Any athlete who wishes to receive an athletic scholarship or even participate in intercollegiate athletics at the Division I or Division II level must receive initial clearance from the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse. The NCAA is a voluntary organization through which the nation's colleges and universities govern their athletics programs. It is comprised of institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals committed to the best interests, education and athletics’ participation of student-athletes. The NCAA's purpose is to govern competition in a fair, safe, equitable and sportsmanlike manner, and to integrate intercollegiate athletics into higher education so that the educational experience of the student-athlete is paramount.

Registering with the NCAA Eligibility Center:
Go to www.ncaaclearinghouse.net and click on “Prospective Student Athletes.” Then click on “US Students Register Here.”

Carefully fill in your student information. Whitefield’s High School Code is 110169.
Payment, either by credit card or e-check, is required to register through NCAA. Students who are eligible for a fee waiver through ACT or SAT may speak with Mrs. Parks.
You must have a parent or guardian click on the “I agree to the above statement” box and electronically “sign” their first and last name.
Send your official ACT and/or SAT scores online, selecting code 9999 as the recipient. (We will send your transcripts after you notify us that you have registered online.)
Complete the amateurism questionnaire and sign the final authorization signature online on or after April 1 if you are expecting to enroll in college in the fall semester.
Ask your high school guidance counselor to send a final transcript with proof of graduation to the eligibility center.

Eligibility Index: The Sliding Scale
The NCAA Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse uses a sliding scale based on a Core Course Grade Point Average (GPA) and standardized test scores. This system allows poor test performances to be offset by high-quality classroom efforts and resulting higher grades.

Core Courses and the GPA
It is critical to understand that when the Clearinghouse refers to GPA, it is the Core Course GPA. The school GPA is irrelevant. If school policy regularly accords honors courses weight, then the Clearinghouse will as well. The Clearinghouse does not deal with pluses and minuses. A grade of B+ is treated exactly the same as a B-. Both are worth 3.0.

Letter of Intent Commitment
All student-athletes must understand that in signing a letter of intent, they are committing to attend (and play for) a school. They cannot sign with another school until or unless they are released from their commitment by the first school. If no release is forthcoming, then under ordinary circumstances the student-athlete will have to sit out a year.

Recruited Walk-ons
These athletes will not receive scholarships but will fill quota spots or appear on the coach’s list and thus receive the appropriate favorable treatment by the admission office. In many cases, other than the lack of a scholarship offer, there is no real difference in either their status with the program or in the process they undergo.

The Broken-Leg Test
After all the athletic and programmatic issues have been addressed, before the final decision is made, one last test should be applied. The broken-leg test asks the basic question: “If my athletic career were to end, is this the school I want to attend?”

Recruiting Terms

Contact. A contact occurs any time a coach has any face-to-face contact with you or your parents off the college’s campus and says more than hello. A contact also occurs if a coach has any contact with you or your parents at your high school or where you are competing or practicing.

Contact period. During this time, a college coach may have in-person contact with you and/or your parents on or off the college’s campus. The coach may also watch you play or visit your high school. You and your parents may visit a college campus and the coach may write and telephone you during this period.

Dead period. The college coach may not have any in-person contact with you or your parents at any time in the dead period. The coach may write and telephone you or your parents during this time.

Evaluation. An evaluation is an activity by a coach to evaluate your academic or athletic ability. This would include visiting your high school or watching you practice or compete anywhere.

Evaluation period. The college coach may watch you play or visit your high school, but cannot have any in-person conversations with you and your parents off the college’s campus. You and your parents can visit a college campus during this period. A coach may write and telephone you or your parents during this time.

Official Visit. Any visit to a college campus by you and your parents paid for by the college. The college may pay the following expenses:

Your transportation to and from the college
Room and meals (three per day) for you and your parents while you are visiting the college; and
Reasonable entertainment expenses, including three complimentary admissions to a home athletics contest.
Before a college may invite you on an official visit, you will have to provide the college with a copy of your high school transcript (Division I only) and SAT, ACT, PSAT, or PLAN scores.

Quiet Period. The college coach may not have any in-person contact with you or your parents off the college’s campus. The coach may not watch you play or visit your high school during this period. You and your parents may visit a college campus during this time. A coach may write or telephone you or your parents during this time.

Unofficial Visit. Any visit by you and your parents to a college campus paid for by you or your parents. The only expense you may receive from the college is three complimentary admissions to a home athletics contest. You may make as many unofficial visits as you like and may take those visits at any time. The only time you cannot talk with a coach during an unofficial visit is during a dead period.

*This information was taken in part from a manual written by Bill Pruden, the Director of the Upper School and a College Counselor at Ravenscroft School (NC).