College Search Process for Student-Athletes – Contacting College Coaches
April 3, 2019
Written by: Kim Penney and Danielle Dunn, One-on-One College Consulting
College athletic recruiting for both scholarship and non-scholarship student-athletes naturally accelerates the college search process. Starting this process early is necessary so student-athletes have ample opportunities to market themselves to college coaches in order to gain exposure and receive critical feedback on their potential level of college play.
Student-athletes first need to target a list of colleges that fit them academically and socially, and then overlay the athletic fit. By approaching the process in this order, student-athletes are more in control and are “covering” themselves in case they get injured or if the coach who is recruiting them decides to leave. It is important that student-athletes reach out directly to college coaches themselves.
A sample target email to a college coach should include:
- In Subject Line: Student-Athlete Name, Year, Position, High School, Town and State
- Athletic Information: Short introductory paragraph listing physical statistics (height, weight, dominant hand/foot) and high school and/or club team name(s). Include most important high school and/or club individual accolades (i.e. Boston Globe All-Scholastic, League All-Star, etc.) and team accomplishments (i.e. State/League Champions, National Tournament ranking, etc.)
- Academic Information: List such things as: GPA, test scores, class rank and desired major(s) of interest at each college.
- Tip: Coaches like to know that student-athletes have already done their research on academic/social fit for their respective school.
- Link to Schedule: Provide high school and/or club season schedule and indicate which games are most competitive for coaches to attend.
- Tip: Make it easy to be identified by college coaches - list team name, uniform colors and jersey number. Include court/field location and game times.
- List of Tournaments/Showcases: Include schedule of upcoming tournaments/showcases (i.e. Bay State Games)
- Link to Video: Provide link to video (i.e. can include highlights, skills and game footage)
- Tip: Videos help college coaches determine whether or not a student-athlete is a recruit they wish to see play in a live game setting
- Questions to ask a college coach at end of email: Can you please let me know if you are interested in me as a potential recruit for your program? Are there any camps you run or work at that you believe would be beneficial for me to attend?
- End of Email: Thank the coach in advance and express interest in hearing back from him/her soon. Be sure to list complete contact information at end, including:
- Address; Cell Phone; Email
Next BSG Blog Topic (Week of April 8, 2019) – Importance of Creating an Athletic Profile
(L-R) Delaney Ochs (Baton Twirling), Dewey Hathaway (Archery), Ginny Richburg (Track & Field), Wayne Dickenson (Judo & Table Tennis)
Bay State Games Announces 2025 Sportsmanship Award Recipients
Bay State Games Announces 2025 High School Spirit Award Recipients
The 2025 Girls Basketball Showcase took place between July 18th and July 20th at Mount Ida Campus of UMass Amherst in Newton
The 2025 Boys Volleyball Showcase took place between July 12th and July 13th at Game On in Fitchburg
The 2025 Girls Volleyball Showcase took place between July 12th and July 13th at Game On in Fitchburg
The 2025 Field Hockey Showcase took place between July 11th and July 13th at Game On in Fitchburg
The 2025 Boys Soccer Showcase took place between July 10th and July 12th at Game On in Fitchburg
The 2025 Girls Soccer Showcase took place between July 10th and July 12th at Game On in Fitchburg
The 2025 Softball Showcase took place between July 8th and July 10th at Willard Field Complex in Devens
