Recruitment

There are many different ways of getting onto a college tennis team. The most common way is to be recruited by the coach of the team. Once recruited, players must meet the institution-specific academic standards (most colleges require a minimum SAT or ACT test score, and minimum GPAs). Another way of getting onto a team is by being a 'walk-on', this is where you apply to your college as a typical student, and once accepted into the college you get onto the team. This route is typically taken by players who are strong academically and may not be good enough at tennis to be recruited by the coach.

The biggest marker coaches use to compare players is UTR, this is a number (between 1.00 and 17.00) that all tennis players have that is calculated based off of their last 30 competitive matches played. The higher a player's UTR is the better, so for example the best player in the world Carlos Alcaraz has a UTR of 16.39. The rating is calculated using a computer algorithm. Before any match is played the algorithm uses the two players' UTR to predict the outcome, if the outcome of the match (games and sets won by each player) is the same as what the computer predicted then both players' ratings will stay the same. But if one player exceeds their expected outcome (wins more games or sets than what was predicted of them) then their rating will go up. As well as UTR, coaches look at a players junior, or potentially professional, world ranking. 

Coaches use these metrics to gauge a players level, but recruiting is very competitive and so there are often many players who meet the level to play on a team. When this is the case, coaches have to look beyond a player's UTR. 

Different coaches value certain attributes higher than others, but in general coaches will look at a player's: attitude and work ethic; coachability and willingness to improve; playing style; and their academic record (because a player needs to be able to handle academic pressures from the college). 

Coaches discover these attributes by speaking to a player, watching them compete, speaking to coaches of the player, watching a video of the player, and by having the player visit the college. 

There are many factors which differentiate colleges. For tennis it is important to try and find out: what the coach's coaching style is, the size of the roster, facilities, practice and competition schedule, and the level of tennis. The best way to gather this information would be to speak to the coaches and players on the team or visit the college, but if this is not possible you could try and research the team online. 

Beyond the tennis court it is important to look at a college's location; some people prefer to be at a campus based college - where the college is far from a big city and so students spend most of their time on campus - while others will prefer to be at a college that is in the heart of a big city. As well as location, you should research the size, academic commitment and cost of your chosen college. 

A great resource to find out more about a college is niche. They rank colleges based on: academics, diversity, athletics, professors, dorms, student life, value, campus, party scene, location, campus food, and safety. They get a lot of their information based off student reviews. 

After being recruited by a coach, or if you wish to be a walk-on, you will need to apply to your chosen college. If you have been recruited by a coach, this application matters less as the coach will help you to get accepted into the college but it can determine whether the college wishes to give you an academic scholarship or not. As a walk-on your application is very important as you'll need to be accepted into the college to play on the team.  

College applications in America are unique to many other countries. A large reason for this is because students do not apply to study a major (or subect) at college, instead they are applying to the college as a whole. For this reason, colleges look for students who would be a good addition to their community as well as having strong academic rigour. Applications to a college are holistic and students usually need to submit five things*: 

1. School grades - GPA for American students, A-level/IB predicted grades and GCSE results for UK students, or the equivalent grades acquired from age 16-18 for students from other countries.  

2. Test Scores - SAT or ACT test scores. More info found here

3. Extracurriculars - these are examples of activities that you do in your own time outside of school. Many people choose to include: sports they play, volunteer work they do, clubs/societies they attend, part-time jobs, creative pursuits and more. 

4. References  - most colleges require 2/3 references from teachers in school or other coaches involved in your extracurricular activities

5. Essay  - most colleges ask you to an essay responding to one of the 7 Common App essay prompts. Your essay is where you can show an insight into your personality and display your writing skills. Some colleges also ask for a supplemental essay specific to their institution. Examples of this could be: 'if you could choose a major that we should add for 2025, what would it be and why?' or 'describe something that we must add to our campus and explain why'

*It is worth noting that every college has a slightly different application process, with students needing to apply directly to each college that they chose to. For the most accurate information on a specific college's application process you should visit their website.