College Volleyball Scholarships by the Numbers
Volleyball is one of the best athletic scholarship opportunities for women athletes. If you are seeking a college to play for, it is up to you to reach out to coaches and find the programs that are the right fit for you. The majority of the college volleyball coaches rely on athletes to contact them first and let them know they are interested in their school. Check out our graphic below to see where all of the college volleyball programs are in the country.
Division 1 volleyball is the most competitive level. These girls are big, 6’0”+ depending on the position and have been playing year round club volleyball for years. If this is the level you want to play, look at the map and find schools you are interested in. You need to be attending camps at these schools and contacting coaches by your sophomore year.
With over 1,600 college volleyball programs across the country, there are opportunities to play in college for almost every ability level. For players looking to continue to compete while also wanting to focus on academics, the NCAA D3 level can be a great place to play. There are over 400 programs that compete at the D3 level and these programs relay almost exclusively on athletes contacting them first to get recruited.
When Considering What Division Level You Should Be Playing at, You Need to Consider Several Factors
1) Get an honest assessment from your coach about what level they think you can play.
2) If you are going to be trying to play up a division level, you need to be prepared not get as much playing time early in your career.
3) If academics are important to you, consider playing in a lower division where programs allow athletes to focus more on academics more.
4) If your club team does not play in the big tournaments each year it is going to be difficult to be seen by the D1 programs. You will need to make the decision early in high school to commit to playing in the big tournaments.
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