US university sports scholarships: What are they like?

US university sports scholarships: What are they like?


How it all works in the US

Most US university athletes fall under the banner of the NCAA. It organises 90 championships across 24 sports, entered by nearly 20,000 teams.

Each sport is divided into three divisions, with athletes in Division I and Division II eligible for scholarships. Over £2.64 billion worth of athletics scholarships are provided annually to around 180,000 athletes. Sports scholarships are available at a few UK universities.

To qualify for a NCAA scholarship, a student must be an amateur athlete, not a professional. That means they can’t have previously accepted any payment for their participation in a sport e.g. being paid to endorse a brand or accepting fees for media appearances (including advertising revenue from personal YouTube videos). But some athletes argue that they should either be paid for their athletic performance, or have the ability to make money from their success whilst still at college.

Some sports, such as boxing, sailing and rugby are run independently by their own associations.



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