While there are many paths to being a recruited student-athlete, here are 5 important actions your aspiring college athlete should take today to get started:

Practice your sport

It may go without saying that one of the most important factors in becoming a recruited student-athlete is your skill level and athletic ability. Practice, practice, practice. As you figure out where you need to be with your abilities, research the stats on your favorite college teams or division athletes and see where they are. This can give you insight when setting your own goals.

Be seen by coaches

In a perfect world, college coaches or scouts will come to you, visiting your school or club games. And while this is definitely part of the recruitment process, waiting for a coach to visit you isn’t always ideal. Instead, try these two ways to get your name out there: attending camps and sending out videos.

• Camps: Attending ID or recruitment camps, which are often held on college campuses, is one of the best ways to be seen and evaluated by the people who matter. Talk to your current high school coaches, and do some research to begin identifying the camps that best suit your athletic level and needs. Keep in mind: these camps often carry significant registration costs, in addition to travel and accommodation. Be sure to research each camp to be sure it’s reputable and understand if college coaches have committed to attending.
• Reaching out: Another great way to get your name out there and have your skills seen by coaches is to create an athletic resume and highlight reel and send it out to coaches. Every high school student-athlete interested in college-level play should keep an updated athletic resume and a recent tape of highlights ready to go for any coach who asks—and even those who don't! We'll talk a little more about this below.

Update your athletic resume

Serious high school student-athletes should gather all relevant information on one document called an athletic resume. Your resume can quickly be shared via email or added to prospective recruit questionnaires found on university websites. While some information might vary by sport, in general, athletic resumes should contain the following: 

• 
   Name and stats
• Include things like body weight, height, age, and any other important physical characteristics that showcase your talents.
• Coach’s name and contact information 
• Include your current coach's email or phone number (but always check with your coach first before including their info).
• Athletic accomplishments
•  Add a brief list of your best, most recent high school athletic accomplishments, including but not limited to tournaments/games won, awards, and relevant statistics. Show off what you've achieved!
• Upcoming tournaments/games 
• Create a section that tells the reader what's coming up in the next season or few months. If college coaches like what they see, they may send their staff to check you out.
• GPA and SAT/ACT/PSAT scores 
• If your grades and scores are strong and relatively competitive, put them on your athletic resume. If they're not up to the level you or the university is looking for, you may prefer not to include them at this time.
• Links 
• Do you have an online athletic page through your high school, club sport, or regional athletic organization? Include it in a prominent place on your resume. 

Record your best moments

Throughout high school, ask someone you trust to record you playing. You don’t need fancy equipment—a cell phone camera is more than enough. Make it a habit to review these recordings regularly, and edit your footage down to the best highlights. 

This highlight reel should be no more than 2 or 3 minutes in length and should clearly show you and your best moments. For zoomed-out video, consider adding a caption on the screen that indicates your number/jersey, so college coaches can easily identify you.

Understand your abilities—realistically

Has a coach or respected leader in your sport told you how good you are? This may seem like a difficult or awkward conversation, but you need to know how you stack up against other student-athletes to determine your chances of recruitment. 

Throughout your season, find time to honestly talk with your coach about where you are and where you want to be. Together, you and your coach should set goals for improvement or gain a clearer picture of your chances of being recruited. If you don’t have a trusted coach in your sport, then consider attending an ID or recruitment camp where feedback from coaches is expected and provided.