<p>First of all, hi everyone. I'm currently in high school in Croatia. I'm 17 years old, about to turn 18, and I have some questions which are hopefully going to be answered. First of all, I've been playing basketball since I was 7 and I am improving really fast. I work hard every day and I think I'll be able to play on a really high level, something like NCAA :D. Don't think I'm cocky or ignorant, it's just what I believe. Anyway can someone please explain how this works. I would really want to get into UCONN, but I have no idea how to get into those colleges. I read articles about SAT's and ACT's. Here in Croatia we have a different educational system so I can't really count my GPA. Anyway I'm a solid student, most of my grades are C's and B's.
Long story short, please explain what I have to do to get into a college in America and play basketball. And of course what are my chances of getting in? (I still haven't taken SAT). I'm really looking forward to your answers, because this is really important to me and thanks in advance! :)</p>
<p>First of all, to play for Uconn you’d need to rank in the top 3 in Croatia and be part of the national junior team. Is that your case? If not, you can still register at the NCAA clearinghouse and include all your stats, including the SAT (you need to have a minimum score for CR+M, and hitting 1000 is highly recommended).
Are you a boy or a girl, BTW?
<a href=“http://www.ncaa.com/sports/basketball-men/d2”>http://www.ncaa.com/sports/basketball-men/d2</a>
<a href=“http://www.ncaa.com/sports/basketball-women/d2”>http://www.ncaa.com/sports/basketball-women/d2</a>
<a href=“http://www.ncaa.com/interactive-bracket/basketball-women/d3”>http://www.ncaa.com/interactive-bracket/basketball-women/d3</a>
<a href=“http://www.ncaa.com/rankings/basketball-men/d3”>http://www.ncaa.com/rankings/basketball-men/d3</a>
<a href=“Men's Basketball Home - NAIA”>Men's Basketball Home - NAIA;
You probably aren’t translating your grades right, since a student who has B’s and C’s isn’t considered “solid” in the US, but “pretty weak”/“perhaps not college material”. (B=3, C=2 in the Croatian system… Do you mostly get 3s and 2s?)
Depending on whether you really are getting grades in the 3s and 2s, or getting 3’s and 4s, your strategy will be different:
- if you’re part of the national junior team and have mostly 3’s or better, apply widely to D1 and D3 colleges.
- if you’re nationally or regionally-ranked and have 3’s and 4s, apply to D3 colleges (note that some colleges, like Vassar, will want mostly 4s, whereas some colleges, like Lebanon Valley or Randolph Macon won’t mind a few 2’s)
- if you’re nationally or regionally ranked and have 3s and quite a few 2s, apply to D2 colleges
- If you’re regionally ranked and have mostly 2’s with a few 3s, apply to NAIA colleges</p>
<p>First of all, thank you so much for answering in such a short period of time. Yes, you are right I translated my grades wrong, I actually have 3’s and 4’s… I’m male and I am currently playing in A-1 league in Croatia (which is the best league in Croatia). I am not quite familiar with those D1,D2,D3 and NAIA colleges so if you could briefly explain it to me I would be very thankful. I know that D1,2,3 colleges are divisions in NCAA, but I don’t know the differences. Anyway, looking forward to your answer again :)</p>
<p>The differences are what I explained above: a combination of athletic skill and academic level. It’ would be extremely rare for a non American basketball player to be recruited at a D1 school so you should focus first on D2 if your grades are so-so (scholarship based on athletics only provided you meet a low threshold on the SAT; if you get hurt you lose your scholarship but academically this won’t be too demanding for you), D3 if you have excellent grades (your grades and family income will be the only ones factored into your scholarship, but your athletic skill will help you get admitted so it’s a very good choice if you’d be a great addition to the school’s team AND can hold your own academically. An advantage is that your scholarship doesn’t depend on your athletics, so if you get hurt you can stay at the school), NAIA is a smaller division. NAAC Div1 is for people who have been on recruiters’ radar since age 12 or 13 and hope to become professionals. Because foreign players are rarely on recruiters’ radars that early on and don’t participate in training camps, they’re not really competitive for D1 recruiting, but if you play at a very high level you can enter your stats into the “prospective recruit” forms on the different colleges’ forms and see if a coach replies.</p>
<p>Let me get this straight… D2 - based more on athletics, but if you get injured, you lose scholarship.
D3 - based more on grades, but doesn’t provide scholarship. Right?
