Skiing Scholarships
College skiing is probably the most under the radar sport out of all the NCAA sports. The level of the competition is extremely high. This can be documented by the substantial number of college skiing athletes who have competed at World Championships and at Winter Olympics. Interestingly, college skiing has actually been around for quite some time. The first national championship took place in Nevada in 1954. Nowadays, there are 39 universities with varsity skiing teams and the level of the competition just keeps going up. Coaches and universities have started putting more and more resources into their international recruiting as well, which has lead to the fact that currently around 20% of all college skiing athletes come from outside the US.
Scholarship options are available for both alpine and nordic skiers, so if you compete in any of those sports, college skiing might be a great fit for you to combine the sport that you love with a top nodge education.
Am I eligible?
Having a high enough GPA or SAT/ACT score is the passport to obtaining a skiing scholarship. Achievements in the sport will count for nothing if you do not fulfill the academic requirements set by the NCAA and the university of your choice. The College Sports America team has the ability and the experience to steer you through the qualification process. It is an integral element of our approach to carefully evaluate and help fulfil your personal potential by working with you to select a university where you can fit in both athletically as well as academically.
Give College Skiing a try
So, if you are a talented male or female skier and have competed in some big national and international events, coming to college in America might be the perfect option for you. Even though scholarships are not always easy to get because of the somewhat limited number of schools with skiing teams, coaches constantly reach out to us asking for international student athletes who are either experienced and mature, or who have that one special talent that a coach might be looking for.
Here are some more important facts about college skiing and skiing scholarships:
- Number of NCAA Div 1 skiing teams: Men 11, Women 12
- Number of NCAA Div 2 skiing teams: Men 6, Women 7
- Total Number of skiing teams (all divisions): Men 37, Women 39
- Total number of college skiers: Men c. 450, Women c. 500
- Scholarship limit per team: Men: 6.3, Women: 7
- College skiing programs with the most National Championships: Colorado, Denver, Utah, Vermont, Dartmouth