NCAA Regulations
The NCAA has established the following rules governing financial aid to athletes:
A Student MAY:
- Receive unearned athletically related financial aid administered by the institution for any regular term the student is in attendance, provided it does not exceed that amount equal to tuition and fees, room and board, and required course-related books, and provided the student is not under contract to or currently receiving compensation from a professional sports organization.
- Receive unearned athletically related financial aid awarded only by an institution's regular financial aid committee for a maximum period of one year, it being understood that such aid may be renewed for additional, maximum one-year periods by the institution while the recipient is an undergraduate or a graduate student with remaining eligibility.
- Receive income from employment during term time or non-athletic grants for educational purposes in combination with unearned athletically related financial aid, provided the total from all sources does not exceed the actual cost of room and board, tuition and fees, and required course-related books. Income from employment during official institutional vacation periods need not be considered in this limit.
- Receive athletically related financial aid from an NCAA member institution to attend its summer term prior to the student's initial enrollment as a regular student during the regular academic year at the institution. This prohibition does not apply to a summer orientation program for which participation (by both athletes and non-athletes) is required and financial aid is administered on the same basis for all participants in the program.
- Receive financial aid other than that administered by the institution if the aid has any relationship whatsoever to athletic ability. This prohibition shall not apply to earnings from a professional organization in a sport other than the student's collegiate sport.
- Accept financial aid from an organization, individual or agency outside of the student's institution for which selection is based primarily on athletic ability or participation.
- Receive an extra benefit not available to members of the student body in general.
The NAIA has rules similar to those of the NCAA governing the limits and kinds of financial aid athletes are allowed. Their general statement about scholarships, grants in aid, and student loans is as follows:
Assignment of scholarships, grants in aid, or student loans shall be controlled by the faculty through the regularly constituted committee on student loans and scholarships. Any financial aid or assistance to a student in money or in kind, except that which comes from members of students' immediate family or from those upon which the student is legally dependent, shall be administered by the college under policies and procedures established by the institution through its regularly constituted committee on student loans and scholarships. A member institution of NAIA shall award no more financial aid to a student athlete than the actual cost of: 1) tuition, 2) mandatory fees, books and supplies required for courses in which the student athlete is enrolled, 3) board and room for the student athlete only, based on the official board and room allowance listed in the institutional catalog. Further financial assistance to a student athlete, other than listed above, by a member institution shall be prohibited.
NJCAA Regulations
The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) has also established rules governing financial aid to athletes. At NJCAA-affiliated schools, tuitions and fees, room and board, and books and course-related materials can be paid for by athletic scholarship. In addition, athletes at NJCAA schools may receive round-trip transportation costs once a year for travel directly between their home and school. The school must also make sure that for any paid employment (work-study or other), the athlete must work as hard as other students and must not be paid more than other students. All financial aid must be administered through the school's Financial Aid Office. (For additional information regarding NJCAA regulations, see the Official Handbook and Casebook of the National Junior College Athletic Association, from which the preceding information was obtained.)
Great athletes and good ones are sometimes tempted to accept-or even to ask for-money or other financial benefits beyond the amount they are allowed. We made the point earlier that it isn't worth whatever "extra" you might get. Why jeopardize friendships, your teammates' goals, your own ethics, possibly your athletic career, and even your chance at the aid you deserve by taking more than you should? If you have any doubts, see Chapter 8 and our discussion of eligibility and penalties for violating rules.
Game Plan for Winning in College
Winning in college means getting everything that any student-athlete can and should get out of college. Knowing what you want to take with you when you leave college allows you to make strides in the right direction without first having to wander around and wonder what's going to happen next. Success in any environment (athletics, school, or career) is more likely to result from preparation and planning than it is from stumbling into a situation and then having to react.
Game plans work better when you have one specific goal in mind. Your primary goal in college should be graduation. Earning your degree is a tangible goal which can be achieved by following tangible steps.
In sports, every player gains when opponents fall short of their goal. In college, on the other hand, nobody wants to prevent you from getting a good education; no one gains if you fail to receive a degree. But even though nobody wants to keep you from your degree, the pressures that some people apply to you may serve the same end. There are far more people who want to see you do well, but you must be alert to the few who would undermine your education for their needs. To be successful as a student-athlete, you must become aware of other people's motives. You must learn to get along with them without being trampled by their needs, so that when you leave college, you take more than memories.
Knowing what your opponents are likely to do is a great advantage in an athletic contest. Likewise, knowing the pitfalls and pressures that await you as a student-athlete, and then developing counter-strategies, will help you reach your primary goal of graduation.
But just having your goal of graduation firmly in mind and knowing what might interfere are not enough to make graduation happen. Successful athletes understand the requirements of their game or contest and develop the necessary performance skills. Successful college students also must know what is required of them and build academic performance skills. Graduation requirements can seem like a jumble and need to be examined well ahead of time.
Athletes, more so than most students, have little time and energy to waste. The most successful students are not satisfied with having skills that simply help them get along. Just as top athletes are always working to improve their skills, so the most successful students work toward raising their level of academic skills. Acquiring these skills and learning to cope with pressure will certainly help you to graduate, but will also provide the basis for you to do well in your career. But that's another game, which we'll get to in Part III.
So, your game plan for success in college should include:
- developing strategies for getting fair return for your effort;
- understanding and learning to get along with others whom you will encounter as a student-athlete;
- knowing who your friends are and how they can help you;
- understanding eligibility rules;
- knowing what requirements you must fulfill to achieve your goal of graduation; and
- developing the skills that will help you to achieve your goals in college and beyond
