Internespo > Guide > Recruiting > Visit Colleges

Visiting colleges is important for both players and coaches. It gives you a chance to see the campus, meet the players and the coaching staff. You can go on official or unofficial visits, but make sure you understand the process and the rules around it.

Key Takeaways

• Athletes are not allowed to visit an athletic department until August 1st of their junior year
• Official visits are not allowed during the recruiting dead period
• You need to be registered with the NCAA Eligibility center to take an official visit

1) Unofficial Visit

With a recent rule change by the NCAA, athletes are not allowed to arrange an unofficial visit with an athletic department until August 1st of their junior year.

This rule was implemented to prevent athletes going on unofficial visits as early as their freshman year, and coaches using the opportunity to begin making scholarship offers in their meetings pre-maturely. Of course athletes and their families can visit campuses whenever they please, which is a great way to get familiar with the campus and city, take tours of the buildings and dorms, and get a feel for what it would be like to live there for 4 years. But the key here is that athletes are not allowed to have any recruiting conversations with the coach while on campus.

August 1st of your Junior year: Once it is August 1st of an athletes junior year, they may plan unofficial visits with the athletic department. Now they can set up meetings with the coaches, tour the athletic facilities, meet the team, and talk with the coaches about scholarships. These visits however, are financed by the athlete and/or athletes family. The advantage of unofficial visits is you can take as many as you would like and they give a great preview to what life would be like as a student-athlete.

2) Official Visit

An official visit is when any part of the visit is financed by the school. Coaches usually save these visits for top recruits, so getting an invitation is a big step in the recruiting process. Additionally, the NCAA has outlined guidelines for official visits. According to new rules, D1 recruits can begin taking official visits starting August 1st before their junior year of high school.

2.1) Official visit rules

• Athletes visiting Division I schools are only allowed to take 5 official visits, with a limit of one visit per school. Athletes visiting DII and DIII schools are limited one per school as well, but can take as many official visits as they are offered.
• The school can pay for the transportation to and from the campus, lodging throughout the visit, three meals per day, and tickets to a home sports event. This is the maximum amount programs can pay for your visit, some programs will finance all of these things, while others may only be able to finance a small portion of your trip.
• Each official visit may be up to 48 hours long, or the span of one weekend.
• Official visits are not allowed to occur during recruiting dead periods.

Find more information on the SAT and ACT under academic requirements.

2.2) What happens during a visit?

Official visits give an athlete an inside look into what life will be like as a student-athlete. It is during this time that it’s important for an athlete to familiarize themselves with the campus and ask themselves if they would enjoy living there for four years.

While every official visit may be different, typically a visit will consist of a campus tour, touring the athletic facilities, visiting some of the athletes dorms/houses, sitting in on a class with one of the athletes, watching team practice, eating in the schools cafeteria, hanging out with members of the team, meeting with academic advisors, and meeting with the coaching staff.

After every visit, it is crucial to follow up with a thank you note, expressing your gratitude for their time and telling them your favorite parts of the visit. This will show you are a thoughtful and courteous athlete, and help keep you top of mind as they assemble their roster.

2.3) Key Points to Remember

1. Athletes must register with the NCAA Eligibility Center before taking an official visit: It is advised athletes register in their sophomore year, so coaches know you would be eligible to compete at their school, and can then invite you on a visit.

2. Send the admissions office your transcript and standardized test scores: Even if you haven’t submitted an official application to the school yet, this step helps the admission office ensure you meet the standards of the school, and can help to show what kind of academic aid you might be eligible for so coaches can then make athletic scholarship offers on your visit.

3. Be prepared for receiving an offer during the visit: Offers are not guaranteed during official visits, but if they do happen, it is good to prepare on how you will respond. If the school is your top choice, you might want to consider agreeing to the offer as soon as possible to lock in your spot on the roster. However, if you have multiple schools on your list and want to continue pursuing other options, you can politely say you are going to discuss it with your parents, and ask the coach when the offer will expire.

4. Be prepared to ask questions: During an official visit you will have time to ask as many questions you would like, so be prepared to take advantage of this opportunity.

5. Parents are invited to go on official visits: For parents that decide to join the recruit on an official visit, the school can pay for three meals per day and tickets to a home game. While the school will pay for the athletes transportation to the school, they can only pay for the parents transportation to and from campus if they are traveling in the same car as the recruit.

Flights and separate bus or train tickets can not be purchased for parents. It is crucial for parents to allow the athlete to be the focus of the experience, allowing the athlete to ask most of the questions.