Developing sport through education: sport Scholarships to America

Athletes USA is a sport scholarship agency founded in 2007 by Christopher Vidal. The aim of our organisation is to provide information and obtain scholarships for athletes from around the world so that they can follow their dreams of a sporting career and be able to pursue a degree at the same time at a good college or university in the United States of America. In 2008 we attended the 4th Small Medium Entrepreneurs Day (SME) in Brussels represented by Microsoft. Since then we have established constructive partnerships with an increasing number of first class multinational organisations. In addition we have contact with more than 3,000 colleges and universities with over 25,000 coaches. The combination of the afore- mentioned elements and other information we have access to enables our team to search for the best sports scholarships for qualifying students.

Why a Sport Scholarship to America?

Athletics - The American college/university environment is very well developed and funded, and continues to produce some of the best sporting talents in the world. Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan and many other successful athletes went through the U.S. college system. To mention a few of the facilities available these include coaching, support networks, sports science, nutrition, physiotherapy, sports psychology, fitness training and councelling, all of which are top world class. Also, it is common for school teams in the U.S. to travel nationwide and compete with each other at well attended sporting events. For this many resources are employed, which include corporate sponsorships along with extensive media and television coverage. In turn, this level of exposure and funding enables colleges and universities to fund sports scholarships for many qualifying athletes. More on Athletic Scholarships.

Academics - One of the key reasons why athletes want to compete in college sports is that it gives them the opportunity to study at a first class school such as Stanford, Duke, Berkeley and UCLA. These and many other good schools offer scholarships and the U.S. is one of the best places in the world where one can effectively combine a top-level sport together with a degree. Moreover, many schools can provide personal tutors and additional classes for these athletes when needed. Many capable athletes don’t pursue a higher education because they fear to lose contact with their sport. This is an unfortunate trade-off for many individuals who may have excellent academic potential and don’t realise it. American colleges/universities can provide the optimal combination of sports and academics and it makes sense for those who feel they have a chance to qualify to aggressively pursue these opportunities.

Interested in Sports Scholarships? View our interactive media pack – Click Here

Case Study – Joe Favata

Joe Favata (21 years old) is a golfer from the UK living in Croydon and he obtained a sports scholarship in August 2009 with the third best junior college for golf in the U.S. He represents his county of Surrey and plays in many national events across the UK. Joe told us that had we not contacted the Surrey Golf Union and shown them the opportunity there was for him to compete in college sports he would have never been aware of what was possible. In 2008 Joe signed on to our exclusive programme through which he got a sports scholarship. By working with our team and partners he obtained a 100 per cent paid tuition scholarship (both academic and sports) to Indian Hills Community College, which is also an NJCAA Division school. Without this 100 per cent scholarship Joe would have had to pay around US$15,000 a year in tuition fees, which he could not have otherwise afforded.

There are three main divisions in the college system for sports; NCAA, NJCAA and NAIA, all of which have their own unique features. The NJCAA is good for international students who are not yet used to big universities and regular daily college life in the U.S. The NJCAA also provides excellent exposure to top NCAA schools like Stanford and Harvard. Joe will attend Indian Hills College for two years and then transfer to an NCAA qualified school in order to compete on a bigger scene.

Our Programmes

We currently have two sport scholarship programmes on offer and a third new programme starting in January 2010.

1. Free Web Promotion
- Athletes can create free web profiles on our website
- Add information about themselves
- Add pictures
- College coaches can search athletes profiles and make contact

2. The Exclusive Programme
- Creation of a sports CV
- Profile creation including video footage
- Athletes USA Team contact college coaches
- Access to Athletes USA partners
- Guaranteed Scholarship Offer

3. New - Web Promotion Plus
Release Date: January 2010
- Athletes can create profile’s including video
- Athletes can search through 25,000 college coaches via our database
- Athletes can have directly contact with coaches via email
- Use sport development features such as personal fitness trainer

If you would like to learn more about our sport scholarship programmes feel free to do so using this link. USA Sport Scholarships

Sport Scholarship

The American college system has a rich history of athletics for men and women athletes. To learn more about the sports you are able to gain sport scholarships for click on the individual sport links below:

American Football Scholarships
Baseball Scholarships
Basketball Scholarships
Bowling Scholarships
Cross Country Scholarships
Fencing Scholarships
Field Hockey Scholarships
Golf Scholarships
Gymnastics Scholarships
Ice Hockey Scholarships
Lacrosse Scholarships
Rifle Scholarships
Rowing Scholarships
Skiing Scholarships
Soccer Scholarships
Softball Scholarships
Swimming or Diving Scholarships
Tennis Scholarships
Track & Field Scholarships
Volleyball Scholarships
Water Polo Scholarships
Wrestling Scholarships

Commonwealth Support Needed

We make frequent contact with athletes who are not aware of their possibilities in obtaining a formal education through sports and due to this we feel many good athletes of many nations, sadly, may never be able to pursue their full academic and athletic potential. For the most part this is due to the lack of financial means. The challenge is to connect these students with the resources that can propel them forward. Playing competitive sports is a very healthy activity that benefits many people and communities both spiritually and economically. Moreover, college graduates returning to their home countries are a needed asset to their nations, either as qualified professionals or role models of being successful professional athletes. There are also the occasional superstars such as the world record Jamaican track runner Usain Bolt.

A key area where governments can provide vital assistance to promising students is with additional financing if needed. Even though a 100 per cent paid tuition scholarship could be obtained for a student there are still other costs to be taken into account that can stop a promising individual from studying abroad or becoming a successful athlete or other kind of professional. These costs include transportation, Visa, health insurance and additional funding for tuition for those who could only get partial scholarships. By providing this critical backing when and where it is needed for these other costs governments can play a pivotal and most valuable role because these expenditures will constitute an investment in their young people and toward the future of the nation as a whole.

The multiplier effect of successful students is very positive because it can bring about very positive economic benefits to themselves and their communities. This can further inspire many young people to pursue higher education as well as athletics. This is in the best interest of every nation and informed people with leadership roles in government are well aware of this. We as a sports scholarship company are ready to work together with governments and sponsors from the private sector to help develop these opportunities for many young people so that they can fulfill their potential and pursue their dreams.

Conclusion

We would like to hear from you in order to discuss the opportunities that are possible for your sports men and women in your nation. Athletic scholarships are a powerful tool to increasing sport through education and most importantly producing the stars of tomorrow.

Contact 

Email:  Chris@athletes-usa.com
Tel: +44 (0)208 123 9417
Web: www.athletes-usa.com

Useful Links

Learn more about our programs – USA Sport Scholarships
Want to know more about Athletes USA? – About US
Read the latest Athletes USA  – News
Learn more about how sport scholarships work - Sport Scholarship Introduction Pack
Speak Spanish? -  Athletes USA Español – www.athletes-usa.es
Speak German? – Athletes USA Deutschland – www.athletes-usa.de