Tag Archive for: Mid-Year Transfer

We’ve consulted recently with families regarding situations in which their athlete has been dismissed or suspended from a team with little to no explanation as to why they were removed from their team.

While these situations are certainly unfortunate and appear unfair, decisions as to who a coach keeps on their roster are left to the discretion of the coach by most athletic directors. If a coach removes an athlete from their team, the athlete may have no choice but to transfer to another school.

However, if an athlete is receiving an athletic scholarship, the NCAA rules limit the ability of a coach or athletic department to cancel the scholarship in the middle of the academic year.

Mid-year cancellation of a scholarship is only possible if an athlete:

  • Is ruled ineligible for competition,
  • Provides fraudulent information on an application, letter of intent, or financial aid agreement,
  • Engages in serious misconduct that rises to the level of being disciplined by the university’s regular student disciplinary board,
  • Voluntarily quits their team,
  • Violates an athletic department or team rule or policy.

Also, an NCAA Division I athlete entering the Transfer Portal could possibly lose their scholarship at midyear.

My advice to athletes and parents:

Review very carefully any athletic department or university rules and policies that spell out the non-athletic reasons that can be cited for the cancellation of an athletic scholarship.

If your athlete is concerned about their scholarship being taken away mid-year, schedule a confidential scholarship consultation online with me to discuss the situation and options your athlete may have.

Transferring to another school at any time of the year has its challenges. However, mid-year transfers to a new university can be especially difficult because a student-athlete often has a short window of time to find a new school and then enroll for classes that start in January.

In addition:

  • There can be specific rules that determine whether a mid-year transfer athlete will have immediate eligibility.
  • There are also specific academic requirements that the student-athlete must satisfy in the Fall to order to be eligible to compete in the Spring.

Before your student-athlete takes action, make sure they know where they stand and what options they have so they don’t make mistakes that could cause them to lose eligibility or add a financial burden to the family.

  • As an example, an NCAA Division I student-athlete entering the Transfer Portal could possibly lose their scholarship at mid-year.
  • There are also certain sports in which a mid-year transfer athlete can’t be eligible to compete in the Spring even if they satisfy all of the academic requirements to be eligible at the next university.

Do you have questions?

If your or your student-athlete has questions and needs advice on how to successfully navigate through a mid-year transfer, schedule a confidential Transfer Consult session online, send an email to rick@informedathlete.com or call 913-766-1235

We’ve recently been contacted by several student-athletes who are considering transferring to another college after this Fall term.

In one case, the athlete is looking at a transfer from a two-year college to a four-year college, while the others were considering a transfer from one four-year college to another.

It’s very important to know all the consequences of how a transfer will affect an athlete’s future eligibility BEFORE moving forward.

  • For example, many people think that a JUCO athlete can be immediately eligible when they transfer to a four-year program as long as they have graduated from their JUCO with an Associates Degree. That’s not always the case, especially if the athlete is transferring to an NCAA Division I program. It also may not be enough for an NCAA DII program either.
  • A four-year college athlete transferring from one program to another should also be aware of the steps and requirements that they need to satisfy for a successful transfer, and the potential downside to doing so.

Considering a transfer to another school can be extremely stressful.

We can help by answering any questions you have and explaining the steps your athlete will need to follow for a transfer. We’ll also explain the academic requirements that he or she will need to satisfy to be eligible at their next university.

For athletes transferring from a junior college to a four-year college, we can also provide a Transcript Review and Assessment to review their junior college courses and advise on whether those courses and grades will satisfy the NCAA or NAIA transfer requirements.

If you would like to have a confidential discussion of the steps to follow for a transfer and the rules involved, schedule a Transfer Consult online. Or you can contact us by phone or email: 913-766-1235 or rick@informedathlete.com