[MUSIC PLAYING]
MR. ALFRED BOLL: Good morning and good evening to our viewers
from around the world.
My name is Alfred Boll, and I represent EducationUSA,
and the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC.
Today's Facebook Live event is in honor of the 2018 Paralympic
Winter games, which are now underway in South Korea.
We want to congratulate all athletes taking part
in the Paralympics, an international multi-sport event
for athletes with disabilities.
Our show is aimed at international students who
are interested in playing for college sports
teams in the U.S. We will be discussing student athlete
recruitment.
And we'll have NCAA representatives Mike DeCesar
and Sarah Turner joining us.
They will share their insights on how athletics and academics
go hand in hand.
If you have questions you would like
them to answer during the program,
just post your question in the comment section below.
I'd now like to introduce you to Liam Haycock, who
is an international student athlete.
Liam is from Great Britain and is a collegiate soccer
player for the University of the District of Columbia.
Liam, soccer is a very popular sport overseas.
What attracted you to playing soccer as a student athlete
here in the United States?
MR. LIAM HAYCOCK: I believe playing here
as a student athlete is a big thing overseas.
It gives you the chance to come here, study, and play
the sport you love, really.
It's an opportunity to get full time education, opportunity
to play the sport you want to, and it's a great experience,
really.
It pushes you on to further endeavors,
going further on in your career, really.
MR. BOLL: So it was both professional and personal
development and enrichment.
MR. HAYCOCK: Yeah, certainly.
It's a breath of fresh air coming
from another country, experiencing
what it's like to be educated, the American system,
and also being able to play a sport
in a professional environment, really.
It really was a shock for me when I came here,
to realize how seriously competition and the NCAA
take college athletics, really.
MR. BOLL: That's fantastic, thank you.
Liam, what piece of advice would you
give our international students who
are interested in studying here in the U.S.,
and on being a student athlete in general?
MR. HAYCOCK: The piece of advice I would give
firstly is to make sure it's certainly
something you want to do.
Being an international student and coming over
here as a student athlete carries a lot of burdens,
really.
It's a big step to make, and it requires
a lot of hard work, preparation, and it's definitely something
that international students have to be
aware of before making the decision to go
into being a college athlete.
MR. BOLL: So get the information,
find out about what's on offer, and certainly, you know,
that's that's very good advice.
What were some resources you found helpful
when you started applying to colleges,
and getting the attention of sports recruiters?
MR. HAYCOCK: I think for me, I was
very lucky to have people around me who
influenced my path coming here.
They were always very helpful in telling me
that the American College athletics was
a great opportunity for me, myself, to come over here.
And I would say to everyone else that the resources I used,
widen them.
Don't you just keep yourself limited to who you talk to.
Obviously you're going to be talking to coaches, talking
to them about prospects of coming here,
and also I spoke to college recruiters
who help you along the way to getting where you need to be.
MR. BOLL: So were there-- were-- did you actually
speak to universities and deal with people in the U.S.
at colleges who then could tell you more
about their specific programs?
MR. HAYCOCK: Certainly, yes.
Obviously my point of reach was the head coach first.
And when I talk about head coach in [INAUDIBLE] University
of the District of Columbia, I spoke
to the head coach of soccer at UDC,
and he was very informative.
With open communication, we were able to talk to each other
about what sort of things needed to be done,
and how I go about the process of admitting into the school,
really.
MR. BOLL: Got it.
So don't be shy.
Reach out.
And I assume reach out widely.
MR. HAYCOCK: Yeah.
Reach out widely.
Make sure you keep your options open.
Don't just limit yourself to one,
because you're going to need backup plans.
And make sure it's the right choice, the right commitment.
MR. BOLL: Absolutely, absolutely.
Liam, thank you for joining us today.
If you want to hear more from Liam,
he will be participating in our Facebook chat.
Just ask your questions in the discussion section below.
He'll be online to answer your questions throughout the rest
of the program.
I would now like to introduce Sarah Turner and Mike DeCesare
from the National Collegiate Athletic Association,
better known as the NCAA.
The NCAA is a member led organization
dedicated to the well-being and lifelong success of college
athletes.
