Prospective Student-Athletes

Thank you for your interest in Harvard Athletics. If you are an individual who has begun classes for the 9th grade, or if you are a student enrolled at a preparatory school or a two-year college, then you are considered a "prospect." The following information will help you answer any questions you may have about playing for the Crimson.

NCAA Clearinghouse Registration

What do I need to do to be eligible to play on a Harvard intercollegiate athletic team?

You'll need to obtain both academic and medical clearance to practice and compete.

Academic Clearance First, to compete at the NCAA Division I level, all incoming freshmen must be certified by the NCAA Eligibility Center. The Eligibility Center is an agency that provides initial-eligibility certification for all first-year student-athletes. To receive certification from the Eligibility Center, you must meet the following requirements:

- Graduate from high school
- A minimum sum score on the ACT or minimum combined score on the SAT
- A high school grade point average of at least 2.0 (on a 4.0 scale) in a core curriculum of 14 courses. These include the following core courses**:
  - English - 4 years
  - Math - 3 years
  - Natural/Physical Science (incl. 1 lab) - 2 years
  - Social Science - 2 years
  - Additional English, Math or Natural/Physical Science - 1 year
  - Additional Academic Courses (from any category above, or foreign language, social studies, philosophy, computer science) - 4 years

To be cleared by the NCAA Eligibility Center, American students must complete the student release form and foreign students must complete the Foreign Student Application, which are both available at https://web1.ncaa.org/eligibilitycenter/common/index.html In addition, you must contact your high school to send an official high school transcript demonstrating proof of graduation and contact the College Board at http://www.collegeboard.com to have your SAT/ACT test scores sent to the Eligibility Center.

**NOTE: For students enrolling in Fall 2008, the number of core courses required has increased from 14 to 16. To be cleared by the Eligibility Center in 2008, prospective students must have completed three years of math and four years of extra courses.

Medical Clearance

Second, when you arrive on campus, you'll need to obtain medical clearance from University Health Services. In addition, you'll also have to complete all necessary paperwork and attend a compliance meeting at the beginning of the academic year.

Transfer Students

I'm thinking about transferring to Harvard from another school, and I would like to compete for the Crimson. What should I do?

You must obtain a written release from your school's Compliance Office and fax it to Nathan Fry, Harvard's Assistant Director of Athletics for Compliance, at 617-496-9950. We are not allowed to speak with you until we receive this release, which gives us permission to contact you. Once we obtain this form, we will call you to discuss next steps.

General Questions

Does Harvard offer scholarships?

No. As an Ivy League institution, Harvard does not offer athletic or academic scholarships to students. However, Harvard does provide need-based financial aid to those students who demonstrate financial need.

If a Harvard athletic team is recruiting me, do I have to go through the same admissions process as other applicants?

Yes. All prospective student-athletes must be accepted by the Harvard Admissions Office in order to play for a Harvard athletic team. Since all Ivy League schools do not award athletic scholarships, there are no signing dates for the National Letter of Intent. You will be notified of your acceptance into Harvard at the same time as all other applicants. To learn more about the application process, visit http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/.

After my football game last week, a man who identified himself as a Harvard alum approached me and offered to pay for me and my family's expenses to travel to Harvard to visit the campus. We're pretty sure we have to decline, but we just want to make sure accepting the offer is not allowed.

No. This is considered an "extra benefit." Extra benefits are benefits for prospective and enrolled student-athletes that are not equally available to all prospects or Harvard students. If you accept any of these benefits, then you may be in violation of the NCAA's principle of amateurism and you could be deemed ineligible. An extra benefit includes the provision of any transportation, meals, housing, clothes, service, entertainment, or other benefit not equally available to all enrolled students and prospective students who are not athletes.

When can a coach call me?

In sports other than football and basketball, a coach may first call a prospect on July 1 following the completion of your junior year of high school. Thereafter, coaches may not make more than one phone call per week. In the sport of football, coaches may make one call during the month of May of the prospect’s junior year, and additional calls may not be made until September 1 of the senior year (and may not be made more than once per week). In the sport of men’s basketball, coaches may make one phone call per month to a prospect on or after June 15 of the prospect’s sophomore year in high school through July 31 of the prospect’s junior year in high school. Men’s basketball coaches may make two phone calls per week beginning August 1 prior to the senior year in high school. In the sport of women’s basketball, one phone call to a prospect may be made during the months of April and May of the junior year of high school. One call may be made on or after June 1 through June 20 and one call may be made on or after June 21 through June 30 of the junior year in high school. In additionally, only three telephone calls to a prospect may be made during the month of July following the prospect’s junior year of high school, with no more than one of those phone calls per week. After July, a women’s basketball coach may make no more than one phone call per week.

When can I call a coach?

If the call is paid at your own expense, then you can call coaches at any time.

Is it okay if I email a coach? Can I instant message with him or her?

Like phone calls, you can email or IM a coach as much as you want. However, a coach will not be able to respond until September 1 of your junior year in high school.

When can a coach contact me?

A coach cannot visit you before July 1 after you have completed your junior year. They can come watch you play before that, but they can’t have a face-to-face conversation with you until July 1 following your junior year.

A few weeks ago, an assistant coach mentioned that the team might want to bring me to Harvard for an official visit. What exactly is an "official visit"?

An official visit is any visit to a college campus by you and your parents paid for by the college or university. Before a college may invite you on an official visit, you will have to provide the college with a copy of your high school transcript and SAT, ACT, PACT, PSAT or PLAN score. The institution can pay for the following expenses:

Your transportation to and from the college
Room and meals (three per day) for you and your parents while you are visiting the school; and
Reasonable entertainment expenses, which includes three complimentary admissions tickets to a home athletics game.

What is an "unofficial" visit?

This is a visit to a college campus by you and your parents and paid for by you and your parents. Three complimentary tickets to a home athletics game are the only expenses you may receive from the college. You can make as many "unofficial" visits as you want and you can make these visits at any time. During an unofficial visit, the only time you cannot meet with a coach is during a dead period. A dead period is when a college coach may not have any in-person contact with you or your parents during this time. Visit www.ncaa.org to learn more about the recruiting calendar for your sport.

For more information about playing on a Harvard intercollegiate athletic team, visit Harvard Recruiting.