Understanding the Process

UNDERSTANDING THE PROCESS

COLLEGE RECRUITMENT PROCESS
GRADES & THEIR IMPACT
HIGH SCHOOL RECRUITING CHECKLIST
- FRESHMAN YEAR
- SOPHOMORE YEAR
- JUNIOR YEAR
- SENIOR YEAR

UNDERSTANDING THE PROCESS

COLLEGE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (COLLEGIATE COACH/RECRUITER PERSPECTIVE)

How do they find or scout for recruits? – There are quite a few ways coaches begin to gather recruits’ information for their prospect pools. So, you would be wanting to make sure you are able to at least fall under one of these lists or all if you have the resources to do so.

Top ways coaches scout for potential prospects:

· Third-party recruiting portals/services

· Recruiting media sites

· Word to mouth recommendations from high school or club coaches

· Initial contact from recruits themselves; email and or messages

· Scouting at credible online, local, or national events/tournaments

Coaches/Recruiters recruiting steps:

1. Begin to gather a recruiting pool of prospective players

2. Send out recruiting questionnaires, letters and or invites to online/in-person

3. Conduct evaluations and comparisons between prospects

4. Extend verbal offers and scholarships; Offer unofficial or official visits

5. Sign players

GRADES AND THEIR IMPACT

Just like your play-making ability, skills, and decision making plays a major role in your recruiting, so does your GPA. Your grades can either limit your number of schools you can attend or increase it, and can open up more opportunities for possible scholarships too. Your grades tell a coach a lot about you, and what type of player you are without even talking to you. Believe it or not but the coaches first question they ask your high school coach, or you will be, “How are the grades looking like?”. Coaches want players that can balance both school and extracurricular activities showing your versatility and multitasking ability. To them you are an investment that they want to know is reliable both in-game and in the classroom. Always remember the best player, is an available player.

HIGH SCHOOL RECRUITING CHECKLIST

Freshman Year:

As soon as possible go and see your high school guidance counselor and let them know you are interested in playing at the collegiate level. Find out what classes you must take and map out the best course to get you where you want to be.
Make sure you and your coach are on the same page, which is that you are interested in making it to the collegiate level of competition. They will be the best person to help you evaluate yourself and put you in the position that benefits you the most.
Begin to create your list of schools, with a list of 35 initial schools to start off this gives you a good base, use the collegiate data hub to find your schools. Slowly begin to research these schools and see if they fit what it is that you want from a college. Check out some checklist options to help you begin finding out what is best for you.
Create your recruiting portfolio, to begin documenting your recruiting information, grades, and highlights. Use our recruiting portfolio to keep it all in one spot so its easy for you to send to college coaches/recruiters.
Begin to educate yourself on collegiate esport specific requirements for eligibility. As well as the in-game rules, and modes that are played at that level so you can begin to practice and play them yourself.
Research any upcoming credible (online / local / or if your able to travel those locations) events, tournaments, or credible showcases either throughout the year and/or for the upcoming summer for you to participate in and add to your recruiting portfolio.
Make sure to document and if possible get video recording of your gameplay not only for your highlights, but also for way of going back and being able to evaluate yourself/gameplay.

Feel free to always message our recruiting team for any questions that you may still have, and even evaluations if you feel you want a second opinion or just want to run some thoughts by a group with an open mind. Email: VarsityEsportsRecruiting@gmail.com

Sophomore Year:

