Volleyball Scholarships
in the United States and Canada
Although until recently, American sports leagues did not feature players of Spanish origin in their volleyball teams, the presence of Spanish players with volleyball scholarships in the United States and Canada has been increasing in recent years. Academic-level volleyball in the U.S. and Canada allows more and more young people from around the world to combine studies and sport at a high competitive level.
As with all sports, every part of the process is important: academic and athletic profile creation, videos, competitions, experience, and statistics. One of the most crucial aspects in volleyball is creating a video that showcases your playing skills, a highlight video from championships and matches. Training session recordings can also be used. This video should be guided by professionals to increase the chances of success, which is why at Awex Education, we assist you with video recording and its final editing.
University sports in the United States is the only system that allows athletes to combine competitive volleyball with academics. Furthermore, with an athletic scholarship, volleyball players can cover a percentage of their expenses. Many times, academic scholarships are also available to reduce total costs.
These institutions offer volleyball scholarships in the U.S. and Canada for team members, allowing players to finance their studies through volleyball.
Additionally, thanks to this opportunity, volleyball players can experience many advantages over the Spanish system: combining studies and sports, traveling across the U.S. and Canada with the sports team, earning an academic degree from an institution in the U.S. or Canada, learning perfect English, meeting people from many different countries, living unforgettable experiences, and the opportunity to pursue a professional volleyball career in European countries. For all these reasons, players open up a world of possibilities through volleyball.
High School Volleyball
If you are between 12 and 17 years old, have an intermediate level of English, and a GPA higher than 6 out of 10, you can apply for a scholarship to study at a high school in the United States or Canada.
University Volleyball
If you are 16 years old or older, have an intermediate level of English, and a GPA higher than 6 out of 10, you can apply for a scholarship to study at a university in the United States or Canada.
Volleyball in the United States and Canada
Our CEO, William Touchard, explains in detail everything you need to know about the sports program.
Do you have any questions?
The American educational system is the only one that allows students to combine competitive sports with academic studies. In addition, athletes can receive sports scholarships and potentially academic scholarships, which, combined, can reduce the overall academic cost and help finance their studies through volleyball.
Thanks to this opportunity, players can experience many advantages compared to the Spanish system: balancing studies and sports, traveling across the United States and Canada with the sports team, obtaining an academic degree from a U.S. or Canadian institution, learning perfect English, meeting people from many different countries, living unforgettable experiences… These are just a few of the many advantages this option offers. For all these reasons, players are opened up to a world of possibilities through volleyball, making it a way to recover the time and money investment made by athletes and their families in this sport.
Each academic league has a maximum number of volleyball scholarships to distribute. Within those limits, institutions award the scholarship amounts they deem appropriate to each player.
Coaches at educational institutions distribute the volleyball scholarships, both full and partial, among the team members. Typically, players need to be among the best in the team to secure a volleyball scholarship. There are also other opportunities called “walk-ons,” which allow players to join the team without receiving a volleyball scholarship. After one year in this position, depending on the player’s performance, they can earn a volleyball scholarship for the following years.
The number of available volleyball scholarships at each educational institution varies. Each academic league has a maximum number of volleyball scholarships they can offer, but they may offer fewer scholarships than that limit if they decide to or if they do not have the budget for the maximum.
A clear example is universities in the Ivy League (prestigious academic universities like Harvard) that do not offer sports scholarships.
Moreover, volleyball is one of the sports in which coaches can divide the total number of scholarships among team members. It is not necessary to offer a full scholarship to each athlete, and they can offer a percentage of the scholarship or partial scholarships.
Below are tables showing the volleyball scholarship limits each university can offer per volleyball team, the average team size, and the number of universities:
Women’s Volleyball
| University League | Number of Universities | Scholarship Limit per Team | Average Number of Players per Team |
| NCAA D I | 334 | 12 | 16 |
| NCAA DII | 298 | 8 | 16 |
| NCAA DIII * | 437 | – | 16 |
| NAIA | 222 | 8 | 18 |
| NJCAA | 320 | 14 | 13 |
| TOTAL | 1.611 |
Men’s Volleyball
| University League | Number of Universities | Scholarship Limit per Team | Average Number of Players per Team |
| NCAA D I | 22 | 4.5 | 19 |
| NCAA DII | 20 | 4.5 | 18 |
| NCAA DIII * | 94 | – | 13 |
| NAIA | 36 | – | 15 |
| NJCAA | – | – | – |
| TOTAL | 172 |
*Universities in NCAA Division III are unable to offer sports scholarships, but they can offer other types of financial assistance like academic scholarships, which can significantly reduce costs.
