WHY STUDY IN THE USA ON A SPORT  SCHOLARSHIP?

 What is a sport scholarship?
Athletic as well as academic scholarships are much more  common in the US than in most other countries. Sport scholarships are awarded to athletes of outstanding performance in order to enable them to finance their studies in the US. The athlete participates fully in practice sessions with the college team and represents the university in various tournaments and competitions. The coaches’ job is to professionally look after the teams; in this sense, he has a similar position to that of a professor and is also paid accordingly.

For what reasons are scholarships awarded?
For generations, American universities have had college teams in all kinds of sports. These teams are professionally managed by specially employed coaches and serve as an advertisement for the respective university in numerous competitions. If a team has regional or even nationwide success, the media will cover its development. That is why college teams are a means to market the university in order to recruit new students. For this reason, the universities provide the coaches with a budget to recruit talented athletes from around the world and help them finance their studies or even their entire stay abroad.

                                Age requirements
Applicants for an official license to play sports at university or college level in the USA must be between 18 and 24 years of age or no further than the 5th/6th Semester at university, as most scholarships are available only during undergraduate studies towards a Bachelors degree.
Ideally, you should want to begin studying in the USA immediately after graduating from high school (after grade 13 or 12 respectively) and thus be eligible for a scholarship for the full four undergraduate years. Each year you participate in sports as a member of a club after graduating from high school reduces your chances for a scholarship and will also shorten the length of the scholarship. Your chances are the greatest immediately after high school graduation (application one year before graduation!) as this gives the coaches the opportunity to rely on you continually and work with you for a longer period of time.

   Being successful in the right sport
Scholarships are available for a total of 29 sports at college level. A certain range of sports is always offered, even though a few sports may or may not be offered every single year.

  Women:
Archery, Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country,  Equestrian, Fencing, Field Hockey, Golf, Gymnastics, Ice Hockey, Lacrosse, Rifle, Rowing, Skiing (Cross Country and Downhill), Soccer, Softball, Squash, Swimming and Diving, Sync. Swimming, Tennis, Track & Field (Indoor and Outdoor) Volleyball, Water Polo.

Men:
Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Fencing, Football, Golf, Gymnastics, Ice Hockey, Lacrosse, Rifle, Skiing (Cross Country und Downhill), Soccer, Swimming and Diving, Tennis, Track & Field (Indoor and Outdoor), Volleyball, Water Polo, Wrestling.

How does one define „performance“? Athletic competetiveness? Strength? Of course, these qualities are impossible to define internationally, except when the sport can be measured in terms of numbers, for example the time achieved in a 100m sprint, golf handicaps, etc. However, these statistics don’t really say much about the athlete’s competitiveness, his history as a player and his potential, all of which is vitally important to coaches. Everything counts: the complete picture of an athlete including his history as a player, his strengths, past successes, athletic skills etc. That is why the application for our athletic scholarship service is so detailed, because we use the information you provide in your application as potential background data for our service.

Academic background It is the coaches who grant the scholarship, and one should think they focus on the applicant’s athletic achievements only. However, that’s not entirely true, as the applicant must be accepted by the college or university first in order to be eligible to play on its team at all.

Consequently, all international applicants have to be high school graduates. In addition, every single international applicant has to take the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language), even if he has spent a year at an American high school or has taken other similar tests. The sports divisions also require applicants to take the SAT to be cleared in the licensing process. Both of these are academic tests that aim to asses the applicants’ proficiency in English (TOEFL) and English and Maths (SAT). A good grade point average in your high school graduation certificate boosts one’s chances of being accepted by a college as well.

Apply early and with all the required information Usually, the coaches postpone their final decision on the Line Up of their teams until relatively late so as to keep all their options open until shortly before the application deadlines. As there is rarely enough time for a regular application to the college after the scholarships have been awarded, we encourage you to apply through us at least 6 months prior to your planned enrolment. The earlier you apply, the better your chances of securing scholarships with the most financial support.

As a general rule, coaches rarely accept personal applications, because
a) applicants cannot objectively judge their abilities
b) the applications lack important information
c) the eligibility-requirements are not fulfilled

Agencies such as sport-scholarships.com serve as a kind of screening-authority that checks whether the athletic and academic requirements of the applicants are met before the coaches take a look at them. It’s easy for coaches to get a good overall impression of the applicant who has applied through sport-scholarships.com, as our applications present all relevant information at first glance, including pictures and videos of the athlete. Coaches also rely on us when it comes to application procedures, as we have extensive background knowledge in that area through our connection with college-contact.com.

The following table shows how many universities support the individual sports in each division.

	Men's					Women's					Mixed
	I	II	III	Total		I	II	III	Total		I	II	III	Total
Baseball	286	227	352	865
Basketball	327	278	390	995		325	276	422	1023
Cross Country	306	224	340	870		321	252	367	940				2	2
Fencing	20	3	13	36		25	3	15	43		1	1		2
Field Hockey						76	26	153	255
Football	238	151	229	618
Golf	290	192	263	745		225	99	142	466			3	9	12
Gymnastics	17	1	2	20		64	6	15	85
Ice Hockey	58	7	69	134		30	2	40	72
Lacrosse	54	29	129	212		77	32	149	258
Rifle	4	0	4	8		11	0	2	13		18	2	6	26
Rowing						85	16	42	143
Skiing	14	8	17	39		16	9	18	43
Soccer	199	157	373	729		295	203	398	896
Softball						265	254	389	908
Swimming	143	52	191	386		187	68	232	487			1		1
Tennis	269	166	307	742		312	210	357	879				1	1
Track, Indoor	247	106	208	561		289	108	219	616			1	1	2
Track, Outdoor	264	151	243	658		294	156	252	702			1	1	2
Volleyball	23	15	43	81		312	260	407	979
Water Polo	21	9	16	46		30	10	18	58
Wrestling	86	39	98	223