P a g e 1. Recruiting Manual

P a g e 1 Recruiting Manual

P a g e 2 Table of Contents Step 1: Understand the Difference between Levels 3 Recruiting Calendar Division l 5 Recruiting Rules Division l 6 Recruiting Rules Division ll 7 Recruiting Rules Division lll 8 Step 2: Getting the Process Started 9 Step 3: Create a Volleyball Resume/ Profile 11 Step 4: Skills Video 12 Step 5: Establish Contact 13 Step 6: Make Unofficial Visits 14 Step 7: Increase your Exposure 15 Step 8: Official Campus Visits 16 Eligibility and NCAA Clearing House/ Recruiting Services 17 For the Parents 18 Tips and Reminders 19

P a g e 3 Step 1: Understand the Differences between NCAA Divisions l, ll, lll, NJCAA, and NAIA Differences between NCAA Divisions l, ll, lll, NJCAA, and NAIA Division l There are 294 Division 1 Universities with volleyball programs. NCAA Division 1 universities have up to 12 athletic scholarships. Not all schools are fully funded; meaning not all have 12 scholarships. Not all Division 1 schools are created equally. There is a huge difference between the level of play (and subsequently, the level of recruits at the top of Division l and the level of play and level of recruits at the bottom of Division l). The level of play at many of the top Division ll and Division lll programs will exceed that of the lower level Division l programs. Division ll There are 269 Division ll Universities with volleyball programs. Division ll member institutions have a pool of money to recruit with; as compared to Division l, where they have scholarships to recruit with. Fully funded Division ll schools have 8 scholarships. They can divide the money how they see fit. There are maximum financial aid awards for each sport that a Division ll school must not exceed. Division ll teams usually feature a number of local or in-state student-athletes because if the school has a limited amount of resources, the money will go further with in-state players. Many Division ll student-athletes pay for school with a combination of scholarship money, grants, student loans, and employment earnings. Division lll There are 421 Division lll Universities with volleyball programs. Division lll athletics do not award scholarships based on athletic ability. Student-athletes at this level can receive academic scholarships based on their GPA and ACT/SAT scores as well as financial aid. o Academic scholarships can have the potential to EXCEED the amount of athletic scholarships at DI and DII.

P a g e 4 Many Division lll schools offer campus jobs for their students to assist in their college tuition. NJCAA Junior College Each institution belonging to the NJCAA can choose to compete on the Dl, Dll, or Dlll level. o DI may offer full athletic scholarships o Dll limited to awarding tuition, fees, books, and up to $250 in course required supplies. o Dlll may provide no athletically related financial assistance. Junior Colleges are able to give full scholarships, including room and board, and others can give tuition, but no room and board. Junior College is a good place for players who may need time to adjust to the academic requirements of college and for players who are underdeveloped and need more experience before they will be seasoned enough to move on to another collegiate program. A student-athlete who plays for 2 years at a junior college will have 2 more years of eligibility remaining. NAIA NAIA has around 300 colleges and universities. Fewer recruiting rules and restrictions. NAIA schools can award 8 scholarships. View a complete list of schools at each division: http://viewmysport.com/colleges.aspx

P a g e 5 Recruiting Calendar Division l NCAA Division l Women s Volleyball August 1, 2014 through July 31, 2015 (See NCAA Division 1 Bylaw 13.17.9 for Women s Volleyball Calendar Formula) (a) August 1 through Decemeber 7, 2014 [except for (1) below]: Contact Period (1) November 10-13, 2014: Dead Period (b) December 8-16, 2014: (c) December 17-31, 2014 [except for (1) and (2) below]: Quiet Period Dead Period (1) Coaches attending the AVCA annual awards banquet may have incidental contact with two-year college prospective studentathletes being honored at the banquet, provided no recruiting conversations occurs (Bylaw 13.02.4.4.1) (2) Thursday of the Division l Women s Volleyball Championship Evaluation Period through the Sunday immediately following the championship (December 18-21). An institution s authorized coaching staff members (See Bylaw 11.7.4) may evaluate on only one day and may attend only one event on the day during this period. Such an event shall occur within a 30-mile radius of the site of the championship. Coaches from the same institution who attend such an event shall attend the same event on the same day. Coaches shall not attend events that occur at the same time that any intercollegiate competition in conjunction with the NCAA championship occurs: (d) January 1 through July 31, 2015 [expect for (1), (2), and (3) below]: Period Contact (1) January 1-16, 2015: Quiet Period (2) April 13-16, 2015: Dead Period (3) May 1-22, 2015: Quiet Period