The goal of Awex Education is to help athletes from all over the world gain access to an educational institution in the United States with an athletic and/or academic scholarship. Therefore, we seek the best centers for each athlete, as well as the maximum athletic and/or academic scholarship.
Here’s how the process of obtaining a shooting scholarship at an American educational institution works. The first part is where the athlete needs to work to achieve the best possible athletic and academic results:
- Achieve the Highest Volleyball Level Possible: The higher the athlete’s level, the greater their chances of obtaining a shooting volleyball in the U.S. Additionally, they will have a wider range of options to choose from. It is important to plan volleyball training and competition schedules to reach the best possible marks.
- Achieve the Highest Academic Level Possible: It is very important to focus on studies to reach the highest academic level. This way, we can have more options available and even obtain academic scholarships to reduce the annual cost. Proper preparation for the TOEFL and SAT exams is essential.
In the second part of the process, we at Awex Education take over. It is very important to contact Awex Education well in advance and start preparing the process early. This will increase the chances of obtaining a sports scholarship in the United States and provide more options to choose from. We recommend starting the process between 1 and 2 years before the intended start date in the U.S.
We analyze the individual case and their chances of obtaining an athletic scholarship in the United States based on the volleyball level, academic performance, and expectations of the student and their family. At Awex Education, we provide this FREE evaluation with no obligation and meet with the athlete and family to explain the real possibilities. Once the family decides to start the process, we handle the following steps:
- We study the individual case of each athlete, sports level, academic level, and preferences regarding educational institutions. We look for options that best match your preferences and sports, academic, and financial profile. We talk to the family and examine what they are looking for to offer them the best options that meet the family’s requirements.
- We create a personal tracking sheet for each athlete’s case. In this tracking sheet, we plan with the family the steps to follow, exam dates, preparation for these exams (depending on the league’s focus), as well as short-term, medium-term, and long-term objectives of the process.
- We offer support for SAT and TOEFL exam registrations.
- We offer support in creating the sports video with advice and guidance to obtain a good video. The video is very important as it is used to recruit players. We handle the final editing of the athlete’s video.
- With the final video in hand, we create an academic and sports profile of the athlete to contact volleyball coaches.
- We start contacting institutions that match the athlete’s profile and preferences. We work with most educational institutions in the United States, from all states that correspond to the athlete’s profile.
- We negotiate with each coach or institution to obtain the maximum scholarship and the best possible conditions for each athlete.
- We present a report with several options with enough time to make a decision. The report includes information such as: name of the institution, location, size, academic level, sports level, price without scholarship, scholarship amount, annual price to pay…
- We offer several options within the budget. We will always provide several alternatives so that families can choose among them.
- We help the athlete and their family in choosing the institution, we advise and guide, but the final decision is made by the family.
- We handle the signing of the final offer from the educational institution with which the athlete wants to commit.
- We carry out the admission procedure for the academic leagues in which the school competes (NCAA, NAIA, NJCAA).
- We carry out the admission process with the chosen institution (sending transcripts, sending SAT and TOEFL exams, admission paperwork…).
- We finalize the meal and accommodation plans for the athlete.
- We take care of obtaining health insurance in the U.S.
- We handle the processing of the student visa for the U.S. with each athlete.
- We organize the flights and arrival of the athlete to ensure they have someone upon arrival.
- We help with the arrival at the institution with advice and assistance with questions (sending money, banking cards, questions on initial arrival in the U.S.).
- We assist in obtaining academic work within the institution.
- We provide support throughout the athlete’s stay in the United States for anything they need, school changes, questions, or necessary paperwork. All at NO additional cost.
- When students are in their 3rd or 4th year of university, we offer a course at an English university that prepares them for the job market and helps them obtain job offers.
In addition to all this, a very important factor that makes a difference in our service is the personal approach. We are in constant contact with our athletes and their families. We communicate via WhatsApp or calls, and in case of an emergency, you can contact us at any time outside office hours.
Another crucial aspect of securing a good institution is the academic profile, including high school grades, SAT, and TOEFL scores. If two students have very similar athletic levels, but there is a significant academic difference, the coach will usually offer the volleyball scholarship to the better student.
This is because students must meet certain academic minimums, which makes academics just as important as volleyball in several ways:
- Sports Acceptability: Students must meet academic requirements to be accepted into academic leagues.
- To be admitted into educational institutions, the volleyball player must meet the academic requirements for the SAT and TOEFL exams.
