, these players can hone their skills and mature one more year at a prep school or soccer academy. Academies are not associated with a school, but rather focus entirely on the development of players.
COLLEGE &
UNIVERSITIES
Junior college is not as simple when it comes to soccer scholarships. First, there are three divisions within the NJCAA and only Division 1 and 2 can offer athletic scholarships to soccer players while only Division 1 is allowed to offer a full ride. NJCAA Division 2 is allowed to cover tuition, fees, books and housing but not transportation costs. In addition to an athletic scholarship, both divisions will often pay for an athlete’s transportation costs by direct route once per year.
COLLEGE SOCCER
PLAYING AT 5 LEVELS
As in all other sports, there are two types of soccer scholarships: Headcount and Equivalency. NCAA Division 1 schools award 14 full ride athletic scholarships to women’s teams and 9.9 scholarships to men’s teams. At NCAA Division 2 female players are awarded with 9.9 scholarships per team while male teams can award up to 9 scholarships. NAIA programs, offer 12 scholarships per each team. Considering that soccer teams require a significant amount of palyers, some recruits will receive partial scholarships. NCAA Division 3 programs can’t offer athletic scholarships but college coaches tend to work with the admissions department to create appealing financial aid packages made up of merit-based scholarships, need-based aid and grants. It’s important for student-athletes to understand the financial aid opportunities at each division level and be proactive in their recruiting so they can get evaluated early on.
YOU CAN GET TO YOUR DESTINATIONBY FOLLOWING THESE 10 STEPS
6
Student-athlete
promotion
7
Gathering &
presenting offers
8
Making a
decision
9
Admission process &
Visa procedures
10
Flying out to
your Dream School
SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
In total, on all 5 college soccer levels there are almost 1,700 men and women teams!
WOMEN’S SOCCER
NCAA
Division 1
314 Teams
NCAA
Division 2
223 Teams
NCAA
Division 3
409 Teams
NAIA
221 Teams
NJCAA
276 Teams
MEN’S SOCCER
NCAA
Division 1
204 Teams
NCAA
Division 2
172 Teams
NCAA
Division 3
394 Teams
NAIA
256 Teams
NJCAA
291 Teams
ACADEMIC
REQUIREMENTS
If you are a student-athlete and are interested in attending a 4 year college, you will need to meet the same academic requirements as any other admitted student. The following information is provided to help guide you through the process of applying for admission as a student athlete.
HIGH SCHOOL GPA
When you are applying for college admission, your GPA is one of the most important factors that admissions officers consider. But if you’re a student athlete, there are lots of other factors that matter too. Different schools require different GPAs. In addition to having a good GPA, some schools may also ask you to write an essay about your athletic experience and why it’s important for you.
SAT / TOEFL
As an international athlete, you’ll want to make sure that you take the right standardized tests. 4 year institutions require certain SAT or ACT scores while your TOEFL requirements will depend on a school and your US high school / prep / junior college experience. Before you take the test, check out the minimum score needed for the universities you’re hoping to be recruited to. If your score isn’t quite there yet, don’t worry! It’s never too late to take another test and improve your score.
ELIGIBILITY CENTER
As part of the academic certification process for both NCAA and NAIA, all prospective student-athletes must submit their academic information to organzation’s eligibility center. Academic records include documents such as transcripts, yearly grade reports, mark sheets or official exam results. If English is not the primary language of instruction at the school you attended, you must submit complete, line-by-line certified English translations for all your documents in the same format as the native language documents.
HOW DIVERSE ARE COLLEGE SOCCER TEAMS?
Finding the right blend of players for your team is critical for success in college soccer. When it comes to diversity, American coaches have an eye for international talent that can help their teams. They know that international players will bring a unique understanding of the game and a wealth of experience abroad. You’ll find international players from all over the world on scholarships at all levels of US college soccer, so there really is a level for everyone!
In the United States, women’s college soccer is more popular than men’s. Therefore, there are more scholarships allocated to women’s players than men’s. In the NWSL, you’ll find a lot of former college players who are drafted in the annual soccer drafts.
NCAA PROOF
OF AMATEURISM
Initial-eligibility standards help ensure you are prepared to succeed in college. The eligibility process also protects the fairness and integrity of college sports by ensuring student-athletes are amateurs.
If you want to practice, compete and receive an athletics scholarship during your first year at a Division I or II school, the NCAA Eligibility Center must certify you as eligible. International college-bound student-athletes planning to enroll at a Division III school must also receive an amateurism-only certification from the Eligibility Center. Throughout the process, Eligibility Center staff members partner with students and their families, as well as high school administrators and coaches, to guide you on your journey.