Tag Archive for: JUCO Transfer Athletes

If your athlete has signed an NJCAA Letter of Intent, or has been offered one by a junior college, I congratulate them on that opportunity!

But here are a few things those athletes should know about the NJCAA LOI:

  • Unlike the NCAA’s National Letter of Intent, an NJCAA LOI can be offered to and signed by a recruit even if no athletic scholarship is being offered to the recruit.
  • Once an athlete signs the LOI, they can’t be contacted by coaches at any other NJCAA college.

What happens if you change your mind after signing the LOI?

If a student-athlete decides after signing the LOI that they don’t want to attend that JUCO, they’ll need to request an NJCAA Letter of Intent Release before coaches at other NJCAA colleges can talk with them about a possible transfer.

A student-athlete who signs an NJCAA Letter of Intent but then chooses to transfer to another NJCAA college will also need to receive an NJCAA Transfer Waiver from the original JUCO that they signed with in order to be eligible.

  • The NJCAA Letter of Intent Release and the NJCAA Transfer Waiver are two separate documents. The first NJCAA college might sign the Release but not the Transfer Waiver.
  • If the student-athlete doesn’t receive the Transfer Waiver from the first NJCAA college, they’ll be ineligible for competition at the new college for one full academic year.

Furthermore, an athlete transferring within the same NJCAA conference from one college to another may be subject to more restrictive requirements.

  • They may not be eligible to compete at their new JUCO for one full academic year after a transfer from another college in the same conference.
  • They also may be prohibited from receiving a scholarship at the new NJCAA college.

Do you Have Questions Before your Athlete Signs an LOI or Need Help Navigating Through a Transfer?

Schedule a confidential Eligibility Issues or confidential Transfer Issues consult online if your athlete has questions/concerns about the rules that will specifically apply to your JUCO transfer student-athlete. You can also contact us by sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com or by calling 913-766-1235.

JUCO Student-athletes transferring to NCAA Division I or II programs should know that there are specific academic requirements that must be achieved to be immediately eligible at an NCAA Division I or II university.

The academic eligibility requirements are different for NCAA Division I compared to Division II, and can also depend upon the student-athlete’s status as a “Qualifier” as well as how many semesters they have attended at their JUCO.

There are, however, two NCAA rules/requirements that apply to a junior college transfer regardless of whether they are transferring to a Division I or II university:

  • The first is that a JUCO transfer can only use 2 credit hours of Physical Education Activity courses toward the required transferable degree credits, unless the athlete is going to major in Physical Education or another major which calls for additional credit hours in those types of courses.
  • The second consistent requirement is that remedial-level courses taken at a junior college can’t be used to satisfy the academic requirements for immediate eligibility when transferring from a junior college to an NCAA university.

For more information on eligibility issues that JUCO athletes often face when transferring, you might be interested in reading this article: JUCO Student-Athletes and Eligibility Issues at NCAA Schools.

If you have questions about the NCAA academic requirements that JUCO student-athletes must meet to be immediately eligible at an NCAA university, click Transfer Consult Options to learn how we can help.

If you’d prefer to schedule a consult directly with our office, call Informed Athlete at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

One of the most commonly encountered roadblocks to a transfer from one school to another is when a student-athlete has eligibility issues. This seems to be especially true when a student-athlete transfers from a junior college to an NCAA school.

Student-Athletes who start their college career at a junior college have differing academic requirements when it comes time to transfer to an NCAA school.

For example:

  • Was the student-athlete a “qualifier” or “non-qualifier” coming out of high school? The answer to this will affect what a junior college transfer athlete must achieve academically to be eligible to compete at an NCAA DI or DII school.
  • How many semesters did a student-athlete attend at a junior college?
  • Was the student-athlete required to earn their Associates Degree before they were ruled academically eligible to transfer to an NCAA school?

These are the types of things that frequently derail a Junior College student-athlete’s athletic and academic career and end up costing them personally and financially.

If a student-athlete has not satisfied all necessary academic requirements BEFORE starting classes this Fall, they won’t be able to compete for their university during the 2019-2020 academic year and may also not be qualified to receive an athletic scholarship!

Knowing the academic requirements for certain ahead of time can allow a student-athlete to make the adjustments that are needed to avoid disappointment and possibly financial problems down the road.

If you are uncertain about your eligibility status, Informed Athlete can help!

  • Book a PERSONAL PHONE OR SKYPE CONSULT when answers to your questions require more information and are more complex or an EMAIL CONSULT if you need quick, simple answers to concise questions.

Informed Athlete® receives many calls from parents of student-athletes who have transferred from a junior college to an NCAA sports program and then learn they aren’t eligible to compete after they have already started attending classes.

This is because the student-athlete did not satisfy the necessary NCAA academic transfer requirements while attending the junior college.

If you have a junior college athlete who is transferring to an NCAA college for the Spring semester, and are unsure whether they will be eligible for competition this Spring, we can provide a confidential consultation to explain those requirements and discuss options that may be available for your athlete. Click here to schedule a confidential phone consult or email consult, call us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com