August 30, 2011 in Articles by John

The College Volleyball Recruiting Process, Simplified

There is a whole year-by-year set of strategies for working through the college volleyball recruiting process in Inside College Volleyball. Here, though, is a simplified version of that process on a general basis.

Step 1 – Play club volleyball
College coaches are much more likely to recruit club volleyball players than those who only play for their high school teams. It’s a function of time and concentration. The college and high school seasons overlap, so it’s hard for college coaches to get to high school matches, especially when it’s only to see a single player. Club tournaments feature many players, all in one place for easy viewing. If you don’t play club volleyball, you will be outside the mainstream of the recruiting process. That doesn’t mean getting recruited is impossible. It will just take more effort. Also, club volleyball gives you more training opportunities and playing experience, which will help your development.

Step 2 – Think about where you’d like to go to school
Whether you’re on the top of every coach’s recruiting list or someone most of them have never heard of, you need to have a good idea of where you’d like to go to college. Ideally, that list should be made based on things like academics, school size, location, and things like that. Volleyball really shouldn’t be top of the list, though clearly scholarship vs. non-scholarship considerations are important.

Step 3 – Make a good skills video
Unless you have the coach of every school on your list sitting by your court to see you play already, you should have a skills video. This doesn’t need to be a big production. It’s basically meant to be an introduction to get attention. As such, short and very focused is the key. See the post Best format for volleyball recruiting videos for advice.

Step 4 – Let coaches know about you
There are thousands of volleyball players out there. College coaches make it their business to know who the potential prospects are, but that doesn’t mean they have a list with every potential recruiting candidate on it. It also doesn’t mean they know of your interest in their school. You need to introduce yourself and let them know. This can be done through a college volleyball recruiting service or directly yourself. Either way, make sure you get your name and interest (and video) in front of the coaches from the school’s you are interested in.

Step 5 – Follow up
Don’t stop at just introducing yourself. Stay in communication with the coaches at your target programs. Keep them updated on your playing schedule. If you’re shooting for an academically oriented school, provide your latest grades and test scores. Let them know if you’re planning to visit campus. Communication is extremely important. It lets the coach know you’re interested and lets you get a feel for where you stand with the program.

Of course there’s nuance to each of the steps above. Coach provides a lot of information and plans on these and related subjects in Inside College Volleyball, along with advice on handing different situation. These five steps, though, are at the core of the process for just about every prospective college volleyball player, though the timing of when different things happen will vary from person to person.