Women's Swimming

Swimming College Athletic Scholarships for Women

If you’re a high school swimmer who wants to swim at the college level, you probably already know you’ll face stiff competition for both a spot on the roster and scholarship money. We’re here to help. This is a resource for you to use during your college planning and placement process that will help you get noticed, meet deadlines and achieve your goals.

Never forget, in swimming—as in all collegiate sports—you need to take charge of your own recruiting. Narrow down the schools you’d like to attend and compete for. Then, take responsibility for introducing yourself to your sport’s decision-makers at these schools. Keep yourself in front of them in a professional, respectful way with regular emails or phone calls. Work hard to improve your athletic performance while also keeping an eye on your academics.

Earning a spot on any college team—and maybe even being awarded athletic scholarship money—isn’t easy, but don’t despair. While it takes time, discipline and persistence, it is doable.

Women’s Collegiate Swimming—Divisions

As in other college sports, women’s swimming is organized by division under two primary governing bodies: the NCAA and NAIA. Here’s an overview of how these divisions work.

NCAA Division – Swim Women’s Programs

• There are 200 women’s Division I swim colleges in the U.S. If you dream of being recruited for a DI team, you’re competing against the best swimmers in the country for a roster spot. As such, coaches at these schools can be as picky as they like when it comes to recruiting.
• College sports in general are classified as either head count or equivalency. The main difference between the two in the NCAA is how scholarship money is awarded to athletes. Head count sports have a set number of full-ride scholarships awarded to individual athletes. Equivalency sports have a set amount of scholarship money that coaches divide amongst their rosters.
• Swimming is an equivalency sport, so scholarship money is usually divided amongst several student athletes. This means coaches can divide their funds in any number of ways. One student athlete may get a full scholarship. Another may get just partial tuition and room and board covered. Another may get her lab fees and books covered. So on and so forth.

Top Division I Swim Programs for Women

Next College Student Athlete (NCSA) offers Power Rankings of the country’s best colleges with women’s swim programs, and are compiled using a number of data sources that factor in various aspects of the college experience, including such things as cost and graduation rates. Use it as a starting point in your search for a college-level swim program you’d like to be accepted into.

1. Stanford University
2. Harvard University
3. University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
4. Princeton University
5. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
6. Yale University
7. University of California
8. Duke University
9. Columbia University
10. University of Florida

NCAA Division II – Swim Women’s Programs

• There are 77 DII women’s swimming programs in the U.S. Student athletes there will see an abundance of talent and many swimmers with the ability to compete successfully at the DI level, but DII offers a better balance between academics, athletics and the social aspects of college.
• More than 50% of these DII universities have less than 2,500 students, a very manageable scale versus a big DI school. So if you want to compete at a high level while maintaining more life balance, DII colleges could bring clarity to your college selection process. Swimming will be a large part of your life at a DII school, but it will also leave you with more time for other pursuits.

Top Division II Swim Programs for Women

NCSA offers Power Rankings of the country’s best colleges with women’s swim programs, and are compiled using a number of data sources that factor in various aspects of the college experience, including such things as cost and graduation rates. Use it as a starting point in your search for a college-level swim program you’d like to be accepted into.

1. University of California, San Diego
2. Bentley University
3. Truman State University
4. Colorado School of Mines
5. Rollins College
6. Grand Valley State University
7. Hillsdale College
8. Assumption College
9. University of Tampa
10. Augustana University, South Dakota

NCAA Division III – Swim Women’s Programs

• There are 242 Division III women’s swimming colleges. That’s more than at any other level. Swimmers who want to push themselves academically as well as athletically may find the best fit at a DIII school—able to develop as athletes while still having time and flexibility in their schedules to pursue passions and interests outside of swimming.
• Notably, DIII schools don’t offer athletic scholarships. However, academic-related grants can, and often are, used in lieu of athletic scholarships. Since many DIII swimmers receive financial aid, seeking a DIII roster spot is often a good way to offset the overall cost of college.

Top Division III Swim Programs for Women

NCSA offers Power Rankings of the country’s best colleges with women’s swim programs, and are compiled using a number of data sources that factor in various aspects of the college experience, including such things as cost and graduation rates. Use it as a starting point in your search for a college-level swim program you’d like to be accepted into.

1. Johns Hopkins University
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
3. Emory University
4. Amherst College
5. California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
6. Tufts University
7. Pomona-Pitzer Colleges
8. Swarthmore College
9. University of Chicago
10. Washington University in St. Louis

NAIA – Swim Women’s Programs

• Consisting of generally smaller campuses than the NCAA schools, the NAIA can offer student athletes a more well-rounded college experience than even DIII schools.
• There are 31 NAIA schools that offer women’s swimming, and fully funded teams can offer up to eight scholarships, which are typically divided amongst the various student athletes. That means the amount of scholarship money a swimmer may receive depends on the school, the coach and how they decide to use the overall funds.