Sarah works for the NCAA's Customer Service Center,
and Mike is the Associate Director with the Eligibility
Center.
Sarah and Mike, thank you so much for joining us today.
Can you tell us a little more about the NCAA Eligibility
Center and the work you do with student athletes?
MS. SARAH TURNER: Thank you for your interest
and for the opportunity to speak with you today.
We are hoping conversations like these will help our students
and their parents start to understand
what requirements students will need
to play collegiate athletics in America.
While we won't be able to cover everything
you need to know about our process today,
we want to make sure you know the resources we
have available.
Our websites at ncaa.org can provide a wealth of information
on who we are, our requirements, transfer information,
and most importantly, information
specifically tailored for international students.
If you need to contact us with questions about your account,
you can find the international contact form
at www.ncaa.org/international.
If you plan to register for an NCAA Eligibility Center
account, you will need to visit www.eligibilitycenter.org.
One of the things we wanted to point out
is the Help button on the top of the screen includes
additional resources and links.
We are also active on Twitter and Instagram
if you'd like to follow us for updates.
If you want to know more about the National Letter of Intent,
please visit their website at nationalletter.org.
For more comprehensive information,
please check out the Guide for the College Bound Student
Athlete and the International Standards Guide.
The links for these two guides can be found
in the comments section below.
MR. MIKE DECESARE: The primary function
of the NCAA Eligibility Center is
to help ensure students that are coming into NCAA Division I
and II schools are academically prepared for college,
and that they meet the NCAA's definition of amateur athlete.
It is important to remember that the certification of athletics
eligibility is separate and distinct from being admitted
into a particular college or university.
Just because you are certified to compete in athletics
by the Eligibility Center doesn't
mean you have been admitted to the particular school.
And similarly, you may be admitted to a school,
but not certified is eligible to compete by the Eligibility
Center.
If you're a transfer student going to a Division I
or Division II school, you will still
need to be certified by the Eligibility Center, at least
for amateurism.
Please check with the compliance office
at the NCAA Division I or Division II
school you wish to attend to determine whether you need
an academic evaluation as well.
NCAA Division III schools conduct their certifications
on campus, so students would not need a certification account
with the Eligibility Center.
However, students do have the option,
as does everyone listening today,
to create a free profile page that would provide us
the information needed to send you periodic updates
and reminders.
We have touched on some of the differences between the three
NCAA divisions already, but the next graphic
does a nice job of showing more detail.
As you do your research about what type of college
or university you want to attend,
it is important to find a school that
fits what you are looking for both athletically
and academically.
It's important to note that fewer than 2%
of NCAA student athletes move on to professional athletics
after finishing college, so we encourage
you to study hard, research, and find the right fit
for you and your family.
MS. TURNER: We'd also like to point out, for Division III,
there are no athletic scholarships available.
Students are only eligible for non-athletic aid.
MR. BOLL: OK, Sarah and Mike, thank you so much.
We appreciate that that information.
I'm sure our viewers are going to have lots of questions.
I understand there are academic and amateurism requirements.
Could you tell us a little bit more about both of those?
MS. TURNER: So on the academic side,
we require students to complete 16 core courses
in the core subject areas of English
and native language, mathematics,
natural and physical science, social science,
and additional core courses like philosophy, foreign languages,
and non-denominational religion courses.
You can see the breakdown of credits
by division in this slide.
We utilize the students' transcripts
for years nine and up to find the 16 core credits
as well as determine their grade-point average
from those courses.
In addition to transcripts, students will also
need to complete the SAT or ACT test,
you must be deemed a final qualifier
or receive an automatic waiver to be eligible for practice,
athletic scholarship, and competition
during your first year in university.
MR. DECESARE: When you register with the NCAA Eligibility
Center, you will be asked a series of questions
about your sports participation history for each sport
that you'd like to play in college.
This information will be evaluated
to determine your amateurism status for NCAA Division I
and Division II colleges and universities.
Common issues that we see are listed on the slide here.
These are issues that can limit your ability
to play your sport in college.
Ultimately, we want to guard against professional athletes
competing against student athletes.
