NCAA Division I, II and III Membership Criteria
Division
I member institutions have to sponsor at least seven sports for men and
seven for women (or six for men and eight for women) with two team sports for
each gender. Each playing season has to be represented by each gender as well. There
are contest and participant minimums for each sport, as well as scheduling
criteria. For sports other than football and basketball, Div. I schools must
play 100% of the minimum number of contests against Div. I opponents --
anything over the minimum number of games has to be 50% Div. I. Men's and
women's basketball teams have to play all but two games against Div. I teams,
for men, they must play 1/3 of all their contests in the home arena. Schools
that have football are classified as Div. I-A or I-AA. I-A football schools are
usually fairly elaborate programs. Div. I-A teams have to meet minimum
attendance requirements (15,000 people in actual or paid attendance per home
game), which must be met once in a rolling two-year period. Division I-AA teams do not need to meet
minimum attendance requirements. Div. I
schools must meet minimum financial aid awards for their athletics program, and
there are maximum financial aid awards for each sport that a Div. I school
cannot exceed.
Division
II institutions have to sponsor at least five sports for men
and five for women, (or four for men and six for women), with two team sports
for each gender, and each playing season represented by each gender. There are
contest and participant minimums for each sport, as well as scheduling criteria
-- football and men's and women's basketball teams must play at least 50% of
their games against Div. II or I-A or I-AA opponents. For sports other than
football and basketball there are no scheduling requirements. There are not
attendance requirements for football, or arena game requirements for
basketball. There are maximum financial aid awards for each sport that a Div.
II school must not exceed.
Division
III institutions have to sponsor at least five sports for men
and five for women, with two team sports for each gender, and each playing
season represented by each gender. There are minimum contest and participant
minimums for each sport. Division III
athletic departments place special importance on the impact of athletics on the
participants rather than on the spectators.
The student-athletes experience is of paramount concern. Division III athletics encourages
participation by maximizing the number and variety of athletics opportunities
available to students, placing primary emphasis on regional in-season and
conference competition.
|
Opportunities Through Athletics, inc. (Oi) PH: 770-579-6464 |