P a g e 6 Recruiting Rules Division l As a SOPHOMORE in high school: Recruiting Material You may receive brochures for camps and questionnaires. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at your own expense; coach cannot call you. Not Permitted Not Permitted Unlimited As a JUNIOR in high school: Recruiting Material You can begin to receive recruiting material and information from the coach on September 1. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at you own expense. You can receive one per week from the coach starting July 1 st after your junior year. Allowed July 1 st after your junior year. Not Permitted Unlimited As a SENIOR in high school: Recruiting Material You can receive recruiting material and information from the coach. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at you own expense. Coach can call you once per week starting July 1 st. Telephone calls are unlimited during contact periods. Allowed, but no more than 3 times. You can start official visits on the opening day of your classes. You get one per college and a maximum of 5 visits to Dl schools, and unlimited to Dll, Dlll, and NAIA schools. Unlimited

P a g e 7 Recruiting Rules Division ll As a SOPHOMORE/FRESHMAN in high school: Recruiting Material You may receive brochures for camps and questionnaires. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at your own expense; coach cannot call you. Not Permitted Not Permitted Unlimited As a JUNIOR in high school: Recruiting Material You can begin to receive recruiting material and information from the coach. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at you own expense. Allowed June 15 after your junior year. Not Permitted Unlimited As a SENIOR in high school: Recruiting Material You can receive recruiting material and information from the coach. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits A coach may call you once per week beginning June 15 after your junior year. Coaches may not have off-campus contact until June 15 after your junior year. A coach is limited to three in-person contacts off campus. You can start official visits after June 15 of your senior year. You get one per college and a maximum of 5 visits to Dl schools, and unlimited to Dll, Dlll, and NAIA schools. Unlimited

P a g e 8 Recruiting Rules Division lll As a SOPHOMORE/ FRESHMAN in high school: Recruiting Material You may receive brochures for camps and questionnaires. You can receive recruiting information and material from college coaches. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at your own expense. Not Permitted Not Permitted Unlimited As a JUNIOR in high school: Recruiting Material You can receive recruiting material and information from the coach. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at you own expense. Coach can call you an unlimited number of times. Allowed after your junior year. Not Permitted Unlimited As a SENIOR in high school: Recruiting Material You can receive material and information from the coach. Telephone Calls Off-Campus Contacts Official Visits Unofficial Visits You can call the coach at you own expense. Coach can call you an unlimited number of times. Allowed You can start official visits on the opening day of your classes. Unlimited

P a g e 9 Step 2: Getting the Process Started The first thing you should do when starting the recruiting process is to establish a working document of schools you think you might be interested in. This list will change and evolve from your freshman year through your senior year or when you make a decision. As a freshman, your list may be quite extensive. As you learn more about yourself and your interests, both from an academic perspective and athletic perspective, the list may get smaller. Or, as you start being recruited by different schools; you may add schools to the list that you originally didn t have. The best way to start developing your list is to think about the following questions: Location/Distance from home o Do I want to stay close to home o Is it important to be close enough for my family to watch me play o Do I want to go far away o Does distance not matter to you o Are you unsure You may not be able to answer this until you have made some visits. Some players initially think they want to get as far away from mom and dad as possible. Some feel the opposite. Most players change their minds as they make their way through the recruiting process. Academic Program o How important is the academic standing of the school to me o Do I know what I want to study; if so, look at the schools program Not many freshman in high school have a clue as to what they want to study, but if you are one of the lucky ones that know at age 15 you want to be a Marine Biologist, great. Start looking at schools that offer that program. Enrollment of School o Do I want to go to a large or small university Consider student to professor ratio o Do I want to attend a public or private university Level of Play o Do I want to join the best team, even if that means forgoing playing time my first year or two o Do I want a program where I can start right away o Is it important to me to play at the highest division possible o How important is the level of play in my happiness at a school **Talk to your high school or club coach/ director in regards to your level of play.