Top NAIA Swim Programs for Women

Next College Student Athlete (NCSA) offers Power Rankings of the country’s best colleges with women’s swim programs, and are compiled using a number of data sources that factor in various other aspects of the college experience, including cost and graduation rates. Use it as a starting point in your search for a college-level swim program you’d like to be accepted into.

1. Soka University of America
2. The College of Idaho
3. Asbury University
4. Indiana Wesleyan University
5. Loyola University New Orleans
6. Morningside College
7. Robert Morris University, Illinois
8. Bethel University, Indiana
9. Columbia College, South Carolina
10. The Master’s University

What Does It Take to Become A Collegiate Swimmer?

For starters, it doesn’t hurt if you have great times, but there are other ways to get the attention of a coach. As an example, how do you respond to adversity? How do you manage stress or pressure? Remember, recruiters are looking at the big picture, the total athlete.

Getting recruited also takes name recognition. In almost all instances, you need to let coaches know you’re interested in getting into their swim programs.

• Take every opportunity to learn from top swim coaches in your area so you can improve your performance. Volunteer at the Y, or mentor a younger student athlete.
• Participate in swim camps. This is a good way to catch the eye of the coaching staff at the college, university, or other organization sponsoring the event. Staff from nearby schools often lend a hand at these events, so they’ll be watching, too. SPIRE Academy swim camps are for those athletes who aspire to attend SPIRE Academy Swim program, which is where college coaches find you!
• Overall, these events are a great way to build connections, improve your physical performance and mental toughness, and get an idea of what kinds of coaches and programs you respond to best. Many of these sessions will also create a video of your performance, which will prove invaluable as a way of putting yourself in front of coaches.
• On that note, if you don’t have one already, create a good-quality video that shows you competing and highlights your form.

You may have talent, and you may have self-discipline, but unless you get your name out there in a consistent and respectful way, you may fly under your preferred program’s radar. Show those coaches how much you want to compete for them in their swim program. That type of drive gets attention and will help you distinguish yourself from those you’re competing with.

When Can Colleges Start Recruiting for Women’s Swimming?

The NCAA dictates when and how college coaches can contact potential recruits.

For NCAA DI and DII coaches, contact is essentially off-limits until June 15 after the recruit’s sophomore year in high school. College coaches at the DIII and NAIA levels, however, don’t have the same restrictions on when they can reach out to recruits, i.e., they can reach out to anyone they’re interested in at any time.

On August 1 before junior year, NCAA swimming recruiting rules permit student athletes and their families to take an “official visit.” This means that recruiting efforts really ramp up during junior year. Coaches can send non-recruiting material, like brochures or camp information, at any time. This is also the same time that college coaches can begin communicating with high school and club coaches about their student athletes.

In creating these rules, the NCAA was trying to make sure elite recruits didn’t get overwhelmed by constant contact from coaches. But the same rules mean it can be tough for swimming families to know when to expect contact from colleges.

Women’s Collegiate Swimming Recruiting Standards

How fast do I need to be? Am I good enough to compete at the college level? If you’re thinking about making the transition from high school swimming to collegiate swimming you’ve probably already asked yourself these questions. The times below, sourced from NCSA, show what coaches at every level of collegiate competition are looking for.

Final Thoughts on Achieving Your Goal

As mentioned earlier, while earning a spot on any college team isn’t easy, with time, discipline and persistence it is doable. Here are some final words of wisdom and strategy on the matter.

• Find The Right Match
  By researching schools, and targeting programs where your particular skills would add to the team’s ability to put up points, you have a better chance of not just landing a spot on a college roster but even getting some scholarship money. So do your homework and find a program that will benefit from your event strengths. It’s a good way to make yourself stand out to a recruiter.
• Create A Target List
  After you’ve done your research, create a list of schools you’re competitive for. There might be a range of programs that span several different levels, and that’s fine. As an example, your event times may put you in the mix for DI recruiting, but if you consider DII or NAIA programs, as well, you might have a better chance of earning a roster spot. Putting it all done on paper (or in a digital document) will help you order your thoughts and see the overall situation more clearly.
• Keep Up Your Grades
  Speaking of homework, make sure you keep a focus on your academics as you strive for excellence in your sport. Recruiters will be looking at both. Make sure you’re taking classes as required by the NCAA Eligibility Center, as well as the ACTs and SATs. And if you do land a spot on a college swim team, you’re going to be expected to keep up your academic performance along with your athletic performance, so you might as well get used to doing it now. Good luck!