daddy07

Anybody know of any particular Christian colleges that are well funded to provide men's athletic scholarships?... particularly interested in swimming, have a national level swimmer that needs an athletic scholarship.

wildwoodscott

The picture on men's swimming scholarships is not very pretty these days. Title IX and men's football programs serve to limit the scholarships available. There are three associations that provide men's swimming scholarships--NCAA Div. 1 and 2 and NAIA. Here are the websites that provide the schools in NCAA Div. 2 and NAIA:

NCAA Div. 2: NCAA Division II

NAIA: http://graphics.fansonly.com/schools...f/qual_MSD.pdf

In NCAA Div. 1 and 2, most scholarships are split among two or more swimmers (I don't know how NAIA schools do this but it likely similar). Only the very, very elite get a solo scholarship. Depending on how one interprets the word "Christian," I would say that there are no "Christian" D1 schools offering men's swimming scholarships. Those who include Catholic institutions in this category would disagree. In D2, there are maybe 4-6. In NAIA, perhaps 8-10.

You may want to consider D3 schools for swimming. If you check out the times, you will see that D3 times are mostly faster than D2 times. My son swam D3 (at Grove City College, a great "Christian" school) and had a wonderful experience (but no athletic scholarship).

If you sent me in a personal message your son's times, I might be able to give you more specific information.

Here's a quote from an athletic scholarship research service: "There are 142 division 1 and 50 division 2 colleges that offer swimming scholarships to Men. There are 185 division 1 and 64 division 2 colleges that offer scholarships to women. That’s a total of 1,810.8 swimming and diving scholarships for men in the NCAA alone. For women the total number in the NCAA is 3,108.4."

wildwoodscott

Here is a link to collegeswimming's article on scholarships and how they get apportioned.

Tuesday Tip: How Common is a "Full Ride"

Another issue to factor in is that many college swimming programs recruit worldwide. That enlarges the "pool" of potential recruits quite a bit. My guess (and it's just a guess) is that about 10% of D1 men's swimmers are from overseas.

daddy07

Thanks wildwoodscott for all the info provided...I am looking for insight on athletic funding for Christian schools...if you know any specifics on any particular Christian schools that would be appreciated...I already have a pretty good understanding of the general recruiting process and the challenge of landing swimming scholarships having two previous children who have swim/swam D1 on scholarship (both public universities)...just don't have much understanding on what Christians schools fund their swim programs to any extent.

wildwoodscott

It sounds like you possess more knowledge and expertise than anyone who could respond to your query.

Here is the list of NCAA Div. 1 schools that have men's swimming programs:

NCAA Sports Sponsorship

Of these, Gardner-Webb, in my opinion, most approximates a "Christian college". Many schools have denominational ties. Most of those appear to be Roman Catholic or Methodist. However, I don't see any schools on Creekland's list, for example, that have Div. 1 men's swimming programs. You might want to compare Creekland's list with the above website to make sure, but I didn't see any schools on both lists.

susgeek

Texas Christian is affiliated with the Disciples of Christ.

3togo

given your specific request it seems to me the best way to get accurate info would be to go through the DI, DII, and NAIA lists of schools that have varsity swimming and parse out the schools that meet your definition of a "Christian School" (or you talking Liberty or does Georgetown also rank?) and I would think this list would be pretty short ... so I'd suggest contacting each coach to find out 1) how many scholarships do they fund and 2) what kind of times are they seeking. The odds anyone on CC has info at the level you are seeking seems to be very low to me.

jcc

Not sure if you've received an adequate response or not, but check some of the smaller schools in the Southeast - King College in Bristol TN, Milligan College in Milligan TN, Mars Hill College in Mars Hill, NC., Berry College in Rome GA. All are either DII or NAIA and offer swimming scholarships.

Milligan is probably the mostly "overtly" Christian, with solid programs in ministry, etc. and ties to the nearby Emmanuel School of Religion for post-grad study.

All are average academically, with ACTs in 20-25 range, but generally good schools.

Whistle Pig

No mo on Berry. Going to NCAA D III. There facilities are outstanding and one of the most intriguing campuses anywhere. Where much of "Remember the Titans" was filmed. In the Ford Complex. Berry's way beyond the others noted here in academic reputation and prowess. One of the last vestages where "work" was a key component of the process. Still have a Dean of Work. It used to be exclusively for "mountain children," i.e. those who had no means for paying tuition. A most unique place.

P.S. Berry's only had a swimming program for a year, both men and women, as they previously had no pool.