NCAA New Academic Requirements

The NCAA recently released the new SAT/ACT sliding scale that corresponds with the increased GPA requirements for the class of 2015 and beyond. Needless to say, any current high school freshman who is even remotely considering the possibility of playing a sport collegiately needs to pay attention. The wiggle room to correct academic shortcomings has been greatly reduced. Now, more than ever, every semester counts.

Here is a summary of the new D1 academic requirements that take affect for the class of 2015 and beyond: 

• The minimum core course GPA has increased from 2.00 to 2.30
• 10 of the 16 core course requirements must be satisfied prior to the start of the senior year
• 7 of those 10 core courses must be from the English, Math and Science subsections
• Grades earned in the 10 core courses are "locked in" for the purpose of calculating the final core course GPA
• Any retakes of the first 10 core courses must be completed prior to senior year

The NCAA has also introduced a new term - the "Academic Redshirt." This new designation applies to D1 incoming college freshman in 2015 and beyond who do not meet the new 2.30 core course GPA requirement, but have a core course GPA above 2.00 and have met the SAT/ACT sliding scale requirements. An Academic Redshirt may still receive a scholarship and practice with their team, but may not participate in game competition as a college freshman.

The new sliding SAT/ACT scale, which correlates with the new 2.30 GPA requirement, results in significant changes in minimum test scores.

Here are two examples of the changes to the new sliding scale requirement for D1 students in the class of 2015 and beyond:

• Currently: 2.00 core course GPA + 1010 SAT or 86 ACT = Full Qualifier
• 2015: 2.00 core course GPA + 1020 SAT or 86 ACT = Academic Redshirt

• Currently: 2.50 core course GPA + 820 SAT or 68 ACT = Full Qualifier
• 2015: 2.50 core course GPA + 1000 SAT or 85 ACT = Full Qualifier

Remember, the NCAA does not include the writing component of the SAT or ACT and the ACT score is a sum score (not average) of the English, math, reading and science sections.

Finally, just because a student-athlete meets the minimum NCAA academic standards, it doesn't mean they will be admitted to play sports at the college of their choice. Many universities have academic standards for incoming freshman athletes that are much higher than the NCAA minimum requirements.

So what does this all mean? Student-athletes must start tracking courses early. A student-athlete should calculate their initial core course GPA at the conclusion of their first semester in high school and continue to do so each semester thereafter.

Again, now more than ever, every semester counts. 

NCAA FRESHMAN-ELIGIBILITY STANDARDS

QUICK REFERENCE SHEET

KNOW THE RULES:

Core Courses

NCAA Division I requires 16 core courses as of August 1, 2008

. This rule applies to any student first entering any Division I college or university on or after August 1, 2008. See the chart below for the breakdown of this 16 core-course requirement.

NCAA Division II requires 14 core courses.

See the breakdown of core-course requirements below. Please note, Division II will require 16 core courses beginning August 1, 2013.

Test Scores

Division I

has a sliding scale for test score and grade-point average. The sliding scale for those requirements is shown on page two of this sheet.

Division II

has a minimum SAT score requirement of 820 or an ACT sum score of 68.

The SAT score used for NCAA purposes includes

only the critical reading and math sections. The writing section of the SAT is not used.

The ACT score used for NCAA purposes is a

sum of the four sections on the ACT: English, mathematics, reading and science.

All SAT and ACT scores must be reported directly to the NCAA Eligibility Center by the testing agency. Test scores that appear on transcripts will not be used. When registering for the SAT or ACT, use the Eligibility Center code of 9999 to make sure the score is reported to the Eligibility Center.

Grade-Point Average

Only core courses are used in the calculation of the grade-point average.

Be sure

to look at your high school’s list of NCAA-approved core courses on the Eligibility Center's Web site to make certain that courses being taken have been approved as core courses. The Web site is www.eligibilitycenter.org.

Division I

grade-point-average requirements are listed on page two of this sheet.

The Division II

grade-point-average requirement is a minimum of 2.000.

DIVISION I

16 Core-Course Rule

16 Core Courses:

4 years of English.

3 years of mathematics (Algebra I or higher).

2 years of natural/physical science (1 year of lab if offered by high school).

1 year of additional English, mathematics or natural/physical science.

2 years of social science.

4

years of additional courses (from any area above, foreign language or nondoctrinal religion/philosophy).

DIVISION II

14 Core-Course Rule

14 Core Courses:

3 years of English.

2 years of mathematics (Algebra I or higher).

2 years of natural/physical science (1 year of lab if offered by high school).

2 years of additional English, mathematics or natural/physical science.

2 years of social science.

3

years of additional courses (from any area above, foreign language or nondoctrinal religion/philosophy).

PLEASE NOTE: Beginning August 1, 2013, students planning to attend an NCAA Division II institution will be required to complete 16 core courses.NCAA DIVISION I SLIDING SCALE CORE GRADE-POINT AVERAGE/ TEST-SCORE New Core GPA / Test Score Index
Core GPA SAT ACTVerbal and Math ONLY
3.550 & above 400 37
3.525 410 38
3.500 420 39
3.475 430 40
3.450 440 41
3.425 450 41
3.400 460 42
3.375 470 42
3.350 480 43
3.325 490 44
3.300 500 44
3.275 510 45
3.250 520 46
3.225 530 46
3.200 540 47
3.175 550 47
3.150 560 48
3.125 570 49
3.100 580 49
3.075 590 50
3.050 600 50
3.025 610 51
3.000 620 52
2.975 630 52
2.950 640 53
2.925 650 53
2.900 660 54
2.875 670 55
2.850 680 56
2.825 690 56
2.800 700 57
2.775 710 58
2.750 720 59
2.725 730 59
2.700 730 60
2.675 740-750 61
2.650 760 62
2.625 770 63
2.600 780 64
2.575 790 65
2.550 800 66
2.525 810 67
2.500 820 68
2.475 830 69
2.450 840-850 70
2.425 860 70
2.400 860 71
2.375 870 72
2.350 880 73
2.325 890 74
2.300 900 75
2.275 910 76
2.250 920 77
2.225 930 78
2.200 940 79
2.175 950 80
2.150 960 80
2.125 960 81
2.100 970 82
2.075 980 83
2.050 990 84
2.025 1000 85
2.000 1010 86

A seamless eligibility model

The Division I academic-eligibility model provides a seamless set of standards that begin when a high school student is considering becoming a Division I student-athlete and end when the student-athlete earns a degree from a Division I institution.

Before a high school student can be eligible to play Division I sports, he or she must meet academic requirements in high school. Those standards include:

• The successful completion of 16 core courses.
• A sliding-scale combination of grades in high school core courses and standardized-test scores. For example, if a student-athlete earns a 3.0 grade-point average in core courses, that individual must score at least 620 on the SAT or 52 on the ACT. As the GPA increases, the required test score decreases, and vice versa.

 Once in college, student-athletes must make steady progress toward degrees.

• Student-athletes must complete 40 percent of the coursework required for a degree by the end of their second year, 60 percent by the end of their third year and 80 percent by the end of their fourth year. Student-athletes are allowed five years to graduate while receiving athletically related financial aid.
• All student-athletes must earn a minimum of six hours each term to be eligible the next semester.

NCAA CLEARINGHOUSE

www.ncaaclearinghouse.org

ACT WEBSITES

www.actstudent.org

SAT WEBSITES

www.collegeboard.com