College Bowling Scholarships and Recruiting
How to Get a Bowling Scholarship?
Bowling scholarships are offered only to women. Most of the time bowling coaches do not actively scout athletes because they do not have the recruiting budget. If you are interested in a school, check to see if they have a bowling program and then use these steps.
How to Improve Your Chances of Earning a Bowling Scholarship?
There are over 50,000 high school bowlers in the USA, and only 70+ colleges offer scholarships. If you want to be recruited, you must be proactive during this process. If you have the basics covered, here are more tips for contacting coaches.
How to Get Recruited for a Bowling
The recruiting process for bowlers should start your junior year. If you are interested in a bowling program, do some research to see if your competition scores match up with the individuals on their roster. If the school looks like the right fit, here is how to contact the coaches.
The Academic Requirements for a Bowling Scholarship
At a minimum you must meet the NCAA Eligibility standards. Here is a complete list of the NCAA Eligibility requirements. Just because you meet the academic requirements for the NCAA doesn’t garuantee you will get into the school you want. This is why it is critical you work with each coach recruiting you to make sure you meet the academic requirements for their university.
Expected Tournaments or Statistics
The top college bowlers in the country average 200+. The average collegiate bowler should carry an average near 165+.
Notable Tournaments to Consider Competing In
- United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Junior Gold Championships
- USBC Women’s National Tournament
- North Pointe Insurance Group High School Singles Tournament
- Teen Masters
How Many Bowling Scholarships are Available?
These are the number of schools that compete in each division.
NCAA DI: 31
NCAA DII: 17
*NCAA DIII: 7
NJCAA: 17
Total: 72
*NCAA Division 3 schools do not offer athletic scholarships, but THEY do offer other forms of financial aid.
Not all colleges that are eligible to offer scholarships will choose to do so. For example, Ivy League schools choose not to offer athletic scholarships.
Bowling is an equivalency sport which means all scholarships are not full scholarships. Coaches may divide the total number of scholarships allotted to them between as many athletes as they wish.
NCAA DI: 5
NCAA DII: 5
Who Are the Top College Bowling Teams?
The top bowling teams in each division change from year to year. Our rankings are based only on athletics. There are opportunities for almost every level, but if you want to compete against the best, here is a list of the top bowling schools.
Fairleigh Dickinson, Maryland Eastern Shore, Central Missouri, Vanderbilt University, Nebraska, New Jersey City, Kutztown, Arkansas State, Sam Houston State, Sacred Heart, Valparaiso, Adelphi, Stephen F. Austin, Delaware State, St. Francis College, Alabama A&M, Norfolk State, Wisconsin–Whitewater, Minnesota State, Bowie State
Written by David Frank
United States Bowling Congress
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