What is the common procedure for a post-secondary education try- out. (Women’s soccer) Do you have to try out before the academic school year, are there walk-on try-outs? Does try-outs take days or is it all bunched together in one day?
It varies very much by school and coach. My son’s D2 school has a new player try-out for the upcoming fall season in March/April. Everyone is there by invitation- usually the Coach saw them at a tournament or at an ID camp. He may then invite one or two to come back to the final try-out that takes place about 6 weeks before school starts in the fall. Then there is a one week “try-out” period during which existing players, new recruited players, and potential walk-ons from the spring try-out play together . At the end of the week, players are cut and the final roster is formed. Normally, any players cut are from the “walk-on” group.
D1 often finalizes their roster in the spring of the previous year or even much earlier sometimes. Not all D1’s will look at walk-ons. D3 is a little more flexible and usually does look at walk-ons, however it is up to the coach to determine the process and the timing. There are always exceptions in any program if a phenomenal player shows up and wants a try-out. Also note that due to liability issues, many schools now require a full physical and a lot of paper work to be completed before they will allow anyone to do a try-out.
The bottom line is that you really need to contact the coach of the school you are interested in to find out the procedure for that program. If the coach doesn’t already know who you are, it would be helpful to send a “soccer resume” as well as a hi-lite video if you have one. Then follow-up a few days later with a phone call to make sure the coach saw it and to ask for details. Good luck!!