Tips for This High School Season

So the High School season has started and you're focused on winning games for your beloved mascot! Highly admirable and lots of fun. Playing for your school can be one of the most enjoyable times of your life. The build-up before the games, the game day hype, the excitement of the game and of course, post-game celebrations. It just doesn't get any better than that...or does it?

Now think about playing at the college level and how exciting that can be! Multiply the High School hype by 10 and you're close to the excitement of college athletics. The question is - can you be doing anything to help position you for the next level during the fall season? Remember, it won't just happen on its own. It's time to "Market Me". So here are few tips:

1. Get good grades! This is critical to getting accepted to the college that you want to play at and critical to getting some financial assistance. Don't forget to give it your all in the classroom.

2. Take the time to get a few written recommendations. Ask your NEU coach to write one. Ask a coach from your summer camps to write one. Ask a teacher to write about how well you balance your classroom work and soccer. Ask someone who you helped with community service. All of these will give great insight into who you are and will help you differentiate yourself in the eyes of a college coach. Don't wait until you need a recommendation - build a file full of them now.

3. Invite a college coach to come see you play. Check our documents library for some sample invitations. Modify it to fit you and the coach that you are asking. Here are some tips on inviting a coach to see you play this fall.

4. Start doing a little research on some College ID Camps that will be held in November, December and January. Look for ones at colleges that match your profile. What? You don't have a profile? Ok, check out the 7 Steps to College Selection. Build a profile!

These are all pretty easy things to do and won't take a lot of time. Add them to your schedule. Go into your smartphone and put in a few reminders. If you don't, you'll forget and then you'll be scrambling.

Oh yea, last thing - play hard and play smart. You still have a lot to learn about soccer so take advantage of this season. Remember, practice like it's a game!

#preparation #recruiting