THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SAT TEST OF PROSPECTIVE STUDENT-ATHLETES

BY GAVIN DEAR

In the U.S. College system there are Academic scholarships and Athletic scholarships, most institutions allow these scholarships to be combined. This is why the SAT Test is so important for prospective Student-athletes.

Let’s consider a University we shall call Sample University.

At Sample University the total cost for a student is $10,000 a year.

The Men’s golf coach has a total of 4.5 scholarships which equals $45,000.

Golf is an equivalency sport, which means the golf coach has flexibility on how the 4.5 scholarships are allocated, for example:

The Sample University Men’s golf team athletic scholarship breakdown

Sample University Team	Athletic  Scholarship	Full Scholarship %
Player 1	$9000	90%
Player 2	$8000	80%
Player 3	$7500	75%
Player 4	$6000	60%
Player 5	$5000	50%
Player 6	$3500	35%
Player 7	$3500	35%
Player 8	$2500	25%
Player 9	$0	0%
Total	$45000

The Sample University coach has used his whole $45000 scholarship and split it amongst 9 players. Splitting scholarships is very common!

Now let’s factor in Academic scholarships.

At Sample University if a student has a SAT of 1200 they are eligible for an Academic scholarship which is $2000 (at other Universities this figure could be different).

The Sample University Men’s golf team combined scholarship breakdown

SU Team	Athletic S'ship	SAT Score	Academic Scholarship	Total Scholarship	Full Scholarship %
Player 1	$9000	900	$0	$9000	90%
Player 2	$8000	1280	$2000	$10000	100%
Player 3	$7500	1020	$0	$7500	75%
Player 4	$6000	1410	$2000	$8000	80%
Player 5	$5000	1200	$2000	$7000	70%
Player 6	$3500	920	$0	$3500	35%
Player 7	$3500	1230	$2000	$5500	55%
Player 8	$2500	1100	$0	$2500	25%
Player 9	$0	1450	$2000	$2000	20%
Total	$45000		$10000	$55000

If the Sample University coach was able to recruit some players with a SAT score of over 1200 he can combine Academic and Athletic scholarships which allow his Athletic scholarship budget of $45,000 to go further. The coach has actually given his players a total scholarship of $55,000.

To retain an Academic scholarship students will be required to maintain a certain GPA (Grade Point Average) throughout their degree.

Hopefully you can now see the importance of the SAT and how it can make you a more attractive prospective student athlete and also demonstrate how it can save money for the individual scholar.

For more information please check out the Golf Scholars website www.golfscholars.com or contact Gavin Dear at gavin@golfscholars.com