PSA FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

1) What is the NCAA Eligibility Center?

The NCAA Eligibility Center (EC) determines a student-athlete’s eligibility for athletics participation in his or her first year of college athletics. The EC certifies both the academic and amateurism status of a prospective student-athlete.

2) Who needs to register with the NCAA Eligibility Center?

Yes. Any student-athlete that wants to participate in college athletics at the NCAA DII level needs to register for the NCAA Eligibility Center

3) How do I register with the NCAA Eligibility Center and what will I be required to do?

Prospective student-athletes can CLICK HERE to register. The Eligibility Center will require that your high school transcripts from each high school attended are sent directly from the high school to the NCAA Eligibility Center. as of Fall 2023, the NCAA Eligibility Center no longer requires test scores (SAT and/or ACT) for initial eligibility.

4) When should I register with the NCAA Eligibility Center?

You should register with the Eligibility Center at the beginning of your junior year in high school.

5) Is there an expense for registering with the NCAA Eligibility Center? If so can that fee be waived?

There is a $100 free for domestic students and a $160 fee for international students to register with the NCAA Eligibility Center. This fee can be waived if you have qualified for a fee waiver. In order to take advantage of the fee waiver you must have an authorized high school administrator submit your fee waiver documentation online through the NCAA Eligibility Center after you have completed your registration with the EC.

6) As a high school prospective student-athlete what portions do I need to complete on the NCAA Eligibility Center?

As a prospective student-athlete in high school you must complete both the academic and amateurism portion of the NCAA Eligibility Center. To complete the amateurism portion you must request a final amateurism certification. For fall enrollees this can be done no earlier than April 1 prior to collegiate enrollment. For spring enrollees this can be done no earlier than October 1 prior to collegiate enrollment.

7) As a transfer student do I need to register with the Eligibility Center?

Yes. Any student-athlete that will enter a Division I or II institution for the first time must also register with the NCAA Eligibility Center. However, these transfer student-athletes may only have to complete the amateurism portion of the NCAA Eligibility Center. Please note that some transfer students may have to complete the academic portion of the Eligibility Center as your eligibility status out of HS may impact your eligibility status as a transfer student.

Recruiting

1) What is a prospective student-athlete?

A prospective student-athlete is a student who has started classes for the ninth grade.

2) What is the difference between an official visit and an unofficial visit?

An official visit is when a prospective student-athlete visits an institution at the expense of that institution. An unofficial visit is when a prospective student-athlete visits an institution at their own expense.

3) Are there limits on the amount of official and unofficial visits that a prospective student-athlete can take?

A prospective student athlete cannot take an official (paid) visit to an institution until the fist day of his or her senior year in high school. A prospective student-athlete is limited to one official visit per institution regardless of how many sports for which the prospect is being recruited.

A prospective student-athlete is allowed to take as many unofficial visits as he or she would like to take. Additionally a prospective student-athlete can take an unofficial visit whenever he or she would like to take that visit.

4) Are there any requirements I must meet in order to take an official visit?

Yes, you must register with the NCAA Eligibility Center before you can take an official visit. Additionally you must present the institution with a copy of your high school (official or unofficial), two-year, or four-year college transcript.

5) When can a coach start to call me on the phone?

A coach, institutional staff members, enrolled student-athletes and/or representatives of athletics interests (boosters) cannot contact a prospective student-athlete or a prospective student-athlete relative or legal guardians over the phone before June 15 immediately preceding the prospective student-athlete’s junior year in high school.

6) Can I contact a coach over the phone?

Yes, you can call a coach at any time. There are no restrictions regarding dates or number of phone calls per week when those calls are made at the expense of the prospective student-athlete.

7) What is a contact?

A contact is a face to face encounter between a prospective student-athlete or the prospective student-athlete’s relatives or legal guardian(s) and a staff member from an institution in which any dialogue occurs in excess of a greeting. Any such face-to-face encounter that is prearranged (e.g., positions themselves in a location where contact is possible) or that takes place on the grounds of the prospective student-athlete's educational institution or at the site of organized competition or practice involving the prospective student-athlete or the prospective student-athlete's high school, preparatory school, two-year college or all-star team shall be considered a contact, regardless of whether any conversation occurs. However, an institutional staff member or athletics representative who is approached by a prospective student-athlete or the prospective student-athlete's relatives or legal guardian(s) at any location shall not use a contact, provided the encounter was not prearranged and the staff member or athletics representative does not engage in any dialogue in excess of a greeting and takes appropriate steps to immediately terminate the encounter.

8) When is a contact permissible?

A coach cannot make an in-person, off campus recruiting contacts and telephones calls shall not be made with a prospective student-athlete or a prospective student-athlete relative or legal guardians before June 15 immediately preceding the prospective student-athlete’s junior year in high school.