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April 23rd, 2019

College athletics and the SAT/ACT: Get ready!

“I’m a top athlete… I don’t need to be concerned about my ACT/SAT score, right?”

While being a competitive athlete in a DI or DII collegiate sport can help you with college admissions, that doesn’t mean you can ignore the SAT or ACT. The NCAA (which governs college sports) has academic Eligibility Standards and dictates what SAT or ACT score you will need (based on your GPA) in order to play for a college. The lower your high school GPA, the higher your test scores need to be.

For example, if you are looking to play at the DI level but you are a middle “C” student with a GPA of 2.50, you would need your total SAT score to be 900 (out of 1600). If you are barely a “B” student with a 3.0, you need a 720 total combined score. ACT scores are comparable. 

The bar for a decent SAT/ACT score for an athlete isn’t all that tough. But keep in mind that if a coach is choosing between two great baseball players and one is close to the line of being academically ineligible, the coach is much wiser in giving his limited roster spots to the player who won’t end up on academic probation in their first or second semester of college. And no one wants to be sitting on the sidelines while their teams moves towards success, so why put yourself on the bench?

Therefore, it is important to put honest effort into your SAT/ACT preparation. Additional practice and retaking may give you an advantage when initially meeting with coaches and later applying to colleges. Just as you wouldn’t show up for a game unprepared or without your gear, don’t show up for the SAT or ACT cold and unfamiliar with the test.

Playing sports in college can be an amazing experience so make sure your SAT/ACT scores help you stand out to coaches in a positive way. Reassure coaches that you are recruitable and will be immediately academically eligible with a strong ACT/SAT score!  For more information about how Test Preps can help you achieve an SAT or ACT score needed for college sports, contact us today!

Photo by Jonathan Chng on Unsplash

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