How To Become A College Gymnast? [6 Rules Not To Be Missed]

"How to become a college gymnast?" is a common gymnastics question among students who want to pursue college via scholarship. Although gymnastics scholarships are being offered everywhere in the country, the spots are pretty scarce. It's one of the most competitive sports when it comes to getting scholarships. 

Getting a scholarship through gymnastics needs years of preparation to get the highest chances. NCAA has some rules laid out for schools regarding their recruitment. To make your chances bigger, you should know a few things to get started.

Benefits of Being a College Gymnast

The first and the biggest advantage of being one is getting admitted to a high-regarded school. You can do what you love and get a high-quality education at the same time. Besides, high-regarded coaches are often found teaching in universities to see if there is someone they can train for the Olympics. 

Another benefit of getting scholarships is avoiding huge student loans. It takes a lot of years to pay a student loan. A lot of young professionals are being held back from saving because of the student loans that they got during their university years. By getting a scholarship, you can start saving and investing your income. 

And last but not least, getting a college scholarship via gymnastics is a motivation to improve your sport and your grades. Getting the scholarship is the easiest part of this journey. If you want to keep it, you must work for it. To get that scholarship, here are the things you need to know.

The 6 College Gymnastics Requirements

1. Be Excellent: both in gymnastics and studying

The National Collegiate Athletic Association is strict in its implementation of college scholarship rules. Schools usually start their scouting in 9th grade, though schools can only send offers in 11th grade. If the school sees you as an outstanding prospect athlete, they will offer a chance. You should rack up your achievements or start doing it right at that time. If schools do not contact you until the fall of 12th grade, don't give up just yet. The important year in recruitment is your Junior year.

Stack up your achievements and improve your skills. Don't forget to also keep your grades good before college. When it comes to scholarships, your grade says a lot about you. It reflects your ability to handle stress and keeping your scholarship afloat. It will be pointless to find and train someone who might drop the scholarship next semester. Good grades are also required if you want to represent your school and compete with other tournaments.

2. Record Your Routines

Whether you're competing or just practicing, you need to have some recordings of your best routine performances. A lot of aspiring gymnasts widely overlook this part. Recording videos in each of your practice might not be practical. However, make sure that someone's recording your performance in competitions. 

This step is very important, especially to gymnasts who have reached level 9 or level 10 already. (Check out this post for better understanding of the junior gymnastics levels). When you join a gymnastics competition, keep a detailed record of your scorecards. If you want to market yourself early on, making a YouTube channel is a great start. This way, coaches can see your performances and improvements throughout the years.

3. Pursue college gymnastics camps

Visiting the camp is a great way to market yourself early on. Even if you're good at your sport, if coaches aren't aware of your talent, you'll unlikely get a scholarship offer. Coaches who are scouting for talents will likely take a look at gymnastics camps to see if they can spot a promising talent. It would be very intense and competitive because other athletes will also be vying for a college scholarship.

4. Prepare for the recruitment

Preparation is the key to achieving a lot of things, including a gymnastics scholarship. You need to polish your skills and get to at least level 9. Although we all have that one dream school, it will not hurt to search for other schools that offer gymnastics scholarships. Don't forget to also prepare your physical fitness and health by getting the right exercise and diet daily. A lot of athletes fail to get a scholarship because of poor food choices.

5. Check if you are eligible

To compete on any division, you need certification by NCAA Eligibility Center. NCAA division one requires that the competing participant is at least a high school graduate. You must also complete 16 NCAA-approved core courses, with the first ten courses being completed during the seventh semester. Your school GPA should at least be 2.3 and should match your combined score on the SAT or ACT.

6. leave a good impression

If you haven't received an invitation during your 9th grade or later, its time to get your name out and send your scholarship interest to your preferred school. While you're at it, make sure to leave a good impression to your current coach.

Build a relationship with your coach and show that you respect him or her. Ask for your strengths and weaknesses, and seek advice on what you should do to improve your skills.