- It’s also possible to earn an academic scholarship that can be added to the sports scholarship amount, resulting in a higher total scholarship. To obtain academic scholarships, students need good high school grades and solid SAT and TOEFL scores.
Therefore, the higher the grades, the greater the range of options available, and the more financial support the student will receive.
Each institution or coach has different academic requirements. This is why Awex Education studies each athlete’s academic and sports profile to find the best university that will meet the athlete’s profile and preferences.
In the United States and Canada, there are more than a thousand schools with volleyball teams that are part of various academic leagues. Within this wide range of schools, their volleyball level is also very wide. We put as a reference the level of volleyball required to qualify for volleyball scholarships in the United States and Canada depending on the academic league, however, this level may vary, the level of a volleyball player not only depends on the league in which he competes so from Awex Education we analyze each case individually.
NCAA Division I:
These are larger centers with a greater number of sports, mainly universities in this league have a higher level in sports than those in the other leagues.
- Academic requirements: SAT and TOEFL exams.
- Men’s volleyball level: Superleague, Superleague 2 or junior national team experience.
- Women’s volleyball level: Superleague, Superleague 2 or junior national team experience.
NCAA Division II:
These are smaller sized universities with a good level of athletics sometimes the athletic level can be higher than some NCAA Division I, NAIA type universities in size and facilities.
- Academic requirements: SAT and TOEFL exams.
- Men’s volleyball level: Experience in Superliga 2, top 10 in Spain in youth category, selection of their autonomous community in cadet category, concentrations with the national youth team.
- Women’s volleyball level: Experience in Superliga 2, top 10 in Spain in the youth category, selection of their autonomous community in the cadet category, concentrations with the national youth team.
NCAA Division III:
These are universities that by college league rules cannot give athletic scholarships, but have other types of aid such as academic scholarships that can lower their cost considerably. They are mainly very good academic universities.
- Academic requirements: SAT and TOEFL exams with good grades. Good academic level.
- Men’s volleyball level: Experience in federated teams in national competitions.
- Women’s volleyball level: experience on nationally competitive federated teams.
NAIA:
These are universities with characteristics similar to NCAA Division II universities. They have simpler rules in terms of age to compete in them.
- Academic requirements: SAT and TOEFL exams.
- Men’s volleyball level: Superliga 2 or 1st national experience.
- Women’s volleyball level: Experience in Superliga 2, 1st national or top 10 of Spain in youth category.
Junior College:
These are two-year universities, where the first two years of college are completed and then transfer to one of the previous universities to complete the last two years. It can be a good option to improve the academic and sports level and to obtain a better final option. In volleyball it can be a very good option since the coaches of the 4-year universities focus a lot on recruiting players that come from these universities and follow them during their stay in NJCAA for two or one year. You can do one year and transfer to NCAA or NAIA or do two years and then transfer.
- Academic Requirements: No SAT is required, only TOEFL (in some cases TOEFL is not required).
- Men’s volleyball level: There is no NJCAA league for men’s volleyball.
- Women’s volleyball level: Players of different sport level who show good projection in youth category. Coaches will value experience in Superliga 2 or 1st national, as well as good roles played in youth Spanish championships.
Volleyball scholarships in the United States and Canada cover a percentage of the center expenses listed below, in the case of obtaining a full volleyball scholarship all of these expenses will be covered:
- Tuition and fees
Books - Lodging (residence or apartment)
- Meals
- Medical insurance
In addition, all athletes of the volleyball team of the center, whether or not they have volleyball scholarship, always have volleyball expenses covered: volleyball training, physical training, sports equipment, (equipment, sportswear …) official competitions, travel to competitions, (travel, accommodation and meals) academic tutors in case you need help with classes, sports medicine, physiotherapy …
Coaches measure the level of volleyball through several factors:
- Volleyball video. This is the most important part, the coaches do not know the athlete personally so it is important to make a good video of highlights or good moments in matches. You can also put parts of trainings. From Awex Education we guide you to get the best possible material.
- Sports resume (Teams where he/she competed, leagues, statistics…)
- Awex Education evaluation. We see the video of the player, we know the family and evaluate their profile and level, after several years of good work coaches value our honest opinion. Many times the leagues do not show the real level of the athletes as there may be higher levels of athletes in lower leagues as it is a team sport.
With all this information, at Awex Education we evaluate each athlete and family and work with schools that fit their level of volleyball and academics, with a good chance of getting an athletic scholarship and playing on the team.
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