One of the most common occurrences
we see with international students
is that of delayed enrollment.
For most sports, the NCAA allows for a grace period of one year
to delay enrollment after completion of secondary school
studies, but any additional delay beyond that
could incur eligibility penalties.
I think that's enough to get us started.
Hopefully this intro has sparked some questions.
MR. BOLL: Thank you so much Sarah and Mike.
This is extremely valuable information,
and we have a lot of Facebook questions from our viewers.
In order to get to as many questions as possible,
I would like to ask you both to keep your responses brief so
that we can get through as many as possible.
So our first question is, what happens
if we lose our good standing or rating during our college
education?
MR. DECESARE: So what can happen if you
lose your good standing or rating is that that can limit
your ability to keep playing.
You're expected to maintain good grades,
meet a certain GPA requirements, set
both byt he NCAA and by the school you want to attend.
And if you're not meeting that expectation,
you won't get to practice, you won't get to play in games,
and also your scholarship could be in jeopardy
at the end of the day.
So it's incredibly important to work just as hard
in the classroom before you get to college as you
do once you get to college.
MR. BOLL: So serious consequences.
Our next question is, when should I
start contacting coaches and can I ask them about scholarships
directly?
MS. TURNER: So you can always reach out to coaches.
On most website there is a contact form for prospects.
And so if you wanted to reach out to coaches,
there's that prospects form.
You can call, you can email.
There are no restrictions on you reaching out first.
And you can always talk about scholarships.
That's something that we would actually
encourage students to talk about,
so that the expectation is set upfront.
MR. BOLL: Thank you Sarah, we've got a good follow up question.
What's the best way to contact the sports recruitment
offices of each university?
MS. TURNER: It depends on each university,
but I know a lot of institutions use
that form to get as much information
about students as possible.
MR. BOLL: Thank you.
So reach out.
As Liam said, don't hesitate.
Use a form, but, you know, send an email.
MS. TURNER: [INAUDIBLE] email.
[INAUDIBLE]
MR. BOLL: Right.
Next question is, do we need to make NCAA registration
by ourselves, or should our club or federation do that?
MR. DECESARE: That's an outstanding question.
You know, we ask every student to complete his or her own NCAA
instability center registration.
And the reason for that is that at the end of the day,
we're going to certify you, the individual student.
So we're looking for your take on where you've played,
what your grades are, your test scores.
And if we need additional information,
we're going to go to the student directly to get that.
So we strongly encourage the individual student
to complete his or her own Eligibility Center account.
Certainly a club or a federation can be a resource.
That may be someone we contact to gather
additional information.
But from our seat, it always starts
with the individual student athlete.
MR. BOLL: Thank you, very valuable.
Which sports are most popular for international students?
MS. TURNER: So we get a lot of soccer players, tennis players,
track is very popular, as well as basketball.
So those would be the top sports, but for the most part
we get international prospects in probably all of our 19
sports, [INAUDIBLE].
MR. BOLL: Just a follow on Sarah,
so I assume that students shouldn't limit themselves
just because a sport's popular, but in fact they
should try and go for whatever their sport is.
MS. TURNER: Correct, yes if you are passionate about your sport
and want to play collegiate athletics in America,
reach out to the coaches and figure out
if there's a team that would be a good fit for you.
MR. BOLL: OK, thank you.
Our next question is, what are the NCAA core course
requirements?
MS. TURNER: So this is one where it's by division.
Each division has their own credits that they need,
but for the most part, we're looking for English language
courses.
If you're educated in a country that's Spanish speaking,
we will take those Spanish classes.
We will need mathematics courses, science,
social science, and additional core.
The biggest thing that we want to point out
is business and commerce courses are not considered core.
PE, art, music, those are classes
we would not be able to use to certify you academically.
MR. BOLL: So you're looking for well-rounded students.
MS. TURNER: Correct.
MR. BOLL: That's fantastic.
And it's something that we talk about a lot
as one of the advantages of the-- you know,
the American higher education system generally.
Our next question is, how long is the certification
process with the NCAA Eligibility Center,
and how much does it cost?
MS. TURNER: So the certification process--
it can be very quick, or it could take a little bit longer.
