Site Content
College Soccer - Recruiting and Rules
The Soccer Institute is America's Resource for all things SOCCER !
College Soccer Recruiting Rules and NCAA Clearinghouse eligibility requirements:
If your goal is to play college soccer in America....here is what you need to know.
There are several NCAA divisions in Soccer. Division I is the most competitive level. Top flight players can get a scholarship at DI, DII, or NAIA. NCAA DIII does not offer athletic scholarships. Ivy League schools compete in Division I - but the league schools (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Penn, Brown, Columbia, Cornell, and Dartmouth) do not offer athletic scholarships, only need based financial aid.
Men's Division I teams offer partial and full scholarships to elite level players, but keep in mind that in any given year the most a school can offer is 9.9 for the whole team, so if there are 24 on the roster funds may be limited. Women's Soccer teams can offer 14 scholarships if the college fully funds the program.
Check out the information below to learn more about college soccer scholarships, NCAA soccer rules, and eligibility registration in the clearinghouse center.
Site Content
NCAA Division I
Division I Soccer
There are 206 Men's & 334 Women's NCAA Division I College Soccer programs.
Many offer scholarships for elite level players.
The first step to play college soccer is to learn the rules for academic eligibility and register with the NCAA Eligibilty Center.
Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center
QUESTIONS? CALL THE NCAA !
Toll free from the USA at 1-877-262-1492. International students call 317-917-6222.
Get Ready. Get Set. Go!
Grade 9
- Ask your guidance counselor for a list of your high school’s NCAA core courses to make sure you take the right classes.
Grade 10
- Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center at eligibilitycenter.org.
Grade 11
- Check with your counselor to make sure you will graduate on time with the required number of NCAA core courses.
- Take the ACT or SAT and submit your scores to the NCAA using code 9999.
- At the end of the year, ask your counselor to upload your official transcript to the NCAA Eligibility Center.
Grade 12
- Finish your last NCAA core courses.
- Take the ACT or SAT again, if necessary, and submit your scores to the NCAA using code 9999.
- Complete all academic and amateurism questions in your NCAA Eligibility Center account at eligibilitycenter.org.
- After you graduate, ask your counselor to submit your final official transcript with proof of graduation to the NCAA Eligibility Center.
NCAA Division II
NCAA Division II
There are 212 Men's & 265 Women's NCAA Division II College Soccer programs.
Many offer scholarships for elite level players.
The first step to play college soccer is to learn the rules for academic eligibility and register with the NCAA Eligibilty Center.
Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center
QUESTIONS? CALL THE NCAA !
Toll free from the USA at 1-877-262-1492. International students call 317-917-6222.
NCAA Division III
NCAA Division III
There are 415 Men's & 441 Women's NCAA Division III College Soccer programs in the USA.
D3 schools do not offer athletic scholarships, but many offer academic grants and tuition waivers.
The first step to play college soccer is to learn the rules for academic eligibility and register with the NCAA Eligibilty Center.
Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center
QUESTIONS? CALL THE NCAA !
Toll free in USA at 1-877-262-1492. International students call 317-917-6222.
NCAA Eligibility
Division I Eligibility
The path to being eligible to compete in NCAA college soccer at a Division I school requires that you graduate high school and meet ALL these requirements:
- Complete 16 core courses:
- English - 4 years
- Math - 3 yrs (Algebra 1 & higher)
- Natural/physical science -2 yrs (including 1 year of lab science)
- One additional year of English, math or natural/physical science
- Social science - 2 years
- Four additional years of English, math, natural/physical science, social science, foreign language, comparative religion/philosophy
- Complete 10 core courses, including 7 in English, math or natural/physical science, before your 7th semester. Once you begin 7th semester, you may not repeat/replace any of the 10 courses to improve core-GPA.
- Get a 2.3 GPA in core courses.
- Earn an SAT combined score or ACT sum score matching your core-course GPA on the Division I sliding scale, which balances your test score and core-course GPA. If you have a low test score, you need a higher core-course GPA to be eligible. If you have a low core-course GPA, you need a higher test score to be eligible.
Amateurism
The NCAA does NOT allow professional athletes to play college sports. If you accept $ to play soccer on a club team you will NOT be eligible to play college soccer. The US Soccer Development Academy is OK - as long as you don't sign a pro contract.You must be an amateur athlete to compete in NCAA sports at a Division I school.
How to get Recruited
The Soccer Institute will provide articles and TIPS for college soccer recruiting:
How to pick the right college...
How to contact a college soccer coach...
How to write a college soccer resume...
Should I attend College ID Camps...
Should I play ECNL or USSDA....
Should I play ODP or just club soccer...
What are college coaches looking for...
How important is speed...skill...attitude..
FAQs
Coming soon....