Tag Archive for: Student-Athlete Academic Eligibility

Student-Athletes: Confirm Your Eligibility Before You Transfer or Start Classes

After classes have started, we are frequently contacted by student-athletes who have been told that they are not eligible for competition. It’s then too late to consider other options that could have been possible.

If you are transferring, enrolling for the first time or coming in as a non-recruited walk-on, MAKE SURE you contact the compliance office of the college you are transferring to or enrolling in to confirm that you have satisfied ALL the academic requirements to be eligible for competition in your first year of attendance.

Staff members who are responsible for certifying athletes as eligible will most likely be focusing more attention on those incoming athletes who have been actively recruited by the coaching staff as scholarship athletes or as “preferred walk-ons.”

It’s important to do this BEFORE you begin full-time enrollment at the university when it will be too late to consider possible options (such as taking additional summer courses, postponing your enrollment or returning to junior college for one more semester).

Do You Have Questions?

We can explain the academic requirements for eligibility in a confidential Eligibility Issues consultation, and we can also review your athlete’s high school or junior college transcript to inform whether they are on track to satisfy the eligibility requirements. Contact us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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College Athletes taking Summer Courses – What You Should Know

If you are a college athlete who plans to take summer courses from a college or university other than the one where you were enrolled this past semester, you should keep these points in mind:

  • If you are taking the summer course to gain additional credit hours toward your degree requirements, check with your academic advisor to confirm that the course can be transferred back to your current college or university and will count toward your degree requirements.
  • If you are taking the summer course to improve your GPA, contact your academic advisor or call the Office of the Registrar at your college or university to ask whether the summer course will impact your GPA, or whether it will only impact the credit hours you need for your degree. Such policies can vary from one college to another.

If you were on scholarship during the regular academic year, there is no requirement that your university provide a summer school scholarship.

  • If you were a scholarship athlete during the 2019-20 academic year, your scholarship from that university won’t cover summer courses taken from a different university.
  • In fact, your scholarship may not cover summer courses taken from the same university you attended during 2019-20. That’s because a scholarship for summer school is a separate agreement from your academic year scholarship.

Do you Have Questions?

If you have questions regarding how summer courses may impact your eligibility, especially if you will be transferring to a new college this Fall, schedule a confidential Eligibility Issues consult online, or by sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com or calling us at 913-766-1235.

During the call, Rick will review the eligibility rules that specifically pertain to your athlete and answer your questions. He’ll discuss the options that are available depending on the situation – including the possibility of an academic eligibility or extension of eligibility waiver.

All information shared is private and confidential. Nothing is shared with schools, coaches, or anyone else unless you specifically make a request.

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NCAA DII Transfer Eligibility Case Study

We were recently contacted by the parent of a student-athlete who transferred to an NCAA Division II university to play her sport, but was then told she wouldn’t be eligible this Spring because she had not earned enough academic credit hours at her previous college.

This student-athlete had recently transferred to the NCAA DII school after two previous years as a general student at an NCAA DI university.

The student-athlete and her parents scheduled a confidential consultation with me to get an objective opinion and learn what her options were. During the consultation we discussed the details of her situation and the parents asked about the possibility of a waiver.  However, it soon became clear that a waiver would not be necessary because the Division II compliance administrator was applying the wrong set of transfer rules and requirements to this student-athlete’s situation.

I gave a copy of the applicable academic requirements to the student-athlete and her parents and they set up a meeting to share the information with the compliance administrator. They approached the meeting with a congenial attitude and were even-tempered and business-like in their approach. The end result was an apology from the compliance administrator who realized that she had been applying the wrong set of rules for this student-athlete.

As a former NCAA compliance administrator, I know that mistakes can happen but can usually be worked through with the school with a positive outcome which is exactly what happened in this case.

If you are a parent and have concerns about your student-athlete’s eligibility, we can provide accurate information, objective advice, and options available that are in the best interest of your athlete and family. To schedule a private consultation, call our office at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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