If students register after they've graduated,
and they send all of their documents at once
and submit their test scores, if we've
got an account that's finalized and ready to go,
we can finish the account within 10 business says.
If we need additional clarification from the school,
we can open new tests, and then the timing
depends on how long it takes to have those tests satisfied.
For the international fee, if you
have attended an international institution
for high school for years nine and up, the fee is $135.
MR. BOLL: Thank you.
Our next question is about scholarships.
At what level of sport should I be able to get a scholarship?
So I guess, how good do I have to be,
expectations or standards?
MR. DECESARE: You know, there's probably not a set standard
necessarily.
You know, the-- probably what we would suggest
is, our coaches are looking for well-rounded students that
love to compete in their sport.
And one thing our coaches also look at
is if they're looking at capable athletes,
if we use soccer example, and looked
at, you had two talented soccer players, like Liam,
both very good at their sport, and one is a--
play year round, play competitively.
One is a much stronger student than another, by and large,
our coaches are going to lean toward recruiting
a stronger academic student ahead of the one
who's not as strong.
Partly for what we said before.
If that student shows that he can
get it done in the classroom, he's
going to have a great chance of doing good work
at his next university.
And someone that coach can count on
to get the job done both on and off the field.
MR. BOLL: That's fantastic.
You know, that's a vision of saying
we want students to succeed, both academically
and in sports, and in athletics.
And it's, you know, it's one of the things
that we hear frequently from people who engage EducationUSA
around the world.
They talk about what's special about American colleges
and universities is that they are focused on student success
overall, whether it's in--
academically, in terms of athletics, or overall.
It's-- you know, the final thing is success and moving
on to the next part of your life professionally and personally.
Our next question is about evaluations.
How many people evaluate an application
at the NCAA Eligibility Center?
MS. TURNER: So we don't have one case manager that's
assigned to a specific account.
We have a team of kids processors
both on the academic and the amateurism side.
So everybody in terms of efficiency
is going through accounts and trying to get them done.
So there's not one specific person.
On the customer service side, we are the ones
that if people email or call in, that we will talk to you.
It's a pretty small team, but we're all able to help.
MR. BOLL: Thank you.
We have now a specific question about specific sports.
Do squash, judo, archery, and shooting sports
come under NCAA eligibility requirements.
MR. DECESARE: Another really good question.
Rifle would come under NCAA eligibility requirements.
judo would not.
Squash would come under NCAA requirements
academically, for a number of reasons,
we do not provide an amateur certification for squash.
MR. BOLL: Thank you.
What if students are interested in playing more than one sport?
How does that work?
MR. DECESARE: Absolutely.
And you know, we're blessed that we have a lot of talented what
we call here multi-sport athletes at our Division I
and Division II schools.
And we find our coaches would just as well
have someone who could succeed in multiple sports.
So from an eligibility standpoint, you know,
that student would still receive one academic evaluation.
And that would be good for every two, three or four sports
a student might want to play in college.
On the amateurism certification side,
the student would fill out sports participation questions
for each one of those sports.
My team with amateurism certification
would in turn provide an amateurism certification
for each sport.
You know, so that could be soccer,
that could be tennis, that could be tracked and field.
And once that student is cleared amateur-wise to compete
in those sports, he or she can go ahead and play.
There is not an additional fee.
I think it's important to note that the $135
fee that Sarah mentioned before would
be the same if a student played one sport
or if a student played two or more sports.
MS. TURNER: It's also important to note
that if you are a professional in one sport,
you can still be considered an amateur athlete in a second.
So if you're a professional soccer player that's always
wanted to be a kicker or punter for a football team,
give it a shot.
MR. BOLL: That sounds like a very practical and realistic
approach, you know, geared toward student realities.
Thank you.
So is there an age limit for NCAA eligibility?
MR. DECESARE: Yeah that's a very-- very helpful question.
So the NCAA doesn't have a maximum age at which you
can no longer play your sport.
What students should be mindful of is that certain sports will
have an age of--
by which our schools require you to come and get
certified and start playing or you could forfeit eligibility.
