College Advising

Athletic Recruitment

NCAA Division I Eligibility

The NCAA has specific course credit requirements in order for a student to participate in collegiate athletics. Therefore, if you aspire to play Division I athletics, you should be mindful of the NCAA course requirements below. Since these course requirements must be satisfied in the first four years of high school, Division I-minded students who have repeated a year of high school should be extra vigilant and review the information below. The College Office and dean of academic life will look through your transcripts, but please review your credits and courses before contacting us so that our discussions can be more focused and efficient. Most questions about eligibility are answered in the Guide for the College Bound Student Athlete.

Overview

In order to be eligible to compete in Division I College Athletics, a student must have over a 2.0 GPA in sixteen core courses and have the minimum SAT or ACT scores for that GPA (see the NCAA Eligibility Center website for the NCAA GPA/Testing Sliding Scale). Note that the initial-eligibility standards for NCAA Division I college-bound athletes are changing. Student-athletes entering a Division I college or university after August 1, 2016, must have over a 2.3 GPA (see New NCAA Division I Initial-Eligibility Standards). The sixteen core courses, however, will remain the same:

4 years of English
3 years of mathematics (Algebra I or higher)
2 years of natural/physical science (one must be a lab science)
1 year of additional English, math or science
2 years of social studies
4 years of additional core courses (from any area listed above, or from foreign language, comparative religion or philosophy)

Note: students who will begin college in the fall of 2016 or later must satisfy 10 of the 16 core courses by the end of their 3rd year in high school.

N.B. Computer Science and Visual Arts/Performing Arts courses are not NCAA approved. Environmental Ethics and Robotics are not approved, but pending review.

Students arriving at Hotchkiss after ninth grade should consult with their coaches and the Academic and College Office.

* Reminder: These requirements do not apply to Division III athletics.

Frequently Asked Questions

In summary...

  1. If a student starts at Hotchkiss as a ninth grader, he or she should be fine. Humanties accounts for 6 credits (2 English, 2 History and 2 Philosophy/Religion). If a student takes 4 years of Math, 2 of Science (at a minimum) and 3 of Languages (at a minimum), and a year of electives in science, history or religion/philosophy, then a student should be fine.
  2. Computer Science and Visual Arts/Performing Arts courses are not NCAA approved. Environmental Ethics and Robotics are not approved, but pending review.
  3. Math and Modern Languages: if a repeat student is placed “back” in these subjects, then contact the dean of academic life or College Office before classes begin. (Example: took algebra or pre-cal at previous school and Hotchkiss places them in these courses again; or the student took Spanish I or French II at previous school and Hotchkiss places the student in Spanish 150 or French 250). The NCAA does not count what it perceives at repeat courses. It may be to the students benefit to switch languages. There is not much we can do about math, but it may necessitate the student taking extra English).

College Advising Office

Office phone:

(860) 435-3180

Office fax:

(860) 435-3157

Serena Oh Castellano
Director of College Advising

Wayne Berger
Associate Director

Katherine Boyd
Associate Director

Daniel Creasy
Associate Director

Annie Hall
Senior Associate Director

Langston Ross
Associate Director of College Advising

Josh Smith
Senior Associate Director

Diana Jones
Administrative Assistant to College Advising