Recruiting / Scholarship Process
There are currently 142 Division I (DI) and 50 Division II (DII) colleges with male swim/dive programs and 185 DI and 64 DII colleges with female swim/dive programs. The NCAA limits the number of swim & dive scholarships that a College or University may offer. Male programs may offer 9.9 scholarships at DI colleges and 8.1 scholarships at DII colleges resulting in approximately 1800 possible scholarships. Female programs may offer 14 scholarships at DI colleges and 8.1 at DII colleges resulting in approximately 3100 possible scholarships. There are also limits put on at the NAIA (16 male and 19 female) and NJCAA (20 male and 21 female) levels.
With so few scholarships available for swim and dive it is imperative that you somehow distinguish yourself from other athletes. The obvious way to set yourself apart from the other athletes is with your swim times or dive performances. This is not the only thing that a college coach will be looking for though. Among other things they are also interested in your leadership potential, your strength of character, your work ethic, your potential for improvement, and your ability to stay eligible by being successful in the classroom. Make sure to emphasize any and all potential assets that you may offer to the team.
The first thing you need to do if you want a swimming or diving scholarship is to register and be certified by the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Center. This process is required for NCAA Division I and Division II schools. It would probably be a good idea to go through this process even if you feel you ultimately may not end up going to a Division I or II school.
For more info on NCAA Eligibility Center & HOPE Scholarship -click here
Helpful Hints for Swim or Dive Recruiting Process of Juniors/Seniors
1) Create a brief bio about yourself - hobbies, likes/dislikes, community activity involvement, college degree interests, etc
2) Create a brief bio about your swim or dive history - top times/performances, favorite events, improvements, club team involvement
3) Gather and compile info on high school courses and grades (transcript), SAT, ACT, and PSAT scores and dates
**Find the schools of your interest, contact the coach through email and attach the bio’s you have created to check on their interest in you. Always reply positively to each email whether the coach shows interest or not.
**An alternate approach would be to post your information on Recruiting websites. Some websites offer their services for free and others are on a fee payment basis. Paying for the posting of your recruitement information is not necessarily any better or worse than posting it on a free website. Many of the free websites are more popular with athletes involved in smaller sports like swimming and diving. Make sure to thoroughly check out any website before posting your recruiting information on it.