A good example, especially since this
is a popular sport with our international audience,
would be men's and women's tennis.
Division I has a rule that says if you turn 20 years of age
before you come and play at a Division I school,
you can lose eligibility for each year
between your 20th birthday and the time you come to school.
A quick example would be a 21-year-old tennis player
that enrolls at school at 21, played tennis
between age 20 and age 21, and would lose a year of her tennis
eligibility.
A 22-year-old tennis player would lose
two years of her eligibility.
So while there's not an age maximum,
there are certain age requirements
by which our schools would like you to get in, enroll
and start competing.
And it ties back to something we said earlier,
it's the idea that we want a level playing
field, similar skilled to athletes competing each other,
not amateur competing against professionals.
MR. BOLL: Thank you very much.
That's great to hear, both the spirit of openness
as well as, you know, the need to check requirements carefully
and see where you stand.
If-- next question is, if we don't have a USA rating,
how do we need to-- do we need to choose Division
III during registration?
MR. DECESARE: So my--
go ahead, Sarah, I'm sorry.
MS. TURNER: The USA rating in sport?
MR. BOLL: I guess.
That's how the question came in.
MS. TURNER: So I think it's one of those things,
if you are not sure that you're interested in attending
a Division I or Division II institution, we do encourage
you to create that profile page, if you
are interested in coming to the United States to compete.
With that profile page, it is free.
It's something that is available to allow us to still provide
communications and provide updates with policy
and what's going on, and where in the process you should be.
But if you're interested in Division I or Division II
and don't have a USA rating, still reach out to coaches.
They may not need it to be interested in the level
of competition that you're able to bring.
MR. BOLL: Thank you, thank you.
A very practical question-- how do I submit my documents.
If I mail originals, can I get them back?
MS. TURNER: We do not return any documents,
so please, please, please do not mail any original documents.
For us, we can accept course school stamped copies
of your original documents.
So if you want to take your originals to your school,
have them print out copies and add [INAUDIBLE] stamp,
those can be mailed in to us.
There are some changes coming, and so if you're currently
going through the recruiting process,
or it's something that's coming up,
keep in touch with your compliance officer,
and they'll be able to let you know
how to submit your documents after the changes occur.
MR. BOLL: So moral of the story, read the instructions carefully
and follow them.
MS. TURNER: Yes, the test does warn you, so it is out there.
MR. BOLL: And I might say to all students
watching, that goes for all parts of the admissions
process.
Read the instructions carefully, follow them, get good advice.
EducationUSA advisors, you know, are
on the ground in 180 countries and territories
to help with that process.
Our next question is, what happens
if a student fails the certification
process with the NCAA Eligibility Center?
Are there other options if the student
is still interested in playing college sports?
MS. TURNER: So we suggest if you come out
with a non-qualifier decision, if you were not
eligible to practice, compete, and receive
scholarship your first year, talk
with the college that was recruiting you,
or the different schools.
They may have suggestions.
They may allow you to start internationally,
your education internationally, and then transfer in.
I know some coaches suggest junior colleges, which
are two year options, and then you
can transfer in to the Division I or Division II schools.
It's just important to keep that line of communication
open if you do receive a non-qualifier decision.
MR. DECESARE: And I might add, from the amateurism side,
that every one of our Division I and Division II institutions,
if a students does not get certified as an amateur
has an ability to appeal that decision.
And that's something you can talk
about with the coach that's recruiting you,
and the compliance office at the institution you're
interested in attending.
I'll also stress that more often than not on the amateurism
side, it's not a permanent or complete restriction
on your eligibility if you have a limitation be
placed on your account.
Typically, the most common restriction
is that students will be asked to sit out
one year, their first year on campus.
We call that an academic year in residence.
And they'll have something less than a full four
years of eligibility.
So don't let that be a, you know, black and white
deterrent to looking at this option.
It's a great option.
And your school will work hard with you
to try and see if a waiver or another opportunity
can go through so that maybe you can play sooner.
MR. BOLL: Fantastic advice.
Our next question is, when should I create, at what point
should I create an account?
Is there, like, a better time or a worse time?