P a g e 10 Opportunities o Travel o Clubs o Hands-on experience o Internships o Campus Life RESEARCH After asking yourself the above questions, it is very important to find out information on the schools you are interested in. Be sure to research schools that fit your specific needs; such as, distance, academic program, size, level of play. Every school has a website and every volleyball team has a page. Explore the websites. By researching a college volleyball page, you can find out whether they are recruiting players in your class. For example, colleges seem to recruit hitters every year and setter(s) every other year. If you are a setter and you see that they have just recruited a freshman setter, and you are a junior, that is a school that may be looking for a setter in your class. The website will also give you a bit of history on the head coach. How long have they been there? How successful have they been? How long did they stay at their previous position? EMAIL It can be helpful to set up an email address and use it strictly for recruiting proposes, which will allow you to keep your personal email separate from college correspondence. Be sure to create an email your sophomore year. As you create an email account, do not create an email such as vbchick@gmail.com. Instead make it simple with your name in it jane.smith@gmail.com. SOCIAL MEDIA Some college coaches may google you and find you on social media to see if you are someone who can represent the school in a positive manner. Also, be sure to follow the team on Twitter and like the team on Facebook.

P a g e 11 Step 3: Create a Volleyball Resume/ Profile Begin preparing your list of academic and athletic awards. Do not limit your athletic awards to just volleyball. Also, make a list of all your community service and volunteer projects you have been involved with. Keep this list saved on your computer so you are able to add to it throughout the years. As you begin to create your resume/ profile, information should include: Personal Information: o Name o Age o Graduation year o Home address o Email address o Contact information o Parents names Physical Data: o Position o Height o Weight o Right/ Left handed o Stand reach, approach jump o Other sports played o Honors and awards High School Information: o High school o Coach; email and phone o Schedule Club Information: o Club Team o Uniform number o Coach; email and phone o Schedule Academic Information: o GPA o Class Rank o ACT/SAT scores o Intended Major

P a g e 12 Step 4: Skills Video Colleges will ask for game footage and/or a skills video. Unless you are a physically mature freshman or sophomore, it is not recommended that you do the video at this time. There is a lot of valuable growing to do between your sophomore and junior year. If you feel that you have physically matured and are jumping and moving well, then by all means work on your skills video. If you feel you have room to improve, then you may want to wait until your junior year. Video: Start with a brief introduction, followed by skills footage and end with game footage o Introduction: Name, Number, Position No longer than 10-15 minutes Show all basic skills Concentrate on the skills you are looking to be recruited for Highlight your strengths Player specific: o If you are a setter, enlist some of the clubs better hitters to hit off of your set. Have as many hitters as you can come and hit for you; show variety. o If you are a tall setter, show yourself attacking the ball and tipping as well as blocking. o If you are a short setter, show your ability to run down imperfect passes and put up great sets. Have the coach toss balls from all over the court, showing you can take balls from different directions. o If you are a hitter, enlist a setter that you are comfortable hitting off of to use for your tape. Attack from everywhere you feel comfortable. Coaches will be looking at your footwork, arm swing, and how high you attack the ball. o If you are a DS/libero, show your foot speed. For serve receive, have players serve a variety of serves at you. Make all your drills game like. Don t have a coach toss balls. On the outside of your tape, be sure to write down your name, high school/ club, and your jersey number. Make your video available on YouTube so you can send a link to coaches.

