NCAA - NAIA - NJCAA

Which league to choose?

There are over 2,500 colleges and universities throughout America. There are three main college regulatory bodies NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA organized in a division system. One common question that most young athletes ask when considering American College Sports, is what are the various bodies and divisions and which one I choose? Actually, in most of the world, Division 1 is better than Division 2 but this is not how it works in American College Sports. Each university offering college sports must apply for an affiliation to a college sports division. There are a lot of criteria considered when a university decides on what division it will compete in, like finances, location, and preference. Whatever division the university decides to compete in normally all the other sports compete in that same division. Being in NCAA Division 1 does not automatically make the program better than any NCAA Division 2 & 3, NAIA or NJCAA program.

NCAA Division I

NCAA D1 (4-year schools) is arguably the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the United States.

D1 schools include the major collegiate athletic powers, with larger budgets, more elaborate facilities, and more athletic scholarships than Divisions II and III.

When student-athletes think of playing at a US college, NCAA D1 is often what comes to mind, but they often arrive at this decision without fully understanding how a school even gets D1 status. Often the standard is high with most D1 schools but a school doesn’t get D1 status based on how good they are at a specific sport. Worth mentioning a lot of student-athletes start off at NJCAA, NAIA and NCAA Division 2 and if they perform on the field and in the classroom, they are able to transfer. So, student-athletes may not go straight to Division 1 but may end up there after 1 or 2 years.

NCAA Division III

NCAA D3 (4-year schools) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the United States.

D3 consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their student-athletes.

D3 is the NCAA’s largest division with around 450 member institutions, which are 80% private and 20% public. Approximately 40% of all NCAA student-athletes compete in D3. To make it financially feasible for international student-athletes it is important that they have an extremely strong academic profile as they will be relying on academic scholarships.

NJCAA

The NJCAA is an association of community college and junior college (2-year schools) athletic departments throughout the United States.

It is divided into divisions and regions. The current NJCAA has 525 member schools and holds 24 separate regions across 24 states.

Each institution belonging to the NJCAA chooses to compete at the Division I, II or III levels in designated sports. Division I colleges may offer full athletic scholarships (tuition, fees, room and board). Division II colleges are limited to awarding tuition, fees, course-related books, and up to $250 in course-required supplies. Division III institutions may provide no athletically related financial assistance. However, NJCAA colleges that do not offer athletic aid may choose to participate at Division I or II levels if they so desire.

Students attend a NJCAA school for two years and then transfer to a 4-year institute (NCAA or NAIA) to complete their degree. The level of soccer is often on par with NAIA and NCAA Division 2. This is a great route for players looking to get higher scholarship money, but who maybe could enhance their academic standing.

NCAA Division II

NCAA D2 (4-year schools) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded D1 and to the scholarship-free environment offered in D3.

This is one of the most popular options for international student-athletes, particularly because of fewer regulations on the number of foreign players on a roster and the lower academic barriers to be eligible. NCAA Division 2 schools are usually smaller than NCAA D1.

Students will find that a lot of NCAA Division 2 schools have teams that are actually better than a lot of NCAA Division 1 teams. Students will more than likely get to play against a lot of NCAA Division 1 teams in the Spring season as this is the ‘friendly’ part of the year. If going pro is the student’s aim, NCAA Division 2 is still a great platform to be seen. Many players every year go pro from this level.

NAIA

The NAIA (4 year schools) is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs across the U.S. and Canada.

The NAIA has 250 member institutions and sponsors 14 sports in which it conducts 25 national championships.

It has 21 member conferences and the Association of Independent Institutions. The GPA requirement is 2.0 or above with a passing score on the SAT.

This level is somewhat similar to NCAA Division 2 in terms of the size of the school and also the level of sports. Students do often find that an NAIA team has a lot of international players. This is due to the few regulations in comparison to other levels. If going pro is the student's aim, then many players from NAIA make it every year. It is a great platform as the scouts realize there are a lot of talented international players on show.