NCAA Initial Eligibility Burlington Central High School • September 20, 2017
Overview • NCAA Divisions, NAIA, and NJCAA • Steps to Achieving Eligibility • NCAA Eligibility Center • Academics – Initial Eligibility • Core Courses • GPA and Test Scores • Recruiting • Athletic Scholarships • Amateurism
NCAA Division I • Division I includes most major universities, with larger budgets and facilities, and usually more students • Median undergraduate enrollment is 9,205 • Division I is divided into the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) • Division I schools offer the most athletic scholarships of the divisions • 56% of all student-athletes receive some level of athletics aid
NCAA Division II • Division II is an intermediate division between the more expensive Division I and Division III, which offers no athletic scholarships • Division II schools tend to be smaller public universities and private institutions • Median undergraduate enrollment is 2,530 • Athletic scholarships are offered in most sports, but with more limitations than in Division I • Ex. – In football, Division II schools may offer the equivalent of 36 full scholarships. Division I-FBS schools may offer athletic aid to 85 student-athletes in football (63 for FCS). • 61% of all student-athletes receive some level of athletics aid
NCAA Division III • Division III consists of colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships • Median undergraduate enrollment is 1,860 • Division III athletics are treated as an extra-curricular activity for students – so they do not offer athletic scholarships, do not redshirt freshman, and do not use funds whose primary purpose is to benefit athletics • 82% of all student-athletes receive some form of academic grant or need- based scholarship; institutional gift aid totals $17,000 on average
NAIA • Not affiliated with the NCAA • Membership consists of mostly smaller colleges and universities • The NAIA has less strict recruiting rules, allowing more contact with coaches • There are limits on the number of full athletic scholarships available for each sport (which can be divided among multiple student-athletes) • To register with the NAIA Eligibility Center, go to www.playnaia.org
NJCAA • Not affiliated with the NCAA • The NJCAA is an association of community college and junior college athletic departments
NCAA Academic Requirements • Graduate from high school on time • Complete NCAA approved courses (the number required depends on which Division) • Earn a minimum Core Course GPA • Earn a required ACT or SAT sum score (refer to sliding scale)
Freshman Year • Concentrate on getting the best grades you can to set up your GPA for the rest of high school • Access and print your high school’s list of approved NCAA courses on the Eligibility Center website (www.eligibilitycenter.org) • Take classes that are on your high school’s list of NCAA courses • The NCAA Eligibility Center will only use approved courses to certify your initial eligibility
Sophomore Year • Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center at the beginning of your sophomore year • www.eligibilitycenter.org • Work hard on your GPA • Take NCAA Core Courses • Use summer courses if needed to catch up in terms of your GPA and/or Core Course requirements
NCAA Eligibility Center www.eligibilitycenter.org Click here to create your account
Junior Year • Register to take the ACT, SAT, or both and use the NCAA Eligibility Center code “9999” as a score recipient • Keep up on your Core Courses • Get your high school to send official transcripts to the NCAA Eligibility Center after completing your junior year • The Eligibility Center does not accept faxed or emailed transcripts, but there is an online system some schools are able to use • Need a transcript from each high school you attended • Check with your counselor and the Eligibility Center between your junior and senior year to make sure you are taking enough Core Courses during your senior year
Senior Year • Take the ACT and/or SAT as many times as necessary • Finish your Core Courses (check the list of approved courses for your school) • Continue to take college prep courses • Graduate on time – 8 semesters (4 years) – by June 30 • Apply to colleges – application deadlines vary from school to school and can be as early as December, so check deadlines early • Complete the FAFSA (available October 1 the year before) • Apply for any scholarships you think you qualify for
NCAA Eligibility Center • Visit the “My Planner” page after you register to view your status and check for any missing information or documents • Review your sports participation (amateurism) responses and request final amateurism certification beginning April 1 (if you are enrolling in the fall) or October 1 (if you are enrolling in the spring) • After graduation, ask your high school counselor to send your final official transcript to the NCAA Eligibility Center with proof of graduation
Core Courses • Core Courses are classes that qualify for high school graduation in the following subjects: • English • Math • Natural or physical science (biology, chemistry, physics, etc.) • Social science • Foreign Language • Comparative religion or philosophy • Core Courses are 4-year college preparatory and are taught at or above the high school’s regular academic level (no remedial courses) by a qualified instructor • Math – must be Algebra I level or higher
Core Courses • Division I: From the time you start 9 th grade, you have 4 years (8 semesters) to • complete your Core Course requirements • If you do not meet the requirements on time, Core Courses taken after the 8 th semester will not be counted toward your NCAA academic eligibility requirements • “On time” also means that if your high school graduation takes place June 1, you must graduate June 1. If you do not graduate June 1 with the rest of your high school class, you have not completed your requirements “on time” • Division II: You are permitted to use all core courses completed from your 9 th grade • year until the time you enroll full-time at a college or university
Division I Core Courses • Complete 16 Core Courses: • 4 years of English • 3 years of Math (Algebra I or higher) • 2 years of Natural or Physical Science (1 year of lab if offered by your high school) • 1 additional year of English, Math, or Natural/Physical Science • 2 years of Social Science • 4 years of additional courses (from any area above, foreign language, or comparative religion/philosophy)
Division II Core Courses • Complete 16 Core Courses: • 3 years of English • 2 years of Math (Algebra I or higher) • 2 years of Natural or Physical Science (1 year of lab if offered by your high school) • 3 additional years of English, Math, or Natural/Physical Science • 2 years of Social Science • 4 years of additional courses (from any area above, foreign language, or comparative religion/philosophy)
Division III Core Courses • Unlike Divisions I and II, there is no uniform set of eligibility requirements for Division III schools • Eligibility for admission, financial aid, practice, and competition is determined by the college or university • The NCAA Eligibility Center does not perform certifications for Division III college-bound student- athletes
Core Course GPA • The NCAA does not use the GPA reported on your high school transcript – they only use grades earned in approved Core Courses • No plus/minus – an A- is an A (4.0), a B+ is a B (3.0) • Some advanced courses may be weighted (check your list of approved courses)
Test Scores • On the ACT, you get scores for 4 parts of the test and an overall average score – the NCAA adds up the scores for the 4 parts to determine your sum score • The SAT has 2 parts – add these together for your combined score • Writing is not included for either the ACT or SAT • The NCAA will use your best score for each part of the ACT or SAT to determine your sum score • Ex. – You take the ACT and get these component scores: • 20, 19, 17, 25 - Then you re-take it and get scores of: • 19, 22, 21, 19 – The NCAA would take the highest score in each section: • 20, 22, 21, 25 – Which would make your sum score 88, better than the single test sum score of 81
Division I Sliding Scale The full sliding scale can be found at www.eligibilitycenter.org under Resources
Academic Changes – 2016 (Div. I) • Minimum Core Course GPA of 2.300 to be a Qualifier • 10 Core Courses must be completed before the beginning of your senior year • Of these 10 courses, at least 7 must be in English, Math, or Science
Qualifer (Div. I) • Qualifiers met all of the initial eligibility requirements • During their first academic year, qualifiers can: • Receive an athletic scholarship • Practice • Compete • Early academic qualifier – Automatically a qualifier after six (6) semesters (after junior year) if: • SAT sum score of at least 900, or ACT sum score of at least 75 • 3.000 core course GPA • 3 years of English, 2 years of math, 2 years of science, 2 additional years of English, math, or science, and 5 additional core courses in any area
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