Navigating recruiting and tryouts can be tricky—especially when it comes to understanding when a student officially becomes identified and how to manage contact across institutions. The following overview outlines the core principles every NAIA coach should know, with links to full Interpretations Library articles for deeper guidance.
Link to NAIA Bylaws:
Prospective Student-Athlete Definition & Exceptions
🎯 Recruiting Basics
Recruiting activity must align with NAIA bylaws to ensure fairness and institutional transparency.
- Notification Requirement: NAIA coaches must notify the current institution within 10 days when contacted by a student-athlete from another NAIA school.
- No “Permission to Contact” Rule: Unlike other associations, the NAIA doesn’t require prior approval—only notification.
- Non-NAIA Athletes: Coaches may freely contact NCAA, NJCAA, or USCAA athletes without notification or transfer-portal requirements.
- Institutional Transparency: Contact must be handled at the administrative level—coach-to-coach communication alone does not satisfy the rule.
📘 Read more: Basics of Recruiting for NAIA Coaches
🏫 Campus Visits and Tryouts
Campus visits and tryouts must protect academic progress and be consistent with institutional policy for all special-talent students.
- Tryout Limits: Each prospective student-athlete is allowed up to two days of tryouts per institution.
- Practice vs. Tryout: Tryouts with prospective students are not considered practice unless current team members identified with the school are involved.
- Expenses: Institutions can only pay for travel, meals, or lodging if those benefits are available to all special-talent students, not just athletes.
📘 Read more: Basics of Campus Visits & Tryouts
🎓 Who Is a Prospective Student-Athlete?
A prospective student is any individual who has never identified with a collegiate institution, or whose most recent identification was elsewhere.
- Identification Occurs When: A student is enrolled in 12 or more institutional credit hours as verified on the census date.
- Practice & Competition Exceptions:
- Summer (May 16–July 31): Allowed if enrolled full-time in summer or registered for 12+ fall credits.
- Pre-term or Break Practices: Allowed if a high school graduate, not attending another college, and within the team’s 24-week season.
📘 Read more: Basics of a Prospective Student-Athlete
🔁 Transfer Students and Contact Rules
Transfers follow the same recruiting transparency principles.
- NAIA-to-NAIA Transfers: Require written notification to the current school within 10 days of contact.
- Non-NAIA Transfers: Coaches can initiate contact anytime—no release or notification needed.
- Releases: Only an athletics director may issue a contact or transfer release; coaches cannot.
📘 Read more: Basics of a Transfer
✅ Key Takeaways for Coaches
- Always align tryouts and visits with your school’s policy for all special-talent students.
- Limit tryouts to two days per student per institution.
- Notify NAIA schools of recruiting contact within 10 days.
- A student isn’t identified until enrolled in 12 institutional credits.
- Exceptions exist for summer or pre-term participation—but only under the outlined conditions.
By following these standards, coaches can maintain compliance while creating positive, transparent recruiting experiences for student-athletes.