P a g e 13 Step 5: Establishing Contact Questionnaires: 1 Colleges may send out questionnaires or recruitment forms. Send back in a timely manner. If you have not narrowed your search, send back every questionnaire even you are do not think you are really interested. 2 You may also go to college website and fill out questionnaires to get recruited. Email: If you have not received a questionnaire or filled any out on your own, you can establish the initial conversation by sending them a letter expressing your interest in their program. It should be 2-3 paragraphs, including: Name Graduation year Height Position Vertical GPA and ACT/SAT test score Honors/Awards Make it personal; comment about their university, mention a team achievement, and be remembered. *Coaches want to talk to you! Not your parents. You need to be the one to stay in contact with the coach. *Email is a great form of communication as is allows you to communicate more frequently and on a personal basis (remember, coaches cannot email you back until September 1 of your junior year). *Set aside time each week for correspondence. You may be getting a ton of mail, or you may need to be generating more of the interest yourself. Either way, you should be organized and ready to go. Respond quickly to the school that you are interested in. If you are really interested in a school, set aside a time to call the coach and check in. Phone Calls: If you are interested in a school, pick up your phone and call the coach. You can even email the coach to set up a specific time to figure out when they would be available to talk. Calling coaches can be intimidating and hard at first, but it is by far the best way to start developing a

P a g e 14 relationship with a coach and a school. Taking the initiative will show them that you are mature, aggressive, and have leadership ability. Ask questions!! What does it take to earn a scholarship; athletically or academically? When can you schedule a visit? Do they offer camps during the summer? What are they recruiting for your specific class? What are they looking for in prospective student-athletes? As a student-athlete at their institution, what does their year-round schedule look like? Coaches may ask you to tell them about yourself, such as: Hobbies Previous playing season Club Strength and weaknesses Colleges; what you are looking for Major Step 6: Make Unofficial Visits If your club schedule takes you to an area of the country where there are some schools you might be interested in, take a day to check them out on an unofficial visit. You can often get a good feel from a school just be driving around campus. If you are not sure where you want to go, start visiting schools. The easiest way to start this is to start locally. This will give you an opportunity to see what an unofficial visit is like and when it comes time for you to visit a university that you have a strong interest in, you will know what to expect, what questions to ask, what facilities to see and what kind of meetings to request. Remember, these visits are unofficial and that all expenses associated with these visits are your responsibility.

P a g e 15 Step 7: Increase your Exposure Summer camps: if there is a school nearby that you are interested in attending, it is a good idea to go to their camp. It is a great way to see the school, interact with the coaching staff and the players, and see the level of play. Spending several days with the coaches and team will give you a better perspective as to the personalities and coaching style and whether this is the type of program you will be happy being a part of. If you are attending a school s camp, be sure to email the coach and let them know you are attending if you would like the coach to consider you for recruiting. High School: Send coaches your high school games/practice schedule along with an invitation for them to come and watch you pay. **Compare your schedule with that of the college in question for dates when your playing schedule does not conflict and invite them to watch you play on those specific dates. Send an email update or text to a coach before a match or tournament to remind them you are playing. Club: Send colleges your club play/ practice schedule with an invitation to watch you play. Send an email update or text to a coach before a tournament to remind them you are playing. Let them know what time and court you will be playing on the first day along with team and jersey number. **Talk to high school and club coaches about your interest in playing and at what level. Let them know what kind of schools you are considering so when a college coach talks to them about you, they can answer intelligently. The club director is an excellent resource. She is often the first person college coaches contact when they are looking for players. Be sure to have updated and correct information on your recruiting profile on the club s website.

P a g e 16 Step 8: Official Campus Visits A recruit can begin taking official visits on the first day of school during her senior year. You can only take one official visit per school and up to a total of 5 official visits. Official visits can last no longer than 48 hours. A school is allowed to pay for the transportation of the recruit if the recruit is coming by plane or train. If the recruits parents or family members want to come, they have to pay for their own transportation. If the recruits parents decide to drive the recruit, the school can reimburse for gas. The school is allowed to pay for hotel accommodations and meals for the recruits and her parents. Recruits and their parents are allowed to get free tickets to any athletic event on campus. It is important to have a list of people you want to meet with and things you want to see on your visit. Tailor the visit to what will help you make your decision. Overnight Visits As you narrow down your list of colleges, be sure to do an overnight at each school. Scheduling an overnight visit will allow you to play at an open gym (be sure it is after your high school season) and hang out with the team. If you have questions to ask about academics, campus life, coaching staff, and practices, be sure to ask the team.