And one last thing, what about NAIA? What are the requirements and do they provide scholarship?</p>
<p>MYOS gave you excellent advice. I had a cousin several years ago who tried to break into basketball at the college level and it did not work out. A few thoughts:</p>
<p>First, you need to meet both whatever the college’s standards for admission/eligibility and the NCAA rules. I think MYOS is right that you need to take the SAT. Visit: <a href=“SAT Test Center Search – SAT Suite | College Board”>The SAT – SAT Suite | College Board;
It will pull up two sites in Croatia where you can take it either May 3 or June 7. I would suggest you take the June test, doing moderate study of the test and how it works. If your results are too low, study and retake the SAT in the fall. </p>
<p>Second, you need to review NCAA rules for eligibility. I don’t read Croatian but if you check out this NCAA link, it may help you: <a href=“Redirect to the international student-athletes page.”>http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/eligibility_center/International_Information/Intl_Map.html</a></p>
<p>Besides playing in high school, many of the better players in the United States also play AAU basketball, also referred to as “club ball.” College coaches will send scouts to the regional AAU tournaments to watch athletes play. You won’t have that kind of access. I don’t know if you are building a videotape/film of some of your highlights, but you really should. If you haven’t started, do it now. </p>
<p>You should volunteer this film to any coach who responds to your recruiting forms that MYOS mentions…don’t wait for them to ask for it. There are some books and resources out there for sports players who are not at the top of the national recruiters’ lists, to help them get noticed. Hunt around on Amazon.com and you should find them.</p>
<p>As MYOS said, you have an uphill battle to play at all. I really think you should not be elitist and thoroughly look at some D2 schools. Also smaller D1 schools, and try to forget about the Sweet 16-caliber programs.</p>
<p>Here is the strategy I would suggest, but it will take some explaining:</p>
<p>There is yet another route to D1 basketball, and that is transfer students. Basically, some US basketball players start out at a better “JC” or “Junior College” in states like California and then transfer. But there are less scholarships for the two years of JC, and typically JCs have little to no campus housing. Then you would need to rent an apartment. Conclusion: I don’t believe a JC route would be very easy for you to afford or achieve.</p>
<p>However, if you look for D1 or D2 programs that bring in a lot of transfer students, they are also LIKELY to be more open to students coming from a less conventional path like a foreign country. For various reasons, their programs are not as popular with the most plum AAU athletes, so they are forced to be more creative in building a good team.</p>
<p>Post back when you get your SAT results. That will determine a lot.</p>
<p>Good luck…</p>
<p>I was helping a foreign student and came across a problem with transfers and financial aid. This was some 5 yrs back so I dont remember for a 100% but I believe its very difficult for an international to get aid as a transfer. Also I dont know what the basketball ranking of the OP is, but if he is very good, he should fill out the ivy league questionaires. There is a sizable Croatian and Serbian population playing different sports at Ivy League colleges.</p>
<p>Picapole thank you for the detailed explanation. I didn’t quite understand the Junior College story you were saying, but I got the basics… Anyway, it’s much harder to get into one of your colleges than I expected, but hopefully I will figure something out. I will take the SAT soon and I will definitely post my result here. Thank you all for helping me :D</p>
<p>D2: good athlete, bad student => you get a scholarship for playing basketball
D3: good athlete, good student => you get a scholarship for your grades but your basketball skills help you get in
NAIA: not very good student, okay athlete => your get a scholarship for basketball in less competitive leagues</p>
<p>D3 is the best for a strong basketball player with 3’s and 4s.</p>
<p>You still haven’t said if you’re a boy or a girl - the colleges we could refer you to aren’t the same.</p>
<p>Absolutely; if someone hasn’t started filming you to show your skills, go to youtube, look at the videos posted online "type “high school basketball star” or whatever) and edit a 5’video showing your technical skill and several good moments in a game.</p>
<p>He said that he was male.</p>
<p>Also, you know that UConn just won the national championship, right (though it was very unexpected)? To go to UConn for basketball on a scholarship, you would probably have to be one of the best 200 high school seniors in the world in basketball.</p>
<p>Thanks survivorfan, i’d missed it.</p>
<p>@Salvus: Based on your grades, fill out the “prospective recruit questionnaire” at ALL of these:
Hobard&William Smith
NYU
Skidmore
Wooster
Wittenberg
Ohio Wesleyan
UScranton
Messiah
Dickinson
Mary Washington
Illinois Wesleyan
Amherst
Williams
Babson
Bowdoin
Middlebury
Randolph Macon
Emory
Trinity (TX)
Centre
St Olaf
St Thomas
Dubuque
Claremont
Pomona-Pitzer</p>
<p>Plus you can throw in these D2 schools, which are decent (taking your grades in consideration)
St Michael’s
Lemoyne
Colorado Mines (if you want to be an engineer)
Barry
Rollins
CPP Pomona (if you want to be an engineer)
Cal State Chico
Western Washington</p>
<p>And if you are at national junior team level/ junior Olympics qualification
Gonzaga
St Louis U
Nebraska Lincoln
George Washington
North Carolina State
Marquette
Towson
Quinnipiac
Umiami (FL)
American U
Davidson
Holy Cross
UDenver
Butler
Elon
Bucknell
Valparaiso
A bit easier, still very competitive and requiring a high national ranking:
Duquesne
Siena
UNC-Asheville
Boston College
Santa Clara U
Tulane
Fordham
Marist
Colgate
UNC Wilmington
UMass Lowell
Rice
UC Riverside
UC Davis
Appalachian State</p>
<p>Then wait for the answers from the coaches. Hopefully you’ll get a couple. In the meanwhile, work on that video and take the SAT in June, preparing with number2.com and prep books. The questions look easy, but the test is designed to be tricky. Do not underestimate the test!</p>
<p>Thank you, it’s much clearer now.
I will make the 5’ video and I will take the SAT. Hopefully then I will know my chances of getting in. Anyway thank you for answering everyone, you’ve been very helpful.</p>
<p>You must fill out the recruit questionnaires first :)… and you must fill out a lot of them, with as many stats as possible. In addition to height, speed, awards (MVP, city/region…; champion, etc) you’ll need to indicate basics of your academics. Since you have 3’s and 4’s, put your GPA as the average between both (ie, if you have 3 3’s and 3 4s, put 3.5 GPA, if you have 2 3s and 4 4s put 3.67, etc).</p>