Recruiting Costs

Flaws in the College Recruiting Process: Is Club The Only Way?

By Brittany Collens|Updated on June 27, 2023 (originally published on December 15, 2021)

When it comes to getting recruited for college, it seems that joining a club team or elite academy is the only way to go. Old Dominion's Director of Operations for the Women's Soccer team said in an interview:

“99% of our recruiting is done through club soccer. So, you're playing at a high level. Which generally means your team is going to be invited to showcases that we're recruiting at. Typically there's 4 or 5 showcases each year that we'll be attending, so it's already a good sign if your team is going to be attending one of those.” McKinnon Pennell

It's an unfortunate truth in the sports recruiting world that most athletes who want to compete in college have to dish out tens of thousands of dollars to even get noticed. While it has certainly been the traditional path for most, it's not always an affordable option for others. For those families, is it really worth the investment, or are there other options?

Why Club Teams Work
Joining an elite academy or a club team is a great way to get noticed by colleges. In every sport, there is some recognized club, academy, or path that most college recruiters work from. In tennis, for example, to go to the best schools in the country, you need to compete at the international level. This requires trips all over the world to compete in individual tournaments either at the junior or professional level.

Why would a family invest so much money in that? Or why would they send their kid to a private school that costs as much as college tuition?

The answer is in the benefits:

Connections made from these academies/clubs
Proven elite competition that separates you from the rest
Opportunity to be seen by college coaches
Chance to practice and compete year-round

Other Options
Not everyone can afford to homeschool their kid and travel weekly around the world, or even to sign their kid up for club teams. If the point of your kid getting a scholarship is to spend less money on college tuition, isn't that canceled out if you're spending just as much (or more) on club and travel teams?

So how do you get noticed by schools if you can't afford taking this traditional path?

The Power of Social Media
While social media won't be everything you need to get recruited, it is a great way to get noticed without adding hundreds of thousands of miles on your American Airlines account. Here are a couple ways you can use social media to your advantage:

Send highlight reels
Introduce yourself to coaches
Represent who you are outside your sport
Post comparison videos showcasing you next to the pros

Scholarship Requests
Most schools, academies, and clubs understand that it's not an affordable option for everyone, which is why scholarships can be worked out. You don't know unless you ask, so make sure to introduce yourself and show them what you offer. This is a great way to get in with the elite without having to break the bank.

Alternative Leagues
For instance, tennis has taken a complete turn for recruiting in the past few years because of a system called UTR. This is a different type of system that doesn't rely on ranking, but instead on rating. So instead of traveling to Europe, you just need to play someone better rated than you to improve your rating, and then show that to coaches. Getting in the right tournaments, having good stats, and creating eye-catching highlight reels are all good options.

Work Your Options
While elite teams are certainly a great way to go, it is not an affordable option for all. But when you use these tips and tricks above, you can be in the running for the game yourself.