Division II schools offer several types of scholarship.
With more than 1,000 institutions recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, colleges and universities award thousands of sports scholarships each year. The biggest portion of these is used to recruit football players. While most football players seek to land a scholarship with a Division I university, many choose Division II football. In that realm, athletes can receive full and partial scholarships in addition to a unique scholarship program designed only for athletes.
Full Undergraduate Scholarships
The most common football scholarship offered by a Division II school is the full academic scholarship. This scholarship provides for full payment of tuition and board for a player for four years. There are 150 Division II colleges that offer football scholarships. The NCAA allows each of the schools as many as 36 full scholarships. Division II athletes are far less likely to play professional football. Thus, the quality of the education offered plays a more significant role for many athletes seeking Division II scholarships.
Partial Undergraduate Scholarships
While all athletes covet full scholarships, some receive partial scholarships. A partial scholarship pays for only a portion of a football player's college expenses. Typically, a partial scholarship does not pay for room and board, but it might pay for full tuition. In other instances, the partial scholarship provides only a portion of the tuition. By offering partial scholarships, Division II schools can offer more than 36 scholarships.
Division II Degree-Completion Award
In 2001, the NCAA established this program as a means of helping Division II student-athletes complete their degree requirements. From 2001 to 2010, the program has awarded more than $2 million to approximately 600 student-athletes. Of the total, 93 percent have earned their undergraduate degrees. The program is available only to student-athletes who have completed their athletics eligibility and, therefore, are no longer eligible for regular athletic scholarships. Applicants must have completed their eligibility within the past year. The awards are limited to students attending their first 10 semesters of college. Thus, a sixth-year student might not be eligible for the program.
Try-Outs and Walk-Ons
While they are lesser known and rarely coveted, scholarship opportunities remain available even to those football players who do not receive much attention from coaches at Division II colleges. These students have an opportunity to participate in team practices as walk-ons. They simply try out for the team. If selected to play for the team, coaches often award these athletes with walk-on scholarships. These scholarships vary in terms of how much money they provide for a student's education. Some are substantial. Many more are only partial scholarships. Schools often use these scholarships to draw the best non-recruit players to their teams.
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