Common Recruiting Mistakes:
Waiting for the phone to ring;
Not having an up-to-date academic and athletic resume;
Depending on others to find you a scholarship;
Paying for a recruiting service;
Thinking that college and university coaches are surfing the net looking for athletes. Don't believe that posting your personal profile on a recruiting service web site will get you much attention.
What's the alternative? We believe that you will have more success searching for an athletic scholarship for yourself if you simply take the time to market yourself to coaches. Here are some suggestions...
In the news... Whereas Ontario Colleges and Universities have traditionally refused to offer athletic scholarships to their student athletes this changed in 2007 with Ontario Universities formally accepting to change this policy. The race is now on among Ontario post-secondary institutions to increase their Endowment Funds to match scholarship programs being offered by Universities & Colleges in Western Canada and the United States. Therefore, Ontario is now becoming a good option for volleyball enthusiasts from Manitoba.
Ontario Universities:
It is important to know that Ontario universities can now offer athletic scholarships. This is new to the province and, as a result, very few Ontario universities have a well established recruiting vehicle. That is, unlike most universities in Western Canada, these university coaches are not directly involved in youth development programs. Therefore, they are looking everywhere for possible recruits. Feel free to contact any school in Ontario, they would probably all like to hear from you.
The following are Universities & Colleges that have contacted us asking for names of possible recruits:
Canadian Universities & Colleges:
College of the Rockies, Cranbrook, BC. Coach: Allan Cushon is originally from Red Deer, Alberta where he spent four years as an assistant coach with successful Red Deer College Queens. Allan also held the head coach position at Lakeland College. He continues to be very active in the volleyball community, coaching a number of club teams as well as continuing as a staff member at the Jasper Volleyball Camps. Contact Allan at cushon@cotr.bc.ca
American Universities & Colleges:
Syracruse University, Syracruse, NY: Dear athlete, I have had Canadian players on my team every year since 2001. If you might be interested in the opportunity of studying at a prestigious/elite school and playing volleyball at competitive NCAA D-I level in the Big East Conference with a full athletic scholarship, at Syracuse, NY which is on the other side of the lake, please fill out and return the attached questionnaire, then I will closely follow them in the recruiting process. Attending my volleyball camp in August may be a good opportunity for you to see our school and learn/improve volleyball skills from my technical instructions. Besides our girl’s camp, boys can be arranged in our session – I on 8/3-5. Jing Pu, Head Coach - Women's Volleyball, Syracuse University. Recruiting form and Camp form.
Hamilton College, Hamilton, New York. Coach: Erin Reding. Why Hamilton? If you are looking for a small, liberal arts college that is dedicated to developing an intelligent, independent individual then you have found the right place. With 43 majors and 40 minors students here can choose from a smorgasbord of academic endeavors. Hamilton College is committed to providing an education that is specific to your interests. One of the most unique aspects about our academics is that there is no core curriculum, meaning that you don’t have any required courses that you must take in order to graduate. We want people to be in a class because they want to be there, not because they have to be.
When you first enter Hamilton as a freshman you will be set up with a faculty advisor who will provide you with individual counseling on your areas of interest and coursework. Also, since the student population is about 1,700 the student to faculty ratio is about 10-1! The professors here are very committed to getting to know each and every one of their students so small class sizes are a major priority.
Another unique aspect of Hamilton is the location. We are in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains so if you like the outdoors you will love it here. We have a fantastic outdoors club that is involved in many activities in the 1,300 acres of woods, mountains, trails, and lakes that the college owns. On any given day you can rent kayaks, canoes, skis, snow shoes, and other equipment from the Outing Club.
If the outdoors is not for you there are also many other clubs on campus that speak to a variety of interests. There is a strong student government, varsity and intramural sports, student newspaper, student radio, volunteer organizations, theatre, singing groups, improv groups, and cultural organizations. If you can’t find what you’re looking for you can also make up your own group. Hamilton is committed to making sure you are happy here and sponsors many new clubs each year.
One last note about Hamilton is the campus community. Whether you are travelling from a couple minutes away or across the globe Hamilton is about strong campus life involvement. 98% of the students live on campus all four years, and thus students develop a family while they are here. We make sure to provide many forums for entertainment, student activities, and fun. Some of the better known entertainers and speakers that have been to Hamilton recently are: Al Gore, Tom Brokaw, Bill Clinton, B.B. King, Gavin DeGraw, Ben Folds, Guster, Talib Kweli, and Jon Stewart. You can contact the coach directly at: ereding@hamilton.edu or 315-859-4806.
University of Mary, Bismarck, ND: My name is Eric Snyder and I was recently hired as the new head women’s volleyball coach here at the University of Mary located in Bismarck, ND. Our campus is located about 4 miles south of the city and approximately 6 hours from Winnipeg. I am inquiring into any information related to unsigned seniors or students interested in pursuing a degree in the US and possibly earning a volleyball scholarship while competing in arguably the best Division II conference in the country.
Please let me know if you know of any setters, middle blockers or left/right sides that can play at a very high level and would be interested in pursuing a degree at the University of Mary. E-mail: ejsnyder@umary.edu
Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota. Coach: Stephanie Schleuder. Ms. Schleuder is finishing her 9th season at Mac after coaching at the University of Minnesota for 13 years and a total of 23 years as a Division 1 head coach. Macalester is a Division III school, competing in the tough Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC). Although the school does not offer sport scholarships it does offer a strong financial aid program. Coach's e-mail schleuder@macalester.edu See: Web Site & Athlete Questionnaire.
