2.3 OR TAKE A KNEE

To play Division I sports, you need to qualify academically. To meet the minimum requirements for Division I student-athletes enrolling in college in August 2016 or later you must:

Graduate from high school
Complete 16 Core Courses, including 10 before your seventh semester
Earn a minimum 2.300 Grade-Point Average in core courses to compete in your first year of college
Earn a combined SAT or ACT score that matches your core-course GPA on a sliding scale. For example an 860 SAT score needs a 2.400 GPA for practice and aid and a 2.85 GPA for competition.

CORE COURSES

NCAA member schools require incoming student-athletes to build a foundation of high school courses that will best prepare them for the academic expectations in college.

To play Division I sports, you must earn 16 core courses.
Ten of them must be completed prior to the seventh semester. Those ten courses are “locked in” and can’t be retaken to improve the grade-point average.
Seven of those 10 must be a combination of English, math or natural or physical science that fulfills the overall distribution requirements listed below.
If you don’t earn 10 courses before your seventh semester, you are still eligible to practice and receive a scholarship, but you can’t compete.
For a complete list of your high school’s NCAA core courses, visit www.eligibilitycenter.org.

Division I Core Course Requirements

4 years of English.
3 years of mathematics (Algebra I or higher).
2 years of natural/physical science (1 year of lab if offered by high school).
1 year of additional English, mathematics or natural/physical science.
2 years of social science.
4 years of additional courses (from any area above, foreign language or comparative religion/philosophy).

GRADE POINT-AVERAGE

Incoming student-athletes must present a grade-point average that predicts academic success at the collegiate level.

Beginning August 1, 2016, you must earn at least a 2.300 GPA in NCAA core courses to be eligible to compete in your first year of college.
To get a scholarship and practice, you must earn at least a 2.000 GPA in NCAA core courses.
Only courses that appear on your high school’s list of NCAA courses will be used to calculate your GPA for NCAA eligibility purposes. For a complete list of your school’s courses, visit www.eligibilitycenter.org.
Once ten core courses are “locked in” prior to the start of your seventh semester, you can’t take those classes over again to improve your GPA.
Division I uses a sliding scale to match test scores and core GPAs.

NCAA Division I Sliding Scale B

GPA for aid and practice	GPA for competition	SAT	ACT
3.550	4.000	400	37
3.525	3.975	410	38
3.500	3.950	420	39
3.475	3.925	430	40
3.450	3.900	440	41
3.425	3.875	450	41
3.400	3.850	460	42
3.375	3.825	470	42
3.350	3.800	480	43
3.325	3.775	490	44
3.300	3.750	500	44
3.275	3.725	510	45
3.250	3.700	520	46
3.225	3.675	530	46
3.200	3.650	540	47
3.175	3.625	550	47
3.150	3.600	560	48
3.125	3.575	570	49
3.100	3.550	580	49
3.075	3.525	590	50
3.050	3.500	600	50
3.025	3.475	610	51
3.000	3.450	620	52
2.975	3.425	630	52
2.950	3.400	640	53
2.925	3.375	650	53
2.900	3.350	660	54
2.875	3.325	670	55
2.850	3.300	680	56
2.825	3.275	690	56
2.800	3.250	700	57
2.775	3.225	710	58
2.750	3.200	720	59
2.725	3.175	730	60
2.700	3.150	740	61
2.675	3.125	750	61
2.650	3.100	760	62
2.625	3.075	770	63
2.600	3.050	780	64
2.575	3.025	790	65
2.550	3.000	800	66
2.525	2.975	810	67
2.500	2.950	820	68
2.475	2.925	830	69
2.450	2.900	840	70
2.425	2.875	850	70
2.400	2.850	860	71
2.375	2.825	870	72
2.350	2.800	880	73
2.325	2.775	890	74
2.300	2.750	900	75
2.275	2.725	910	76
2.250	2.700	920	77
2.225	2.675	930	78
2.200	2.650	940	79
2.175	2.625	950	80
2.150	2.600	960	81
2.125	2.575	970	82
2.100	2.550	980	83
2.075	2.525	990	84
2.050	2.500	1000	85
2.025	2.475	1010	86
2.000	2.450	1020	86
	2.425	1030	87
	2.400	1040	88
	2.375	1050	89
	2.350	1060	90
	2.325	1070	91
	2.300	1080	93

Use for Division I beginning August 1, 2016

TEST SCORES

Data show that while GPA is a better predictor of collegiate success than test scores, using the two in combination is the best method. The NCAA continues to emphasize GPA over test scores when assessing college preparedness.

Division I uses a sliding scale to match test scores and core-course grade-point averages to determine eligibility.
The NCAA uses only the critical reading and math SAT scores to determine eligibility. The writing score is not used.
The NCAA uses only the sum of English, math, reading and science ACT scores to determine eligibility.