Continue to check in with your guidance counselor early in the year to go over how your freshman year went and if there is anything you might have missed. Then discuss what your plan is to execute your sophomore year.
Now is the time to start practicing for the SAT and ACT. Find out if your school offers the PSAT or PreACT, if not then find a location that will allow you to do so. Doing a few practice tests for both never hurts and puts you in a position to do your best in the upcoming year.
Update your coach with what it is that you did your first year that set yourself up for getting recruited, they might have some insight on what more you can do or some new approaches.
Now is the time to be also getting parent involvement as far as with the financial aspect, specifically how much it is they will be able to contribute to your funding for college. Understanding what it is you might need financially is crucial and if you’re looking to need scholarships that’s a crucial point to have when narrowing down your colleges.
Continue to add and evaluate schools to your list seeing as your about to be going into junior year, you are beginning to understand what it is you want and need from these colleges and programs. Also, feel free to follow us on Twitter for a broad list up collegiate program updates as we will be keeping up by reposting their important updates from your favorite schools.
Early on begin to fill out collegiate recruiting questionnaires and contacting coaches from schools on and off your list as soon as possible. Make sure this year as soon as you get your highlight video and season stats to put it together and send an update on yourself to the coaches so they can see your improvements.
If you are still playing multiple game titles at a competitive level, think about making the decision to solely focusing on the game that it is you want to play at the next level. Sharpening your skills to the fullest and being ready to compete for the summer events or tournaments that you may have been invited to or will be attending.
Research any upcoming credible (online / local / or if your able to travel to those locations) events, tournaments, or credible showcases for the upcoming summer for you to participate in and add to your recruiting portfolio.

Junior Year:

Once again check in with your guidance counselor to go over how your sophomore year went and if there is anything you might have missed. Then discuss what schools on your list fits how you have been doing academically and which is best financially depending on your situation.
Schedule to take the SAT and ACT early on this year, so you can get your tests results back early. You can use it to narrow down your college selection, if you did not hit your desired scores don’t worry taking it early gives you enough time to study and take them again. Remember using these scores and grades can give you a better chance at getting an academic scholarship as well since esports scholarships are scarce to come by.
Talk to your coach about your remaining college list and discuss with them your improvements from last year to this year, what you might still need to do to help you get better. Your coach understanding which colleges your down to can give them a chance to evaluate you a little more in depth. Giving you those last-minute improvements/tips to push you over the top and impress recruiters.
Continue to stay in touch with coaches who have tried to reach out to you in your previous year(s) and CONTINUE to fill out questionnaires with film of your best highlights to maybe pull in some last-minute offers/options. Remember your player portfolio is an easy link to give a coach to see all your hard work and progress in one spot.
This is the time to really try and build a relationship with the coaches who have reached out to you and want you to attend their schools to play for their programs. Show them you are highly still interested by following their programs progress for the season and sending congratulation messages and such.
Try and go on a college visit or two, and if your not able to take a virtual campus tour which can still be very beneficial .
Continue to stay up to date with your list of school’s programs and anything that may have changed or will be changing. Remember best way to do so is to follow your teams on social media or sign up for their newsletters.
Around mid-year you should really be narrowing down your school list to a top 5-10 at this point so you can begin applying to colleges towards the end of the year. Really compare your top schools and make sure these are the best fit for you. Remember there is a cost for applications so make sure you plan for this.
If possible, take a few college visits for you to take the campuses themselves and schedule them with the coach of the school so you can sit down, talk, and take a tour of the facilities.
Pay attention to the dates and deadlines for each of your top college’s applications/admissions, create an organized way to make sure you’re on schedule.
Begin to estimate your financial aid to get a general idea of what you can receive, so you can begin to determine what it is left you will still be needing or trying to cover with scholarships etc.
Research any upcoming credible (online / local / or if your able to travel those locations) events, tournaments, or credible showcases for the upcoming summer for you to participate in and add to your recruiting portfolio.
CONTINUE to fill out recruiting questionnaires and emailing coaches who are both on/off your list especially over this summer going into your senior year. You may be surprised at how many collegiate schools are willing to still offer players even early on into their senior year, create the maximum amount of opportunities for yourself.

Senior Year:

Again check in with your guidance counselor to go over how your junior year went and begin to finalize all your hard work you have been working on for the last 3 years. Confirm that everything has been done, or what still needs to be done to finalize your senior year.
If need be retake your SAT/ACT tests to improve your scores, creating more of a possibility of an academic scholarship or as a way to increase your admissions chances to top schools.
Continue to stay up to date with your list of school’s programs and anything that may have changed or will be changing. Remember best way to do so is to follow your teams on social media or sign up for their newsletters. So that you can ask as many questions before you make any final decisions.
Continue or if you were not able to your junior year, go out and take some college campus visits to get all the information you may need when making your final decision about half way through the year.
Keep track of application and other document deadlines which vary between each school you are choosing between.