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Tennis is a very relevant sport in the United States, especially in American universities: we can find it in more than 900 university programs, being one of the most popular and, of course, more sports scholarships offered, so it accommodates all sorts of tennis level.
Many tennis players around the world conceive the American university stage and the opportunity to apply for their scholarships, as a great first step to try to make the leap to professional practice and become part of the ATP or WTA circuit, while they invest in their education and finish their studies or once they have already graduated. An approach not at all wrong, since we have become accustomed to find great college tennis players among the best racquets on the ranking.
As the 2022 season begins, we can witness tennis players such as the British Cameron Norrie (Texas Christian University and 12th in the ATP ranking), the North American John Isner (University of Georgia and 24th in the ATP ranking), Mackenzie McDonald (UCLA and 55th in the ATP ranking), Maxime Cressy (UCLA and 75th in the ATP ranking), Brandon Nakashima (University of Virginia and 68th in the ATP ranking); Jennifer Brady (UCLA and 27th in the WTA ranking), Danielle Collins (University of Virginia and 29th in the WTA ranking) or the Spanish Aliona Bolsova (Oklahoma State University and 80th in the WTA ranking); as clear examples that American universities have the necessary resources to take athletes to the highest level of their physical and technical capabilities.
The owner of the Indian Wells ATP Masters 1000 and CEO of Oracle, Larry Ellison, is also a good example of this, with the strong commitment they have been making over the last few years to the college tennis circuit, not only in terms of capital, but also in terms of resources and facilities available to the athlete.
Of course, these are cases of enormous success that not all athletes can achieve.
One of the greatest virtues of the American university system is that, based on the athlete’s academic and athletic profile, it is possible to have a university with a suitable style and adapted to their preferences, so that new prospects have a great opportunity to fulfill their goals by obtaining tennis scholarships to study in the United States.
The ultimate goal for all student-athletes is to be able to combine academic and athletic life without the latter being an added obstacle. They need to be prepared to perform at their best in both disciplines, since scholarships in the United States are completely linked to this. However, there are also universities where the academic component prevails over the athletic one. Universities where sports can be a strong factor in the admissions process. Athletes are always a very positive asset for a university.
ACADEMICS
Universities will take into account your academic record of the last 4 years before you apply to the University.
If you are already enrolled in a university/college program, you can get access by validating your current credits.
Are you a very good student? Universities can grant you an academic scholarship, in addition to the athletic scholarship.
ATHLETICS
Among the numerous options that exist, your athletic level will help you gain access to universities through a scholarship.
Coaches and athletic teams are constantly recruiting international athletes, and for this they take into account in this case, the UTR and the highlights sports video.
ENGLISH
Depending on the admission date, you will have to take 1 or 2 tests; the SAT and/or the TOEFL.
The SAT is the university entrance exam, and it is a test that combines English and mathematics.
The TOEFL is a pure English test, mainly focused on international students.
We help you with our Online-tutoring program.
The combination of these requirements will serve as an indication to find the most appropriate university for each athlete. Depending on them, we will obtain the percentage of scholarship that would be earned. For example, if a 70% scholarship is awarded, this percentage is calculated on the total costs of accommodation, tuition, food and including expenses related to the practice of tennis.
Scholarships can cover 100% of your college expenses, or they can be partial scholarships for:
In addition, they cover 100% of athletic expenses such as:
Each year, coaches evaluate the performance that their players have shown in order to renegotiate the conditions of the tennis scholarships obtained at the beginning. This means that if the tennis player has performed better than expected, both in terms of results and effort, he/she is eligible to improve his/her athletic scholarship. In addition, a good performance in the academic field can bring with it the combination of an academic scholarship with the aforementioned athletic scholarship.
Yes, the American university system is very flexible in this regard. However, such a move will depend entirely on the student/athlete’s previous performance at the university where he/she is currently enrolled. If one wishes to join a stronger college tennis program, it will depend on the effort and results achieved, both athletically and academically.
On the other hand, there is also the possibility of opting for a less demanding program. The most important part of the experience is finding the right fit for you, your needs and your expectations.
The most advisable perspective is to start the process about two years before taking the leap to college education, in order to prepare all the details in the best possible way, something that is really important to apply to the best academic universities. Since this is not always possible and, on many occasions, the process is started less than 12 months in advance, this can become an obstacle in terms of the number of options available and the amount of the scholarship.
Yes, both scholarships are compatible. In this case, the academic scholarship depends on your transcript and grade point average.
Yes, professional tournaments are allowed before and during the college program, but always with certain restrictions regarding the amount of money you can earn as a “semi-professional” athlete.
NCAA is the largest collegiate athletic association with the largest number of scholarships among its disciplines, as well as the largest athletic facilities. It is composed of 3 different divisions:
Formed by more than 200 large institutions and where the average level of tennis player is higher. To qualify for a tennis scholarship in this division, the following factors will be taken into account:
Composed of smaller universities with respect to Division I (between 5000 and 10000 students enrolled), they are institutions where education is closer and the level of the average tennis player is somewhat lower. However, it is very common for top Division II universities to be able to beat Division I college teams. To qualify for a tennis scholarship in this division, factors such as the following will be considered:
Formed by universities that are more defined in terms of academic programs and for which there are no athletic scholarships. They have competitions, but are not part of such professionalized programs. The level of the average tennis player is the lowest and tennis can be used as a tool to qualify for scholarships or academic aid.
NAIA is a collegiate athletic association made up of more than 300 institutions, which have smaller enrollments than NCAA institutions and smaller campuses. The level of the average tennis player is lower compared to NCAA Division I. However, there are some really competitive teams. In order to qualify for a tennis scholarship in this association, there will be taken into account factors such as:
Popularly known as Junior College or Community College, these are 2-year academic programs, which serve as a preliminary step to university enrollment. The average tennis level is lower than NCAA, although we can find programs with a high level as a result of the disparities in terms of access requirements.
The level of tennis can vary greatly among programs within this division. However, a good performance in NJCAA competitions can serve as a gateway to NCAA or NAIA programs by obtaining important tennis scholarships.
# of Universities
Scholarships/Team
Avg. Players/Team
NCAA Div. I
N. Universities
264
Máx. Scholars/Team
4.5
Avg. Players/Team
10
NCAA Div. II
N. Universities
167
Máx. Scholars/Team
4.5
Avg. Players/Team
10
NCAA Div. III
N. Universities
328
Máx. Scholars/Team
–
Avg. Players/Team
11
N. Universities
107
Máx. Scholars/Team
5
Avg. Players/Team
10
NJCAA
N. Universities
77
Máx. Scholars/Team
9
Avg. Players/Team
8
Total
N. Universities
943
# of Universities
Scholarships/Team
Avg. Players/Team
NCAA Div. I
N. Universities
325
Máx. Scholars/Team
8
Avg. Players/Team
9
NCAA Div. II
N. Universities
224
Máx. Scholars/Team
6
Avg. Players/Team
9
NCAA Div. III
N. Universities
359
Máx. Scholars/Team
–
Avg. Players/Team
11
NAIA
N. Universities
111
Máx. Scholars/Team
5
Avg. Players/Team
5
NJCAA
N. Universities
78
Máx. Scholars/Team
–
Avg. Players/Team
8
Total
N. Universities
1097
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