MS. TURNER: If you're being recruited
by an NCAA institution, go ahead and create an account.
The institution will go ahead and use that account
to monitor your athletic status as well
as your amateurism certification process.
If you're not yet being recruited
and you are still interested, we suggest
registering during or towards the end of your junior year.
We do conduct preliminary reviews.
So if you start producing your documentation,
and you're SAT or ACT test score,
we can take a look at your account
and let you know where you are and let
potentially interested institution know
where you fall as well.
MR. BOLL: So junior means two years before, right?
Essentially.
MS. TURNER: Yeah, your third year in high school
if you're in a 12-year system.
MR. BOLL: Got it.
Thank you so much.
So is there a minimum required score
for either the ACT or the SAT for admission
as an international athlete on a scholarship?
MS. TURNER: So just remember, we are not the same thing
as the admissions process.
So for admissions into a university,
they'll have their own standards.
On the academic side, we have something
called a sliding scale.
So the higher your GPA, more wiggle room
you have with what kind of test score you have to achieve.
We do have a very nice, easy to read chart on our website
at ncaa.org/international.
MR. BOLL: Thank you.
I'm so happy we have this next question, especially
given the Paralympics going on in South Korea.
Are there any specific criteria for international students
with disabilities?
MR. DECESARE: Specific criteria?
Not necessarily.
You know, the review process is--
it's going to look the same, you know, from the Eligibility
Center's end.
It will be the same academic review
process and the same amateurism review process.
And probably a lot of what we've said
would be applicable, in terms of getting your name out
and communicating your interest with head and assistant
coaches about this opportunity of playing at this level.
So from from our end, our experience
has been not only the certification process
but the recruitment process, and what it looks like on campus
as you go through your day to day with classes
and conditioning and going to practice
and competing in your sport is, you know, really
substantially similar.
MR. BOLL: Fantastic.
So definitely encouraging applications
from students with disabilities, especially
in the spirit of the Paralympics.
And EducationUSA centers, our advisors around the world,
are well-prepared to talk to students with disabilities
about opportunities for study in the United States
across the board.
Our next question is, can an international student
come to the U.S. to finish high school and play for the school
first, and then go to college in America?
Will this give them some kind of an advantage in the process?
MS. TURNER: I don't think it will provide an advantage, per
se.
The biggest thing that we want to point out
is, if you do not graduate from your international high school
and you come to the United States,
and start school as an American student,
we have for Division I a core course time limit.
So you have to complete all your requirements within a time
limit, as well as something called a 10-7 progression
requirement.
We need 10 of your credits from English, math, science,
social science, and additional core, with 7
being in English, math, or science,
to be completed before the start of your seventh semester
in school.
So a lot of times, one of the things
that becomes very important is when
you do make that switch over to America,
talk with the high school guidance counselors
at your new American high school.
Ask them what requirements they still
need you to meet, as well as make sure you
are not completing duplicative coursework.
We want to make sure that we give you
the most advantageous certification possible,
and we can't do that if you're taking duplicative coursework.
MR. BOLL: Thank you so much, Sarah.
So how long after graduating from high school
from secondary school does a student have to apply to--
does he have, or he or she have, to apply to a Division I
or Division II school?
MR. DECESARE: I can take that one.
There's not necessarily a time limit.
It really kind of in part depends on
how soon after graduating from a secondary school
that student wants to come over here and go to college
and compete in his or her sport.
I will tell you for for all intents and purposes, though,
our coaches for the coming academic year--
and we can use this fall as an example--
most of their recruitment will be done by early spring.
In fact, you know, coaches are signing students
to national letters of intent for those sports.
So promising scholarship money is one of the things
Sarah pointed out earlier, is that you know,
a lot of students will register, you
know, one year prior to wanting to come to an NCAA
college or university so that they
can get their account reviewed, be on the radar of our coaches,
and, you know, have the opportunity
to come to our colleges the fall semester following
their graduation.
I will point out one additional thing,
is that many but not all of our schools
will admit student athletes both in the fall
and what we call mid-year.
Mid-year is also what we refer to as a winter or a spring
academic term.
In fact, about 10% to 12% of our prospective student athletes
enroll mid-year every year.