P a g e 17 Eligibility/ NCAA Clearing House Players who are interested in playing college volleyball at any level should register with the NCAA Clearinghouse no later than the beginning of their junior year. To register you can go to the website: www.ncaaclearinghouse.net. There will be forms to complete, a fee to be paid, and you will download two receipts to give to your high school guidance counselor. Your high school guidance counselor will send the first receipt in with your current transcript and the second one will be sent in with your final transcript upon graduation. When you sign up for the ACT or SAT, you will be asked which schools to send your scores. In addition to any schools, you should also list the clearinghouse as a place you would like your scores sent. Recruiting Services Recruiting services that the athlete pays for. In many instances, this can be a waste of money because all that this service does is provide your information to a school. Something you can do yourself for the fraction of the cost. Examples include: NCSA, BeRecruited, Rich Kern

P a g e 18 For the Parents Colleges are recruiting your daughter. They are not recruiting you. While it is understandable that you want to be involved in the process, it is important to know when it is time to step back and let you daughter take over. The correspondence can be overwhelming. As the questionnaire s start piling up on your daughter s desk, it might be a good idea to help her get organized. Some parents open all of the correspondences and fill out the questionnaires and send them back. If that works for your daughter, while not ideal, it is certainly better than having them remain unopened. If the questionnaires are not piling up and it is evident to you that your daughter is not being highly recruited, but she really wants to play in college, you can assist her in identifying schools that she might be interested in considering. Help her develop an introduction letter to send to those schools. By September 1 st of your daughter s junior year, she should be engaged in the process. She should take over the correspondence duties. She should be emailing and writing coaches of schools she is interested in. She is the one who should pick up the phone and call the coaches. It is very difficult not to want to take over, but it is very important that your daughter is the one who is developing the relationship with the coach. Help your daughter to be realistic. This is nearly impossible for most parents. How many of us are realistic about our daughter s abilities? Do not compare her recruiting process to the player next to her on the court. Do not get uptight and concerned when you read of another player in her class who made her decision. The only timeline you need to concern yourself with is your daughters. If you do not think that your daughter is getting looks from schools that you think she should, ask questions. Ask her club coach, high school coach, and even club director; however, be ready and open for their honest response. There is a place for nearly every volleyball player who truly wants to play in college. The key is being open to where the process takes you. Enjoy the ride. It goes very quickly. And before you know it, they are off to college.

P a g e 19 Tips and Reminders Freshman Year Begin researching schools Create a list of prospective schools; consider both athletics and academics Send introduction letters to coaches Build relationships by making calls and sending letters/emails Attend summer camps with the goals of building your skills and gaining exposure Rules/Tips to Remember Coaches are watching your development throughout high school Standouts are proactive, it is never too early for your to write a letter or make a call or coaches DI and DII coaches cannot personally contact you until your junior year, but you can contact them Sophomore Year Continue to research prospective schools Continue to build relationships Fill out questionnaires Make unofficial visits Rules/Tips to Remember September 1 st of Junior year marks the first day DI and DII coaches can send you personalized letters and emails Junior Year Continue to research prospective schools; be open to schools who contact you Continue to build relationships through email and phone calls Film skills video Be sure to have game footage Make unofficial visits Respond to every coach Follow-up with coaches you ve contacted in a timely manner Begin to narrow down your prospective schools list Rules/Tips to Remember

P a g e 20 DI and top DII programs will make offers to top recruits during junior year DIII, NAIA, and Junior Colleges do most of their recruiting during senior year Senior Year Make official visits only allowed 5 Do an overnight!! Play with the team at an open gym; after high school season Follow-up with coaches and respond in a timely manner Apply to schools applications Apply for financial aid FAFSA Sign and Commit to a school/ program Find out the summer workout schedule Get ready for an experience of a lifetime