A National Letter of Intent is a contract between an athlete that wishes to attend a college or university for the purpose of playing a sport for the academic year. Letters of intent also are indicative of an athletic scholarship. The letter of intent is designed to prevent other schools from recruiting the same athlete once he has contracted to play for a single institution. If an athlete does not honor the contract, he may be subject to penalties such as being unable to play college sports for a full year or a mandatory residency obligation.
Instructions
1. Understand the process. Before actually signing the letter of intent, a lengthy process goes into being recruited by a prospective university or college. Recruiting can occur for several months or several years. There are regulations on when an institution can contact the athlete about enrolling in their program; however, it does not stop them from recruiting an athlete for several years.
2. Wait for a reply from the institution. After the institution has done its fair share of recruiting, they may decide that they want an athlete to join the program. In the athlete's junior or senior season, the institution will contact the athlete with an offer. Financial aid might be offered in a contract for an athlete to enroll and participate on an athletic team.
3. Sign the National Letter of Intent agreeing to enroll in an institution for athletic purposes. The institution that offers you a scholarship to play a sport will send you two copies of the letter that you must sign. These letters can come by regular mail, fax or e-mail, depending on the institution.
4. Keep one of the two copies and send the other back to the institution. If you are under 21 years old, you will need a parent or guardian to sign the letter as well. Although you will only sign the letter once, the contract between the athlete and the institution does need to be renewed annually.
5. Celebrate your success. After the letter is signed, the process of creating a letter of intent is complete. All of the hard work training for a specific sport, the many hours put into improving your game and the dream of playing a sport in college is all summed up in one moment: signing of the letter of intent.
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