So while the bulk of them do come to school in the fall,
we get a considerable population that
will come to school in January or February each year.
So it's just important to, you know,
be in dialogue with with your coach, what sport you're
interested in playing, and what that coach's needs are--
you know, when they're looking for you
to come on and join the team.
MS. TURNER: It's also important, based
on the amateurism section, the delayed enrollment component.
So you, for most sports, will only get a one year grace
period after your expected date of high school graduation
before you have to enroll as a full time university student,
or we need you to stop competing in your sport.
So that's another component that coaches
will considere to make sure that when you do come in,
you come in with all four seasons of eligibility,
and you come in with the ability to start competing right away.
MR. BOLL: Thank you both, that's fantastic advice.
It just emphasizes, again, how flexible U.S. higher education
is, how open it is.
That's something that, you know, we've
got 425 plus advising centers all around the world,
and our advisors are always emphasizing that point,
our basic services are for free.
And so we hope students will come and get more information.
Another question that in the Olympic spirit, have you--
if you have competed at an Olympic level
and even won a medal, are you eligible to be
certified with the NCAA?
MR. DECESARE: Yeah.
That's a great question, and certainly-- certainly
a timely one.
You know, there is not a restriction from the NCAA
on, you know, competing in the Olympics,
or earning a medal in the Olympics.
You know, the things that we try and direct to is
that it's something that's shown up on the slide earlier,
and that Sarah mentioned a minute ago.
You know, we are looking for athletes who do not financially
profit from playing their sport.
So if you're in your country's Olympic pool,
and you're offered money, you know, as an incentive
for winning a medal or making the finals, your best
bet from an NCAA standpoint, would
be not to take that money.
You know, that can have an impact on your eligibility.
Similarly, you know, there are time limitations
after you finish secondary school in which you can compete
without forfeiting eligibility.
But, you know, as kind of a, you know, more blanket response,
we see dozens of both what we call incoming college bound
student athletes as well as our own student athletes who
compete, represent their countries,
and do a great job at the Olympics,
and are able, then, to in turn come back
and play NCAA college athletics.
So, you know, we would encourage students, you know,
know before you go.
You know, know what you can and can't do from an eligibility
standpoint.
And otherwise, go out there and, you know,
represent yourself and your country well
and compete at your best.
MR. BOLL: Fantastic advice.
So essentially everybody has to do their homework,
and they have to know that there are consequences--
any step may have consequences.
And so--
MR. DECESARE: [INAUDIBLE] And the NCAA compliance office
can be really helpful with the dos
and do nots with those questions, too.
MR. BOLL: That's fantastic, that's a great resource.
MS. TURNER: [INAUDIBLE],, for those
that maybe aren't being recruited yet,
but want some general advice on the rules.
So again, we've got a lot of resources, just give us a call.
MR. BOLL: That's fantastic.
So is there a deadline?
When should I mail my documents in?
MS. TURNER: So there's no deadline for us.
You just can't be eligible for practice, competition,
and scholarship until you finish your Eligibility Center
account.
So we encourage students, after you graduate, especially,
to start getting your documents in sooner rather than later.
Because a lot of colleges, if you're going to a university,
a lot of sports may report in August.
So get your documents in early, see if we can go ahead
and finalize your account so that you
can go through the visa process, get your I-20,
and start on campus for orientation and for practice.
MR. BOLL: Thank you, and for students watching,
we have archived interactive web chats on the visa process.
If you're interested, you can find those on YouTube.
Do all Division I and II schools offer athletic scholarships?
MR. DECESARE: Sure, I'm happy to answer that one.
The amount of scholarship-- it really varies by the school
and by the sport.
You know, we have sports that--
for example, Division I basketball,
which offers full scholarships, covers the costs of attendance.
Other sports, we could call those equivalency sports,
and they will have a pool of money
that, it's up to the coach how the coach wants
to divide that pool of money among her roster.
And you know, what's usually a determining factor for that
coach is, you know, the players that
are getting it done in the classroom, the players that
are working hard on and off the field,
are probably going to get a larger--
larger share of that money.
