1. Recruiting trips are only for Division I recruits

This is a common misconception because Division I is the only division that is allowed to pay for an athlete’s transportation to a recruiting trip. Division III still has recruiting trips where an athlete can see campus, meet the team and coaches, attend a class, and get an overall feel for a school. Division III athletes are required to pay for their own transportation to and from a school, but on campus their meals are paid for by the school and they are not charged any other fees.

2. Division III athletes can’t find out admissions decisions early like Division I athletes

Although Division III coaches cannot guarantee admittance, they can offer an academic pre-read where they will discuss an athlete’s academic information (normally including materials such as SAT/ACT scores, high school transcript, AP scores, list of extracurricular activities, etc.) with admissions. Admissions will tell the coach the likeliness of an athlete to be admitted if the coach pledges support. Whether a coach pledges support before or after hearing admissions opinion varies between schools.

3. Division III athletic facilities are inferior to Division I facilities

The Princeton Review ranked Kenyon College, a Division III school, as containing the best college athletic facility. Kenyon College’s facility was ranked higher than schools famous for their sports prowess such as Stanford University (#20). In addition, some Division III schools have athlete-only gyms. For example, Vassar College, a school of only 2,450 students, has a varsity gym with a full-time trainer.

4. All athletes must approach schools to be recruited

For many Division III schools, this principle is completely false. Athletes should fill out the prospective student-athlete questionnaire on a school’s website to get on the team’s radar. Filling out these questionnaires can lead to emails, academic reads, recruiting trips, and coach’s support. Just because an athlete does not get approached by a school does not mean they are not good enough to get recruited. A little effort goes a long way.

5. Division III athletics is not a big commitment

Division III athletics can be extremely competitive and time consuming. Division III schools can practice 20 hours a week in season just like Division I schools. It is possible for an athlete to be recruited to a Division I school and not to a Division III school. Division III schools also can have serious captains’ practices that reach 20 hours a week in the off season, although they legally cannot be coached during such practices.