What are the rules for D1 student athletes who want to transfer? How can they reach out to coaches to see if there is a spot for them?
Transfer rules and issues can get complicated. If you are talking NCAA D1, start here: http://www.ncaa.org/student-athletes/current/want-transfer
In addition to NCAA rules, you also have to pay attention to the conference rules of schools you may transfer to, which can add further complexity.
There are also many free resources at a site called ‘the informed athlete’.
Regarding talking with other coaches, thoroughly read the 2018-19 Guide For Four-Year Transfers, linked on the NCAA transfer page. Coach/school contact info starts on page 13.
Depending on your individual circumstances such as status in your sport, what level of scholarship dollars you are currently receiving, academic profile, etc., if you can afford to hire an athletic consultant experienced in transfers that could be very beneficial. Good luck.
Thank you! Very helpful!
The process is fairly simple, and much of it will be familiar from your first go-around. You tell your coach you want to enter the transfer portal, and he has two days to see that you are entered. Be sure to use your personal email address in the transfer portal, not your school-issued one. Some coaches ■■■■■ the transfer portal looking for new entries and will reach out to you directly. My daughter, who was banged up and did not have a great freshman year, had emails from multiple coaches within hours. Others will not ■■■■■ the portal but are still open to contact from you (for instance, if there was a school you turned down but wish you hadn’t, you may want to contact them again. You are free to contact any coach, and vice-versa, as soon as you are in the portal. There are a LOT of transferring swimmers out there; you will have plenty of company. If you are entering now, barely into this semester, you may still have time to get to OV schedule for your target schools. If you wait until after your conference meet in February, you’re going to be trying to squish them in around finals, spring break for the target schools and the end of the school year.
The asterisked word in that post was “stalk.” Not sure why that caused the response to be moderated or edited.
Thank you. It’s quite a process and the school did not make the paperwork easy which dragged out the timeline some. With early recruiting in place, many more competitive D1 rosters are full, but it looks like it is working out.
Good luck!