Recruiting 101
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Resources for everyone navigating the collegiate recruiting process.
Field Hockey Recruiting Articles
SportsRecruits and NFHCA partner to launch NFHCARecruits
Video Advice from College Coaches
Recruiting Advice from College Coaches
Helpful Recruiting Links
NFHCARecruits
NFHCARecruits is the official digital recruiting platform of the NFHCA. The student-athlete profiles on NFHCARecruits will power all on-site evaluations at NFHCA events, and many other top events, serving as the main source for college coaches to discover and evaluate recruits.
Guide for the College-Bound Student-Athlete
Everything parents and prospective student-athletes need to know!
NCAA Eligibility Center
This is your initial eligibility resource. Registration with the NCAA Eligibility Center is mandatory to play at Division I and Division II.
College Board
A great all-around college resource with information on SAT testing, AP exams, and financial planning.
Recent Recruiting News
- NCAA Division II voted to eliminate the nonqualifier status and allow all college-bound student-athletes access to athletics aid and practice through the partial qualifier status, this new legislation is applicable to student-athletes enrolling in NCAA Division II member schools on or after August 1, 2021 (March 2)
- NCAA Eligibility Center announces flexibility in initial eligibility for 2021-22 (Aug. 17)
- NCAA Eligibility Center COVID-19 Response FAQs — 2020-21 Academic Year (Aug. 17)
- Division II to resume normal recruiting calendars Sept. 1 (Aug. 14)
- NFHCA Recruiting 101
- NCAA Eligibility Center
- Division I recruiting update from the NCAA (June 25)
- Division II recruiting update from the NCAA (June 10)
Divisions, what’s the difference?
The NCAA features three different divisions — each division has different rules and offers different opportunities.
Division I
The NCAA has strict recruiting rules at the Division I level that are tied to specific dates.
Training and games — and additional expectations for student-athletes — take up a lot of your time in both the fall and spring. Division I student-athletes commit to 132 days per year of 20 countable athletically related hours per week in-season and 8 hours per week out-of-season.
Maximum 12 scholarships per program — scholarships can be full or partial.
Division I Programs
Division II
Recruiting rules fall between Division I and Division III.
Training and games — and additional expectations for student-athletes — take up a lot of your time in both the fall and spring. Division II student-athletes commit to 20 countable athletically related hours per week in their championship segment (fall) and 45 days of 15 hours per week in their non-championship segment (spring), with five scrimmage dates. Out of season they can participate in up to eight athletics-related hours.
Maximum 6.3 scholarships per program — scholarships can be full or partial.
Division II Programs
Division III
Recruiting rules are the least restrictive.
Training and games — and additional expectations for student-athletes — takes up a lot of time in the fall semester. In the spring semester, all practices and competition are limited to a maximum of five weeks with a maximum of 16 days of activity.
There are no athletic scholarships.
Division III Programs
Key Recruiting Terms
Dead Period
Definition: A dead period is a period of time when it is not permissible to make in-person recruiting contacts or evaluations on or off the institution’s campus or to permit official or unofficial visits by PSAs to the institution’s campus. It remains permissible, however, for an institutional staff member to write or telephone a PSA during a dead period.
Prospective Student-Athlete
Definition: One becomes a prospective student-athlete when they start ninth grade classes. Before the ninth grade, one becomes a prospective student-athlete if a college gives you (or your friends or relatives) any financial aid or other benefits that the college does not generally provide to prospective students.
Also called: PSA, recruit
Quiet Period
Definition: During a quiet period, a college coach may not have any in-person contact with you or your parents off the college’s campus. A coach may not watch you play or visit your high school during this period. You and your parents may visit a college campus during this time. A coach may call or write to you or your parents during this time.
National Letter of Intent
The official document administered by the Collegiate Commissioners Association and utilized by NCAA member institutions to establish the commitment of a PSA to attend a particular institution.
Also called: NLI
NFHCA Winter Escape Showcase
Find your field hockey home.