There are four college sports organizations and even more divisions within them. You may catch yourself wondering what the difference between them is, which one is the best, the worst, or which one is right for you.
The most well-known college sports organization is the National Collegiate Athletic Association, more commonly referred to as the NCAA. Next College Student Athlete (NCSA), a college recruitment site, explains that the NCAA has three divisions of sports within its organization. The first, and most glorified, is NCAA Division 1. This division is for the most elite athletes in the country and has about 170,000 students competing within it, according to the NCAA. The division currently holds more than 350 schools. Schools in this division on average have one athlete for every 23 students, according to NCSA. A total of 57% of Division 1 student-athletes receive some sort of financial aid, although schools that belong to the IVY League conference do not receive any type of athletic scholarship.
NCAA Division 2 is the least-known sports division within the organization. It is the smallest division and holds around 300 schools. According to NCSA, NCAA Division 2 has about 130,500 student competing. 25% of students who go to D2 schools play a sport for the school. 60% of these athletes recieve some form of financial aid. The main difference between division 1 and 2 is how the scholarships are done. Although both divisions allow full-ride scholarships, division 2 rarely does compared to Division 1. One in 10 students at Division 2 universities are athletes.
According to the NCAA, Division 3 is the largest division. It holds 425 active schools and over 200,000 student-athletes. On average one in four students at Division 3 schools are athletes, according to NCSA. Around 80% of Division 3 schools are privately owned. About 39% of student-athletes compete in this division and 80% of athletes who compete in this division receive some type of non-athletic financial aid. Division 3 schools do not offer athletic scholarships.
Divisions 1 and 2 both hold two distinct differences from Division 3. D3 student-athletes must meet eligibility requirements set by their respective schools, whereas Division 1 and 2 athletes must meet eligibility requirements set by the NCAA. Secondly, divisions 1 and 2 offer athletic scholarships whereas Division 3 does not.
Not all colleges belong to the NCAA; other schools belong to NAIA, NCCAA, or NJCAA. NAIA stands for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. It has 250 members, with 82% of them being privately owned, and 18% being publicly owned. Just like NCAA Division 1 and 2, the NAIA offers athletic scholarships and has awarded $1.3 billion to student-athletes. The NAIA has significantly fewer restrictions than the NCAA however, as it has no recruiting restrictions or recruiting deadlines.
The NCCAA stands for the National Christian College Athletic Association. It has 92 members, all of which are Christian colleges. Just like the NCAA, there is more than one division. There are NCCAA divisions 1 and 2. Division 1 allows athletic scholarships whereas Division 2 does not.
The NJCAA stands for the National Junior College Athletic Association. This is an organization only for junior colleges (JUCO). It has two divisions.. Junior colleges are two-year institutions. The NJCAA holds over 500 schools and offers athletic scholarships. Students often go to JUCOs for sports to serve as a launch pad to compete at a higher level, like NCAA Division 1.
Students have various reasons for choosing the division they do, however, the most common reasons are academics and location. “D3 had more options with a school that was bigger and a better fit academically,” senior University of New England ice hockey commit Madeline Hill said.
Playing time also plays a major role in student-athletes deciding to go to Division 3. The level of competition is lower in Division 3 compared to Divisions 1 and 2. “I chose D3 because it felt like I would have more in-game opportunities and be able to show my talents rather than just being on the roster and never playing,” senior Stevenson University baseball commit Alex Alamo said.
