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NCAA Clearinghouse Guidelines

Collegiate Eligibility and the NCAA Eligibility Center

To participate as a freshman at National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I or Division II College or University, a student-athlete must fulfill the academic requirements of the NCAA.  The NCAA Eligibility Center must certify these requirements.

Any senior student-athlete that intends to participate in Division I or II athletics, as a freshman, must register and be certified by the NCAA Eligibility Center.  Student-athletes should register with the NCAA Eligibility Center at the beginning of their sophomore year.  Application and registration processes are available online at www.ncaa.org/eligibilitycenter.net or may be obtained from the Athletic Department or NCAA District Coordinators.

In order to be certified by the NCAA Eligibility Center and be eligible in Division I or II colleges for the school year, the student-athlete must:

  1. Graduate from high school
  2. Earn a grade-point average of at least 2.300 (based on a maximum of 4.000 scale) in a core curriculum of at least 16 academic courses that were successfully completed during grades 9 through 12.  Only courses that satisfy the NCAA definition of a core course can be used to calculate the student athlete’s NCAA grade point average. 

Core courses must include a minimum of:

Division I          Division II

4 years               3 years               English Core

3 years               2 years               Mathematics Core (Algebra I or higher)

2 years               2 years               Natural or Physical Science Core*

2 years               2 years               Social Science Core

1 year                3 years               Additional English, Math, or Science Core

4 years               4 years               Additional Core (English, Math, Science, Social 

Science, Foreign Language, Philosophy/Religion)

*Must include at least one full year of laboratory science.


 

Division I

The minimum grade point average of 2.300 in the 16 core courses and required ACT (sum of scores on the four individual tests) or SAT score vary according to the Initial Eligibility Index.

  • Must complete 10 core courses before the seventh semester of high school (e.g., Senior year)
  • Of the 10 core courses completed, seven must be in the area of English, Math, or Science.

Division II

The minimum grade point average of 2.200 in the 16 core courses and earn an SAT combined score or ACT sum score that matches the student’s core-course GPA on the Division II final qualifier sliding scale.

For more information about NCAA eligibility requirements, visit http://www.ncaa.org/student-athletes/future