Coe College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Coach: DeAnn Woodin. Coe College received a national ranking for a few weeks this past season and earned a trip to the regional tournament. It is a nationally recognized school for its academics and they are looking for young athletes that can make a difference in their program, both on and off the court. See: Athlete Questionnaire.
Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, Florida. Coach: Jaye Flood begins her second season as head coach of the Florida Gulf Coast University volleyball program. Flood led FGCU to a 24-6 record and a berth in the NCAA Division II Championships in the inaugural season of volleyball on campus. She was selected as the university’s first-ever head coach in August, 2003. Prior to joining the FGCU staff, Flood developed the Elite Volleyball Program and served as the director of USA South Volleyball. In 2003, she was honored with the USA Volleyball - Florida Region “Club of the Year” award. Flood also served as the Athletics Director at St. Ann School in Naples. See: Athlete Questionnaire.
Rainy River Community College, International Falls, Minnesota. Coach: Melrene Millerbernd has been coaching high school and college basketball and volleyball teams since 1981. She has taken high school teams to conference championships, district, region and state tournaments. In fact, Mel has the honor of being the first woman in the state to both play and coach in a State High School Basketball Tournament. Mel was named Minnesota Community College Coach of the Year in 1996, 2001 and 2002. In 2002, she was also named Region 13-B and District D Coach of the Year.
Rainy River Community College is a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and the Minnesota Community College Conference (MCCC). In 2000, 2001 and 2002, the Voyageurs took second in the State Tournament and advanced to the Region 13-B Tournament. In 2002 they won the region and advanced to the NJCAA National Tournament where they placed second. Mel is looking for players in all positions, but is especially interested in a setter graduating in 2007. Want more information? Simply visit their web site and complete their online recruiting form: http://www.rrcc.mnscu.edu/
Viterbo University, La Crosse, Wisconsin. Coach: Ryan DeLong. The University is interested in any athlete that is graduating this year and is interested in "pursuing playing at the next level." If you are a graduating club player interested in learning more about this University program you may contact Coach DeLong at rpdelong@viterbo.edu See: Web Site & Athlete Questionnaire.
Colby College, Colby, Kansas. Coach: Carey Jones... We are a Division 1 Junior College in the Jayhawk Conference. The Jayhawk conference has 3 or 4 nationally ranked teams every year and is one of the most competitive conferences for overall sports in the nation. At Colby, family is important to us. One of the things in my day to day coaching philosophy that I try to stress the most is the importance of being a family on and off the court. My family lives here in Colby and they take each of my players in as if they were there own as well. We look out for each other, do things together and most importantly play as a family.
Our class sizes at Colby are small and the professor’s are great about working with the team. Being a Trojan is not only about being a member of a volleyball team, it is about learning to be a great student-athlete. We are not only teaching drills and technique on the court, we are also teaching time management and skills that will be used every day of our player’s lives after college graduation.
The girls are required to do 5 hours of mandatory study hall a week and turn in grade check sheets every Friday. We are constantly working with teachers to make sure no one is falling behind. A really neat aspect of Colby academics is that we do have Tutors available almost any time to work with the girls on any subject they may need help. Our girls can also tutor other students if there is a subject they are really strong in as well. This past season we had 6 players that made All Conference Academic Team, 2 players that were nominated to be All American All Academics Players of the Year and a 3.35 overall team GPA that helped make us an All Academic Team of the Year. We value our education and academics are a major part of the program.
Another great aspect of being a Trojan is the sense of pride the community and school has in our program. We see a lot of people at our matches – this year was a record year for us. The other athletes are there to support us just like we are there to support them. And as for the Colby Community, I have never seen such excitement from a community! The girls have really bonded with the community and start the season by going out and introducing our new faces to the community businesses. We find this brings a lot of fans to our home matches.
The cost of school at Colby College with a full scholarship (books & tuition) is $1056 for fees and $4300-$4690 for room and board. We believe this to be very reasonable for the high level of education you are receiving. At Colby, with the average class being about 20, you are not only a number, you are a name.
I am currently looking to add 2 International Students to my roster for 2010. I am looking for those two girls to be very strong hitters – outside, middle or rightside – and make an immediate impact on our program. The Scholarships for International students are the same but we like to find host families to offset the cost of room & board.
I am writing to find out if you have any players who might be interested and capable of coming into this level of play and making a big impact. Carey Jones, Head Volleyball Coach - Colby Community College, 1255 S Range, Colby, KS 67701 www.colbycc.edu / www.twitter.com/colbyccvb (785) 460 - 5473 Office; (316) 204 - 5605 Cell; (785) 460-4691 Fax.
Kansas University, Lawrence, Kansas. Coach: Ray Bechard... I am Todd Chamberlain, the assistant coach at Kansas University for the women's volleyball program. I am emailing you because we are trying expanding our recruiting scope to Canada. I was hoping you would have some information on potential players that are interested playing volleyball and getting an education in the United States. Kansas University is Division I program that competes in the Big 12 Conference, arguably the strongest conference in the nation. With this in mind do you know of any players that would be able to compete at this level?
If so, any contact information on the players would be greatly appreciated! Furthermore, if there are players we would love to get to watch them play. This could be either by emailing video, send a DVD to the address below, or dates of tournaments that I would be able to come and recruit. Attached is a link to the University and the Kansas University Women's Volleyball Homepage. http://www.kuathletics.com/sports/w-volley/kan-w-volley-body.html Todd Chameberlain, Assistant Volleyball Coach. (785) 864-3921 Office. (785) 864-5670 Fax.