The cost of college in the United States put into perspective

The cost of college in the United States put into perspective

Studying in the United States is obviously not cheap. We have talked about the total cost of tuition as well as other college related expenses in previous blog post. Just as a reminder, university costs in the US vary quite a bit, with your cheaper schools starting at $13000-$15000 (everything included) for junior colleges, all the way up to $80000-$90000 per year for your top academic schools. Now, it is very important to use some common sense here to better understand these huge differences in prices. Just like everything is more expensive in certain parts of the country or in cities like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston, this applies to the costs of universities in those cities as well. On the other end of the spectrum, rural…
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Don’t just go for the biggest scholarship, go for the best opportunity!

Don’t just go for the biggest scholarship, go for the best opportunity!

Picking the right university when you have several offers can be very overwhelming for a young student-athlete. As a matter of fact, it can be one of the hardest decisions you will ever be faced with. Coaches are all great salesmen, as it is a big part of their job to sell their program to recruits and to find the best possible athletes for their teams. So it can get very difficult to figure out which option might be the best one for you.  What we see happen a lot, is that athletes tend to go for the cheapest option or for the biggest scholarship. While there is nothing wrong with that approach, it can also lead to you not picking the best opportunity or the best fit for you.…
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Who calls the shots in the recruiting process?

Who calls the shots in the recruiting process?

One of the biggest misconceptions about the recruiting process, is when athletes think that they are the ones who dictate the recruiting process and that they are the ones deciding when they can receive an offer or when they can make their decision by. Unfortunately, that is not the case and quite frankly, the exact opposite is the case. Coaches typically recruit several players for one or maybe two scholarship spots, making recruiting extremely competitive. In most cases, coaches will take their time in order to find the best possible athlete for their team. And since they are the ones making the offers, they are the ones in the driver's seat when it comes to when they make their offers or if they make one at all. The same applies…
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Starting early and the importance of June 15

Starting early and the importance of June 15

As most of you probably already know, you should always try to start the recruiting process as early as possible. You really cannot start early enough. It gives you more time to do all the necessary steps properly, it allows coaches to follow your progression over a certain period of time, and there are just more scholarships available if you start 2-3 years in advance rather than a few months prior to your college start date. If you are still unsure about when exactly you should start the process, one important date to keep in mind is June 15 of your junior year of high school, so a bit more than two years before you are supposed to start college. So why is that date so important? The answer is…
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Our best advice to aspiring college athletes

Our best advice to aspiring college athletes

One question we get asked a lot by both athletes and their parents, is what important advice we can give them about the recruiting process. While there are many factors that go into a successful process, the two things we always tell people are starting the process early and staying engaged with coaches. Here is some more information about these two crucial recruiting tips: Starting early: This is super important for several reason. First of all, there are just more scholarships available when you start early. Secondly, it gives coaches the chance to follow your progress over a certain period of time. And lastly, it just gives you more time to do all the necessary steps properly. For example, it gives you the chance to take the SAT or TOEFL…
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The importance of being open minded

The importance of being open minded

We know the recruiting process can be very overwhelming for a lot of 16, 17, or 18-year olds. The word "overwhelming" might even be an understatement to be honest as it is a lot of information for someone who has never done it before. Obviously, that is where we come into play to guide and consult you at any point during your college search. Now, one thing that is very important though and that we recommend to everybody that we work with, is being open minded to any options that might be coming your way! What do we mean by that? First and foremost, be careful who you listen to and whose advice you take. Having done this job for a long time, we know that a lot of people…
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How difficult is it to transfer between universities?

How difficult is it to transfer between universities?

While we always encourage student athletes to complete their entire 4-year college career at the same school, we know that sometimes things just don't work out, making a transfer the only possible solution. Transferring has gotten a lot easier ever since the NCAA introduced the Transfer Portal, but there are still some things to keep in mind when looking to transfer. Again, as mentioned above, transferring should always be the last resort. However, if you do make that decision, the first step will always be to notify your current school. The process for that is slightly different depending on whether you are competing in the NCAA, NAIA or in a junior college, but in terms of the NCAA, you will need to go see your compliance person on campus and…
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What is the difference between the main governing bodies in college sports?

What is the difference between the main governing bodies in college sports?

As you probably know, there are three main governing bodies that run college sports in the United States. The most famous one is obviously the NCAA, with its three divisions. The other two are the NAIA and the NJCAA, which is the organization that runs all sports at the junior college level. Now, all of these leagues have different rules and also have different scholarship amounts that they allow per team (and in every sport), which is something we will go into more detail in a future blog post. However, in this article we want to give you some numbers so you can better understand the size of each division and so you have a better understanding of how competitive each league or division is. So here are the numbers…
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What are the benefits of a US college degree?

What are the benefits of a US college degree?

There are many benefits of studying in the US and for most student-athletes who complete their bachelor's degree over here, many opportunities will emerge. From great job opportunities both in the US and abroad, to the chance of getting into your dream school for your master's degree, there are definitely options for you once you finish your degree. Also, if you are looking to pursue a career in your sport, for example as a professional, a college degree might help you attract certain companies to sponsor you, which is not necessarily the case for a younger player with no college experience. College golf has gotten so popular in the US that events are televised live across the country and a lot of people pay close attention to the results of…
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What can I do to stand out in the recruiting process?

What can I do to stand out in the recruiting process?

As you can imagine, college coaches have very busy schedules. Some of a coach's regular duties include running practices, traveling, planning trips, ordering team gear and recruiting. It is almost like running a business for these coaches and as you can see they have a lot on their plate. On top of that, they get contacted by a lot of potential recruits on a daily basis. It is also not uncommon for coaches to recruit several players at the same time, as they know that not every player that they recruit will end up signing with their team. So very often coaches will be speaking to dozens of potential athletes at the same time, which means that you need to stand out from your competition in order to receive an…
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