Fall ball is over and baseball has come to a screeching halt with the arrival of the cold weather. This quiet period is a great time to do some serious planning. In fact, there’s no better time to dive into the recruiting process. As you start the recruiting process (or considering schools more seriously), it will be important (and fun) for you to come up with a list of schools you might like to attend. We have recently received several questions about creating school lists, and wanted to address them here so that everyone can benefit from the information.
For starters, if you haven’t read the ‘Five Steps to Finding Your Team’ article, be sure to read it before continuing. This article has great information to help you figure out what you are looking for, get an honest evaluation on the level of college baseball you should target, and find schools that match those criteria. The first four steps of that article are particularly important for creating a preliminary list of schools. Go ahead and read that now before continuing.
Now that you have read about a process for coming up with your list, let’s talk about that list.
- The reason why we like using College Board’s college search tool is because it allows you to search for schools based on tons of different criteria, everything from location and majors to searching by type of college baseball program (Intercollegiate, D1, D2, etc.). We highly suggest using this great search feature to help you create, expand, or revisit your list.
- Start with a broad list of schools and narrow your list of schools as you get closer to the application process. It’s okay to have some ‘dream schools’ and you’ll definitely want to have some academic ‘safety schools’ on the list as well. There is not one ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to make your list. Every person will take a different path to college baseball. A good list for you will be representative of your interests and preferences, and also have a majority of schools that match your academic performance and baseball skill level.
- Your list is sure to change over time, and that’s exactly what you want! Don’t be afraid to include schools that are new to you or that you aren’t super familiar with. The college search tool is sure to find a few surprises and schools you don’t know. After all, there are 1600+ schools with college baseball programs. Your list will be a constant work in progress. Take schools off, put schools on, and keep making your list more representative of what is truly important to you. If you do that, you can’t go wrong!
- Visit your list often and be proactive in finding out more about each school you include. This article on researching college baseball programs can be a major help! Knowledge is power, and you want your college choice to be a well-planned and well-informed decision.
- Having a list of schools that match your interests is great, but you also want to make sure the list has schools that match your baseball abilities as well. For example, if you are an average high school player and all the schools on your list are in Power 5 conferences, you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Being honest with yourself about your baseball playing abilities will be the single most important thing you can do to help get recruited. There is great college baseball and great college experiences at every level of play.
If you follow these suggestions, you will be well on your way to making an informed and well-planned decision on where to play in college. It’s never too early to start doing research on colleges and creating a plan for your recruiting process. Just make sure to check back in with KPB for more information and guidance on the recruiting process. We are here to help you find your college baseball fit!
