This page includes helpful advice and information about how you can get recruited to play in college, and we will continue to update and add information here. Scroll down & enjoy all the info!
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Want to play volleyball in college? Depending on your level of play, your academics, your dedication and desire, and support from your coaches, your child can play volleyball in college!
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There are over 1,800 women’s varsity volleyball programs across the U.S.:
- 340 Division I volleyball colleges
- 293 Division II volleyball colleges
- 427 Division III volleyball colleges
- 220 NAIA volleyball colleges
- 67 four-year colleges outside of the above divisions
- 313 NJCAA volleyball colleges
- 133 two-year colleges outside of the NJCAA
- and over 85 colleges have NCAA beach volleyball programs, too
There’s a right-fit school and team for you!
Also, the level of play at each school is NOT directly correlated to the divisions listed above. Many lower-level DI teams are not as strong as the upper-level DII and DIII teams. There are many 2-yr school teams that would beat many NCAA DI-II-III teams… And the NAIA schools often have a lot of athletic scholarship money to give, since they are not restricted by NCAA rules. Lastly, DIII schools do not give “athletic” scholarships, but often have a lot of academic scholarship money to offer (typically a LOT more than you would receive with a partial D1 scholarship). There’s a “right-fit” school for you to play collegiate volleyball!
Volleyball coaches want to hear from YOU… The Player will need to put in some time and effort to reach out to colleges, market herself, and find her desired school(s). By reaching out to college coaches, you will open many more doors and find yourself being recruited, and possibly discovering schools you had not heard of, but want YOU to play in their program!
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Helpful points:
- Get great grades. that will open the most doors, and typically offer more money
- Work harder than all your teammates, on and off the court and in the classroom
- Make sure your volleyball coaches and club director know that you want to play in college
- Target the schools where you want to live and are a good-fit academically
- Be realistic in identifying what level you can contribute and make an impact
- Create a personal highlight reel and a skill videos
- Start sending personal emails to coaches (with highlight video)!
- Keep in contact and be sure to ALWAYS REPLY to coaches within 48 hours!
Playing a college sport is not easier than high school or club. It’s even MORE work and demands strong time management skills. It’s never too early to start managing your own time and priorities… Parents, let your daughters be in charge of their schedules and commitments now, so that college is not such an overwhelming shock. But if you do want to play in college, it’s rewarding and memorable and exciting!
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LJV Recruiting Seminar – Wednesday January 5, 2022 via zoom call… SCROLL to bottom of this webpage for presentation slides
*** SCROLL TO BOTTOM OF THIS WEBPAGE for Presentation slides from the LJV Recruiting Seminar ***
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INTRO EMAIL TEMPLATE TO COLLEGE VB COACHES from Dianne Denecochea of ProActiveVolley
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Want to play NCAA sports? Visit ncaa.org/playcollegesports (lots of interesting info/stats, including
NCAA Eligibility Center (lots of helpful NCAA info!) – register now for Player Profile (Free); no need to pay for certification until about to commit for D1 or D2. If unsure what level you may play, simply register for the free profile now, then upgrade later if you are not sure yet, just register.
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“The Ultimate Recruiting Guide for College Volleyball”
PDF file: The_Recruiting_Guide
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Personal Recruiting Profile page… not required, but highly recommended. You should have a place where all your personal information resides: your name , graduation year, height, position(s), vertical, touch, grades, test scores, personal statement You can use a free page/service (like CaptainU or NCSA), but they often try to “upsell” you to pay for more of their services.
Instead, utilize what LJV already provides for current LJV players (16s-18s):
- HUDL – Best way to re-watch your games AND make your highlight videos! Hudl stores all of our game videos, does stats breakdowns, and makes it so easy to create your own personal highlight video! Hudl now has Recruiting features, where you can enter your personal information AND you are “find-able” by college coaches if you choose to make yourself viewable and recruitable. Hudl.com
- SportsRecruits – a personal recruiting page where you enter your personal information, upload select game videos & highlights AND you can search for colleges by their size, location (interactive map of all colleges with volleyball programs), level of play, coach contact information, and more. SportsRecruits.com
- FieldLevel – anther free app/site to list yourself and possibly be found by college coaches. No need to pay for this, as Barb will “release” your contact info to any college coach that requests it, if you’d like FieldLevel.com
(College coaches often look at teammates of players as well… so you may get noticed online simply because a teammate of yours has contacted a college coach)
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- University Athlete – be sure your information is up-to-date prior to major tournaments… most college coaches will use this app while at major tournaments to find and keep track of their potential recruits
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NCSA – National Collegiate Scouting Association: http://www.ncsasports.org
**** lots of FREE helpful info/advice on their website, so get on their emailing list for free info & blogs ****
but DON’T dive into any financial commitment with NCSA (until/unless you talk with your coach first)
DO YOU HAVE A CALL WITH A COLLEGE COACH ALREADY SET UP?
Here’s a link to some helpful info and topics to discuss and ask, etc:
https://www.ncsasports.org/recruiting/contacting-college-coaches
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PrepVolleyball.com Recruiting Needs – updated regularly (membership/subscription required)
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AVCA – American Volleyball Coaches Association
www.avca.org
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Player Showcases – click for more info
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Good luck, everyone… there’s a great-fit college and volleyball program for YOU!
If you are a current LJV player, feel free to contact LJV Club Director Barb Birnbaum (and/or your current coaches) with any/all questions about college recruiting… have fun & good luck!