Good grades and community initiative are great ways to get financial help to pay for college, but they are not the only option. If you excel in a sport athletic grant programs are great alternative to cover the costs of your post secondary education. These grants help cover the cost of your education and will also give you the opportunity to train to be an even better athlete.
Athletic grants are available in over 3000 United States colleges for about 30 different sports. For female athletes these sports include: Archery, Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country, Equestrian, Fencing, Field Hockey, Golf, Gymnastics, Ice Hockey, Lacrosse, Rifle, Rowing, Skiing (Cross Country and Downhill), Soccer, Softball, Squash, Swimming and Diving, Synchronized Swimming, Tennis, Track & Field (Indoor and Outdoor) Volleyball, and Water Polo.
And male athletes can benefit from an athletic grant if their sport includes: Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Fencing, Football, Golf, Gymnastics, Ice Hockey, Lacrosse, Rifle, Skiing (Cross Country und Downhill), Soccer, Swimming and Diving, Tennis, Track & Field (Indoor and Outdoor), Volleyball, Water Polo, and Wrestling.
But it is not only your athletic abilities that will make you eligible for this athletic grant, as there are other important factors. Athletes must have decent grades to qualify for the grant, because they must first be accepted into the college in order to be eligible to play on the school’s team at all. In fact everything counts: the complete picture of an athlete including his history as a player, his strengths, past successes, athletic skills, and academic performance etc. That is why the application for athletic grant programs are so detailed. They need a lot of information to judge whether an athlete is an ideal candidate for the program.
Having been awarded the athletic grant the athlete then trains with the team and represents the university in various tournaments and competitions. And if a team has regional or even nation-wide success, the media will cover its development. For this reason, the universities recruit talented athletes from around the world. It’s a win-win situation; the university benefits from the publicity and the athlete gets their studies paid for.
And as for what you can study; well the choice is yours. Athletes enrol in the department of their choice and are expected to keep up decent grades while they represent their school in their sport. So if you are a great athlete and looking to pursue college studies, now is your chance to get some financial help. Apply for your athletic grant today!
