High school athletes can potentially earn more scholarship money by excelling both academically and athletically, leveraging multiple offers, and understanding the nuances of scholarship types. While full-ride scholarships are rare, especially outside of a few sports, combining athletic scholarships with other forms of financial aid can help make college more affordable.

Strong grades and challenging coursework can make a significant difference, as coaches often combine academic and athletic aid to create a more attractive package. Maintaining a good GPA and preparing for standardized tests can also help. 

Currently, the percentage of high school athletes awarded any form of athletic scholarship to compete in college remains relatively low, estimated at around 2%. These scholarships, primarily for Division I and Division II, however, will only cover some of the college cost, not all of it. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) reported that over 180,000 student-athletes receive about $3.6 billion in athletic scholarships annually within the two divisions.

 During the COVID-19 pandemic, some high school athletes likely missed out on scholarship opportunities due to factors like canceled seasons and limited recruiting access. College coaches couldn’t visit high school campuses as easily, and some schools offered fewer scholarships. The “extra year of eligibility” granted to college athletes who missed a year due to the pandemic also increased competition for scholarships, making it more challenging for incoming freshmen.

Academic scholarships are generally more widely available than athletic scholarships. Many colleges and universities offer various types of academic scholarships, including merit-based and need-based aid, making them more accessible.

According to Bartlett athletic director Tony Paranto in the past the academic scholarship money primarily went to the book worms, but things are changing.

“Fifteen years ago when I took over as AD, athletes were getting a lot of awards, but that number started dropping. Things seem to be moving back up and athletes receiving academic awards are on the upswing,” the Bartlett athletic director said. “Seventy percent of our student athletes received scholarship money this year.”

Over the past few years a lot of kids were not taking part in athletics as much as they did a decade or so ago. A big part of fewer kids taking part in athletics had to do with Covid-19.

“During my generation parents were pushing their kids to play athletics, the millennials don’t see it that way, especially on the youth levels. Not a lot of kids were playing sports and we saw a lot of co-ops pop up,” Paranto said. “Covid took sports away for awhile and kids started to settle in and do other things. Not having sports lead kids in a different direction.”

While Covid had a lot to do with the downswing of kids taking part in sports, that was five years ago and the AD is unsure what caused the recent up tick.

“It’s a new generation and no one can totally figure out why all of a sudden things have changed and it’s not just here,” he said. “I’ve been to a lot of local and national conventions as well as seminars and everyone has no idea what has caused the increase.”

Athletes seem to have become academically stronger; they’re buckling down with their school work and it is showing in the amount of academic scholarships they are receiving.

Paranto cited the Bartlett softball team as an example. In the past the girls playing softball struggled and posted a combined 2.90 GPA, but nowadays they are right up there and a lot of them are making the honor roll.

“The dynamics are changing and those athletes looking to go onto a four-year college have to strive in the classroom as well as on the field if they are hoping to secure scholarship money,” Paranto said. “Things look to be turning in the right direction. It starts with youth sports and moves up to the middle school and then here at the high school level.”

Those athletes that not only want to attend college while playing a sport are going to need to find another way to secure that scholarship money. One way to do that is to succeed in the classroom as well as on the field, giving the athlete two ways to grab some scholarship money. Athletes at Bartlett seem to have already figured out the algorithm and are improving their chances.