The information listed here will help prospective student-athletes understand some basic rules and regulations regarding the recruiting process. In general, a prospective student-athlete (prospect) is defined as an individual that has begun classes for the 9th grade.

Recruiting Materials

According to NCAA rules, the following are considered recruiting materials (this is not an all-inclusive list): general correspondence (letters, postcards), business cards, e-mails, game programs, media guides, schedule cards, student-athlete handbooks. Such materials cannot be provided to a prospect prior to September 1 at the beginning of her/his junior year in high school. In the sport of men's basketball, such materials cannot be provided to a prospect prior to the conclusion of her/his sophomore year in high school.

Contacts

A contact is any face-to-face encounter between a prospect {parent(s), legal guardian(s), relative(s)} and a coach that goes beyond an exchange of a greeting. In all sports except football, a coach can make one contact with a prospect during April of her/his junior year in high school. All such contacts must occur at the prospect's educational institution. Thereafter, contacts cannot occur until July 1 following the prospect's junior year in high school (July 15 for women's gymnastics). In the sport of football, contacts generally cannot be made until the end of November of the prospect's senior year in high school.

Evaluations

An evaluation is any activity designed to assess the academic qualifications or athletics ability of a prospect. Prospects can be evaluated at any point in their high school career, provided they occur during permissible evaluation periods.

Telephone Calls

In sports other than football, men's basketball and women's basketball, one telephone call can be made to a prospect in March of his/her junior year in high school. Subsequent telephone calls cannot be made until July 1 of that same year and are limited, with some exceptions, to one per week.

In the sports of men's and women's basketball, one telephone call can be made to a prospect in March of his/her junior year in high school. A second call can be made on or after June 21 of that same year. Three additional calls can be made during July of that same year. Thereafter, telephone calls are limited, with some exceptions, to one per week.

In the sport of football, one telephone call can be made to a prospect during May of his junior year in high school. Additional telephone calls cannot be made until September 1 of the prospect's senior year in high school and are limited, with some exceptions, to one per week. Unlimited telephone calls are permitted during contact periods.

Coaches can accept telephone calls from prospects at any time, provided they occur at the prospect's expense.

NCAA Eligibility Center/ Initial Eligibility Requirements

For information regarding the NCAA Eligibility Center and initial eligibility requirements, please visit the NCAA Eligibility Center web site (direct link located on our Links page).

Official Visits

An official visit is one where an institution pays the expenses associated with a prospect's visit (transportation, meals, lodging, entertainment). In order to make an official visit, a prospect must: 1) have started classes for his/her senior year in high school, 2) provided the institution with a standardized test score (PSAT, SAT, PLAN, ACT) and 3) provided the institution with an academic transcript (high school or college). Prospects are limited to 5 official visits during their senior year in high school and cannot visit an institution more than once.

Unofficial Visits

An unofficial visit is one where the prospect pays his or her own expenses (transportation, meals, lodging) to visit an institution. On an unofficial visit, the only expense that an institution can provide is complimentary admissions (tickets) to a home athletics event. An institution can provide a maximum of 3 complimentary admissions (prospect plus two guests). Additional complimentary admissions must be purchased in the same manner as the general public. There is no limit on the number of unofficial visits that a prospect can make.

This is not an exhaustive list of NCAA recruiting rules. Questions should be directed to the NCAA or the University of Iowa Compliance Office.