Athletic Scholarships

​

Athletic Scholarships: What Do They Cover?

Athletic scholarships cover a portion of the costs for tuition and fees, course-related books, room, board and, sometimes, living expenses. The amount covered is dependent on whether the offer is a full or partial scholarship and what the particular college's guidelines are.

​

Who Gives Out Athletic Scholarships?

Athletic scholarships are offered at the NCAA D1 and D2 levels, as well as at the NAIA and NJCAA levels. D3 does not offer athletic scholarships but do have other programs to help off-set the cost of attending.
 

​

Are Full Ride Scholarships For All 4 Years?

No, full ride athletic scholarships are typically one-year agreements between the college and the athlete, although some are multi-year.

​

How Much Scholarship Money Can You Get?

Baseball and Softball, usually hand out partial scholarships. It’s up to the coach to divide their scholarship money. It could mean they offer a full ride to one extremely high-level recruit, or they spread the money out among multiple athletes. 

​

Ivy League Schools

Ivy League schools do not give athletic scholarships—they only provide need-based financial aid.

Coaches can help their prospective athletes obtain financial aid rewards, but they do not have any scholarship money to give out to them.

​

Can You Compete In College Without a Scholarship?

There are typically more spots available on a team than coaches have scholarships to offer. So, not getting a scholarship doesn’t mean you’re out of luck. Athletes can walk onto a team, which means trying out without receiving a scholarship. Sometimes, athletes are asked to walk on, in which case they are called “preferred walk-ons.” You may also walk on to a team without a scholarship one year and be given a scholarship the next year, depending on your perceived value.

 

Are You Eligible For a Scholarship?

A student-athletes must meet certain eligibility requirements. Schools require you to meet a minimum academic standard and be considered an amateur athlete. But, just because you meet the minimum requirements for the school you want to play at doesn’t mean you will receive a scholarship. Your chances for an offer increase the better your academics are.

​

Can Athletic Scholarships Be Taken Away?

There are a few different situations in which this might occur:

​

• Most commonly, the student-athlete might never have had the scholarship to begin with. Verbal agreements are non-binding; they do not guarantee you a spot on the roster or a scholarship. Even once you’ve signed your National Letter of Intent, your agreement might not include scholarship aid.

​​

• If you are injured, depending on the school you attend and whether it happened outside of games or practice, your scholarship can be pulled.

​​

• Coaches can decide not to renew your scholarship for the next year. This isn’t a case of the scholarship being “taken away” since they are typically only year-long contracts, but it can still come as a surprise to some student-athletes. Non-renewals can happen for various reasons, including a new coach joining the program, getting into trouble on or off the field, poor performance, etc.

​​

• If you are not eligible to compete for any reason—poor academics, not in good standing with the school, etc.—a coach is not likely to keep you on scholarship.

​​

What Are Other Types of Scholarships?

Because most college student-athletes do not have full-ride scholarships, it will help to look into earning an academic scholarship as a supplemental form of aid. There are minimum academic standards student-athletes must meet to be considered for an academic scholarship, and these are different for every college and university. 

​

Academic scholarships are much more secure than athletic scholarships. You can lose your athletic scholarship due to injury or poor performance, but as long as you maintain your grades, you will keep your academic scholarship even if you are no longer playing.

​

There are also scholarship opportunities available outside of the school itself, including federal scholarships and those from corporations, nonprofit organizations and private providers.

​

Types of Athletic Scholarship Offers​

​