<p>I’m from Serbia and Montenegro. I’m 17 years old and attend the third grade of the High School here in my country!</p>
<p>I have been playing tennis for 10 years, and I think I play very very well!
I have about 50 cups.</p>
<p>My “dream” is to study in the US. I have heard that there are those Athletic Scholarships. I have found a lot of Universities that have tennis teams in the Div I, II and III. </p>
<p>I have written a bio of me. Here is it:</p>
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<p>Dear Mr. XXX, </p>
<p>My name is Gellert Varga and I’m 17 years old. I live in Serbia & Montenegro where I attend the third form of the Grammar School. My school progress is excellent. I speak English very well.
I would like to continue my studies and sport s career in the United States. I would like to attend your university because of its good reputation and because it offers a great opportunity for sports, especially for tennis. </p>
<p>I have been playing tennis for 10 years, so I’m an experienced player. I have played in many tournaments and have more than 50 cups. Every year I have been among the top 10 in Serbia & Montenegro (former Yugoslavia) in my age-group and I have stood on the same podium with Dejan Katic who won the Orange Bowl in 2000. (See the picture) I have also won a match against Attila Bucko who is currently the 59th ranked player on the ITF rank list. He also won the Lemon Bowl in the year 2000.
I would appreciate if you took some time to look at my application and decide if I am the right person for your university and for your tennis team. I am a very honest, persistent and hard working young man and if I had the privilege of being a member of your team, I would do my best to fulfill your expectations. </p>
<h2>Great thanks beforehand.</h2>
<p>So, what do you think, is it good?</p>
<p>I have some another questions. So if you have some time please answer on them! Thanks…</p>
<li><p>I will send my bio (plus a small presentation) to the coach. Should I also send the recommendation letters?</p></li>
<li><p>Should I first sit the TOEFL and then send the bio?</p></li>
<li><p>Should the letter me “more targeted”?</p></li>
<li><p>What is considered a “good GPA”? I haven’t finished the HS yet, but I think my GPA will be around 3.90. Is it good?</p></li>
<li><p>Is it to early to contact the coach?</p></li>
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<p>It is definitely not too early to contact potential coaches. Many of the universities have online forms at their school websites for potential recruits and then the colleges will send you follow-up information. </p>
<p>It would be a good idea to get a video put together of yourself if you have video footage available from your competitions. If coaches are truly interested they will want to see you in action.</p>
<p>Also, I think your 3.9 GPA is good. It may assist you in getting some academic scholarships depending on your course background.</p>
<p>For your reference, athletic scholarships are NOT available at Division III colleges. You can get them at Division I (which is limited to a very few elite athletes), Division II (for well above average), and at NAIA (which is actually the equivalent of being a level under Division III). The majority of athletes who are awarded athletic scholarships get "partial scholarships". Only a select few get a "full ride".</p>
<p>My last bit of advice: Don't pay a college recruiting agency to assist you. Just contact the coaches directly! Many of them will e-mail or call you if they are interested.</p>
<p>Given you are not from the US I'd also include a listing of the tournaments in which youhave played so a coach, if interested, can look up how you did against other players they may know. Not knowing your financial situation (or being a tennis parent) I would think it would be helpful to come to the US and play a couple national level junior tournaments so the coaches can calibrate you against the kids from the US (who they know better). PS - as mentioned earlier yo can contact coaches at any school and for a "minor" sport like tennis I highly recommend your being proactive ... the vast majority of tennis coaches will not have big recruiting budgets and it's highly unlikely they would be considering someone from Serbia and Montenegro without being contacted first.</p>
<p>Video should be of actual competition, and I completely agree with 3togo, there will be very limited recruiting budgets for tennis coaches, so they will want to ensure they have the very best athletes for the few scholarships that are awarded. Knowing how you stack up against the top U.S. players will be most helpful to them.</p>
