What Does An Unofficial Visits Mean?
Beginning your freshman year in high school, you may have heard some of your peers talking about unofficial visits to colleges. You might be familiar with the idea of an official visit, but there are nuances between an official and an unofficial visit that may not be so clear to you. While an official visit can be financed by the university, an unofficial visit is a trip to a college campus in which the student pays for all transportation, housing, and meals. While this may be the most obvious difference between these two types of visits, you may be wondering what it actually means to go on an unofficial visit.
The purpose of your unofficial visit depends on your year in high school and the division level that you are recruiting for. As an upperclassmen or any athlete recruiting for Division 2, 3 or NAIA colleges an unofficial visit can lead to a verbal offer. But as an underclassmen recruiting Division 1, visiting a college is a way to show your interest and see if a college is a good fit for you. While called “unofficial,” these visits can be very organized with scheduled itineraries and meetings with coaches and staff.
Unofficial visits can be extremely important in some athlete’s recruiting processes, while for others it can be just a way to get a feel for a college’s campus. This article will help explain the rules around unofficial visits as well as the different situations an athlete may be in when taking an unofficial visit and what each of these situations mean for the student.
The Basics Of Unofficial Visits
While being “unofficial,” these visits still are regulated by the NCAA and it is important to understand the rules before you go on your first unofficial visit. An unofficial visit is any visit that a student finances themselves. Unlike official visits where the college can pay for the athletes meals, transportation, and housing, in unofficial visits the college can only give the student 3 complementary tickets and free transportation to the sporting venue if it is within 30 miles.
How Many Unofficial Visits Can You Go On?: Unlike official visits, you are allowed to go on as many unofficial visits as you want. You can also start going on unofficial visits anytime in your high school career. Colleges also don’t have restrictions on how many athletes they can host on unofficial visits. The only restriction of when you can schedule an unofficial visit is that it can’t be during NCAA regulated “dead periods,” unless you have already signed a National Letter of Intent for that college.
What Happens On An Unofficial Visit: While each college has a different schedule for unofficial visits most include a meeting with the coaching and training staff. You should come prepared to answer questions as well as to ask questions. You will also likely go on a tour of the college campus including dorms, dining halls, and academic buildings, as well as a tour of the athletic facilities. You will also likely meet with an academic advisor and attend a home sporting event.
When Can I Expect To Get An Offer?: The goal of an unofficial visit is to hopefully receive a verbal offer. Unofficial visits used to be a way for athletes to receive verbal offers early in their high school career. However, with changes to NCAA rules, athletes are only allowed to start having recruiting conversations with coaches during unofficial visits to Division 1 colleges once they are a junior in high school.
Even though you may not be allowed to have a recruiting conversation with coaches when you take an unofficial visit as an underclassmen, you should still visit colleges you are interested in during this time. Taking an unofficial visit shows that you are interested in the college and helps you figure out if the college is a right fit for you.
The Goal Of Your Unofficial Visit
Depending on your year in high school and the division you are recruiting into, there are different goals or purposes for your unofficial visit. This is because of the NCAA rules that prohibit underclassmen from having recruiting conversations with Division 1 coaches. It is important to go into your unofficial visit knowing what to expect and what you want to get out of your time visiting.
If You Are An Underclassmen Recruiting D1: As an underclassmen visiting a Division 1 college you are restricted from going on an unofficial visit in the traditional sense. This means you cannot meet to talk with coaches but you can still receive free tickets to an athletic competition. However, you can and should still visit the colleges you are interested in by taking a regular admissions tour. This will help you get a feel for the campus and evaluate if you would enjoy going to that college.
If You Are An Upperclassmen Recruiting D1: As an upperclassmen taking an unofficial visit to a Division 1 school your end goal is to secure a verbal offer. Some coaches may give verbal offers at the end of the visit, while some take more time and may contact you later. Thus, it is important to remain patient and keep up communication with coaches.
If You Are Recruiting D2, D3, Or NAIA: There are no restrictions about when you can take an unofficial visit to a Division 2, 3, or NAIA college. Thus, use this to your advantage to start meeting with coaches early on in your high school career.
It is important to remember that colleges also host athletes for official visits. Thus, if you are going on an unofficial visit you likely are not at the very top of their recruiting list as they likely host the athletes they are most interested in for official visits. However, each college is also restricted to only hosting a certain amount of official visits. Thus, just because you are going on an unofficial visit does not mean you won’t receive an offer as coaches can have more scholarship spots than they have official visits
Things To Keep In Mind
Reach Out To Coaches: To arrange an unofficial visit, it is your responsibility to reach out to coaches. While some college coaches may contact you about coming for an unofficial visit, it is usually the athlete that contacts the coach. Before calling or emailing coaches of colleges that you want to visit, find a few days or weekends that work best for you and try to schedule visits of colleges that are close by within the same time period. It may seem daunting to email or call a college coach about going on an unofficial visit, but coaches are used to receiving these messages and should respond respectfully.
Reaching Out To The Right Coaches: You should reach out to coaches about going on unofficial visits only if you have been in communication with them. Coaches will likely not accept your request for an unofficial visit if it is the first email they have ever received from you. Ensure that they have seen your highlight video and that the coach has shown prior interest before asking to go on an unofficial visit to their campus.
Be Yourself: It is extremely important to be honest and transparent on your unofficial visits. You want the coach to understand where you are in the recruiting process. It is also important to be yourself. This will help the coach to gain an accurate understanding of who you are and help you evaluate if you are a good fit for that program.
Write A Thank You Note: Many athletes forget to write a thank you note to coaches after an unofficial visit, but it can be extremely beneficial. Sending a personalized thank you note shows your interest in the college and your commitment to keep up communication with the coach.