Track & Field
In the US, Universities offer the opportunity for Athletes to combine their degree with elite level training and competition. Could this be for you?
about
America is the leading powerhouse for Athletics, mainly because of the funding athletes receive because is it considered much more of a spectator sport than elsewhere in the world.
Key facts
01
Over 1400 Universities offer scholarships for Athletics across multiple divisions, making it relevant for all levels of athlete.
02
All divisions offer scholarships to athletes for a variety of reasons (Academic ability, athletic ability or for being international to hit diversity quotas).
03
The Universities are spread across every state, making it easy to pick locations more preferable for you.
04
A coach is given a scholarship budget from the athletic director, they will them distribute this throughout the team as they see fit
05
Each conference has its own championship, there are also regionals and nationals athletes and teams can qualify for.
06
The seasons are divided between Cross Country (Sept-Nov) during the fall semester, indoors from Jan-March and Outdoors March-June both which occur during the spring semester.
07
A “conference” is made up of 9-15 Universities, there are between 11-20 conferences in each division, and 7 divisions across 3 governing bodies (NCAA D1,2,3 NAIA D1,2 and NJCAA, CCCAA).
What events receive scholarship?
What student life looks like
A good amount of the day is fixed around studying and practising, but there is a good window to relax and live life as a normal University student.
One benefit with the US is your academic advisor: they help schedule your lectures, so they work around your training and when you like to eat.
An example student-athlete schedule
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
8:00-9:00am
Physiotherapy
Breakfast
Lecture 1
Lecture 2
Training session
Lunch
Lecture 3
S&C or recovery
Dinner
Study or down time
A typical yearly schedule
Aug 15th
Jun 15th - Aug 15th
Term starts
Sep - Nov
Cross country season
Dec 10th
Exams & end of semester
Christmas Break
Fly home
Jan 8th
Start of Semester Two
Jan 15th - Mar 8th
Indoors
Mar 30th - May 15th
Outdoors
May 20th
Final exams schools
June 10th
Regionals & Nationals
Summer break
Facilities
Facilities in the US are outstanding across all divisions and governing bodies.
They will include everything from locker rooms, athletic training rooms (physio department), sports performance centres and all the equipment you will ever need.
Take a look below at some examples.
Thoughts from Head of Olympic Sports, Nathan Gillis.
“My time as a college athlete in the US was truly transformative. The support and investment from coaches, nutritionists, S&C coaches, sports psychologists, physios, and academic advisors makes US Universities all-encompassing performance programs.
The easiest comparison to understand how good these Universities are, is they are similar, sometimes better than Elite UK soccer academies, or high-level Olympic performance centres in the wealthier nations. I don’t have any doubt in my mind, if it wasn’t for the US, I would never have competed and reached international level.”
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