The Selection Process: School or Softball

The Selection Process: School or Softball

Many factors come into play for student athletes, as they select an institution where they want to compete in for NCAA Division II softball.  It is the coach’s responsibility to recruit highly competitive athletes, and as a result, the competition between programs is fierce. Coaches must understand what influences each athlete’s university choice so they can have a recruiting plan set up. 

For the 239member schools in division II softball, factors such as relationship with the coaching staff, success of the program, academics, teammates, the university atmosphere, parents, tuition cost, scholarships, facilities and geographic location all play an important role in the decision making of the student athlete.  Studies show that the coaching staff has been rated as the highest in influencing an athlete’s institutional choice, with academics right behind at number two, followed by the program, and financial aid.  With these results, it is very important that coaches know what each student may be looking for, as every athlete will be different.  It is also very important for coaches to consider other factors that may play a crucial role so they can assist athletes in helping them choose the right fit for them. Tune in next week to see how parents play a big determining factor in the decision making process of student athletes.

 

₁Hewitt, Paul M. "THE RECRUITING PROCESS." College Student-Athletes: Challenges, Opportunities, and Policy Implications (2009)

http://www.csri-jiia.org/documents/puclications/research_articles/2011/JIIA_2011_4_23_428_440_University_Selection_Factors.pdf