But probably the biggest takeaway
is that, you know, while all of our Division I and II colleges
and universities offer scholarships for those sports,
those amounts can vary, and often
do vary, by the particular college or university.
So a great tip to everyone watching today
is, as you're talking to coaches at different colleges
and universities, you know, be candid.
Ask them what they have available,
because what one school has available
could differ from another school.
MS. TURNER: And between the divisions, as well.
Division I can offer multi-year scholarships,
and so you can know going in for all four years, or potentially
five years as well, what amount of scholarship
you're going to receive.
For Division II, they only offer year to year scholarships,
currently.
So every year your scholarship has to be renewed.
MR. BOLL: So I think we have the perfect follow on question,
which is, is there a website or reference
that provides a list of sports that universities and teams
are looking for--
for example, a website that would show which schools are
actively looking for cyclists?
MS. TURNER: Cyclist is not an NCAA sport.
Triathlon is, but cycling is not.
We don't have a list that would specifically say what
each institution would need.
What we do have, on ncaa.org, under the about us,
there is the ability to search for a sport
by school or by division, and then you
can go on and use that as your starting point
for contacting schools that you may be interested in attending.
MR. BOLL: Thank you.
So very specific question.
Can you explain redshirting?
Can a student be NCAA certified and recruited
at the school, but redshirt to improve academic standing?
MS. TURNER: This is a decision that's made by the coach.
If a student comes in and the coach decides
for the first year, we're going to have you sit out
from all competition, a lot of times they'll say,
we're going to redshirt you your first year.
That is one way it happens.
The other is for Division I there's
something called academic redshirt,
for an academic decisions.
So if you were close to meeting requirements,
but not, you won't be able to compete.
That's something that we actually force on you
and force on the coach.
MR. BOLL: OK, thank you.
So is having a sponsor an obstacle to eligibility?
MR. DECESARE: Very good question.
It can be, you know, full disclosure.
You know, so the things that we would look for with the sponsor
is, what is the sponsor doing, and is the sponsor providing
you something different or in addition
because you're a talented athlete?
NCAA rules will limit students from receiving
funding money that is more than their expenses for competing
in that sport.
So, you know, we certainly have plenty of eligible students
who use individual sponsors, who fundraise,
who have sponsorships that will cover the cost of competing
in their sport.
Because we get it.
Playing sport is expensive, and especially
for talented athletes who play a lot, like the ones
we're talking to today.
So biggest thing to keep in mind is,
that there are limits to what you can take,
and you know those limits are, you
shouldn't have more money than your costs
at the end of the day.
But to answer the question, no, there's
not a quote unquote "restriction" against a student
having a sponsor.
MR. BOLL: OK, thank you both.
Unfortunately, we're almost out of time.
Mike and Sarah, do--
does each of you have a final thought
for our friends on Facebook?
MS. TURNER: So I think the one thing that we want to just make
sure that y'all know i, we didn't get to everything about
our process today.
So please utilize our resources, please contact us
if you have questions.
It is a difficult and complicated process.
That's something that we understand.
But because we do understand that,
we want to make sure that you know
where to go for your questions.
So, again, the most important thing for us
on the customer service side for international students--
there is that contact form that's
on the international web page.
So please check it out.
Please check out our resources, and let
us know if you have questions.
MR. BOLL: That's fantastic.
Thank you both so much for joining us today.
And of course, thank you to our international student Liam.
Very special thanks to our viewing groups
gathered around the world, including a viewing group
gathered at the Fulbright commission
in Ottawa, Canada, host of the EducationUSA advising center.
There's also EducationUSA St. Kitta and Nevis,
Education Abuja in Nigeria, and the American Corner
EducationUSA Center in Bitola, Macedonia.
Thanks to you all.
You can find more information about studying in the United
States by visiting the EducationUSA website
at www.educationusa.state.gov.
there you can find information on the five steps
to U.S. study locate an EducationUSA
center in your country, one of 426 around the world,
connect with us via social media,
learn about both in-person and virtual upcoming events,
research financial aid opportunities, and much more.
Thank you, and please join us for future EducationUSA
interactive web chats.
Goodbye from Washington.
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