Why Top Athletes Are Choosing to Play at the Junior College (JUCO) Level

What is JUCO? Who are JUCO athletes?

JUCO isn’t an acronym, it’s an abbreviation for “junior college,” and it’s the most commonly used term for schools that play in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). The NJCAA has 519 member schools, where over 65,000 student-athletes compete in 16 different sports. 

Like in the NCAA, NJCAA schools are classified in three divisions – D1, D2, and D3 – and the NJCAA hosts national championships for every level in most sports. JUCO adds a 2-year option to the college decision process that can prepare you for the NCAA & NAIA levels later on down the road in your college career.

Why do future MLB, NBA, WNBA and NFL players choose JUCO schools?

There’s a variety of reasons high-school athletes might choose to move on to JUCO sports instead of a four-year college:

• Development: With NCAA transfer portal activity at an all-time high, two years in junior college gives prospects - especially in basketball and football - a chance to gain experience, size and maturity to compete at the top stage. Dozens of players who went pro including Jimmy Butler, Bryce Harper and Natasha Mack started at the juco level - and that number is likely to increase as the changes to the NCAA landscape continue. “JUCO allows student-athletes to keep the NCAA/NAIA dream alive - It allows the player more time to develop as a complete student-athlete, and lets the player reset their recruiting clock. College coaches love JUCO players, knowing they are already ready for the day to day grind of being a college student-athlete is a huge benefit in their eyes.”  - NCSA Coach & Former JUCO Baseball Player Pat O’Malley

• Lower costs: The average yearly cost of an education at an NJCAA school is about ⅓ the annual cost of a four-year college, and the academic structure at most JUCO schools allows credits to easily transfer toward a four-year degree. 

• Academic eligibility: Many of the top JUCO recruits are players with the skills to play at an NCAA D1 school, but not the academic eligibility. JUCO programs have much less stringent standards for eligibility, and success in a junior-college classroom will help prepare you to maintain good academic standing in a four-year program. 

• Specific majors and programs: Because JUCO schools tend to serve the communities that surround them, you may find career-minded coursework that doesn’t exist at traditional four-year schools. Maybe you’re a distance runner with your sights set on masonry, and Williamson College of the Trades is right for you. Maybe you want to play women’s tennis and study menswear. There’s a JUCO program for that, too. 

• Stepping stone: For a variety of reasons, some high schoolers aren’t ready to move immediately into a four-year college environment. Maybe they’re not sure if college is right for them, maybe they have jobs or family obligations that limit their ability to make a long-term commitment, maybe they need better grades to get into a desired program. Some athletes are late bloomers physically, or they come late to their sports, and need more development before they can score an NCAA offer. JUCO schools can be a great transitional step, both academically and athletically.

What are the different levels of JUCO?

Like NCAA schools, there are higher level junior college programs. NJCAA college programs are divided between Division I, Division II and Division III - with varying regulations for scholarships. To find the right junior college, look at rankings, recent alumni and learn more about the coaching staff - to see where you could fit.

JUCO scholarships: How JUCO coaches recruit

Paying full-price to attend a JUCO school is often far more affordable than playing at an NCAA school on a partial scholarship, but some JUCO programs do award athletics scholarships in certain sports, especially at the NJCAA D1 level.

JUCO coaches recruit on a faster timeline than NCAA coaches do, and they’re allowed to contact high school athletes at any point in the process. Because the nature of junior college sports means there’s more turnover on rosters, coaches in some programs recruit year-round and offer roster spots or scholarships when they become available.

Like with NCAA schools, athletes interested in JUCO programs can and should reach out to coaches at any time.

How to contact JUCO coaches and what to ask them

For the most part, you should contact JUCO programs and coaches the same way you would an NCAA or NAIA school. Be polite, professional and informative, and come prepared with your stats and highlight reel. 

But recruits targeting JUCO sports should understand that many coaches at the level work multiple jobs at the schools. Some even coach multiple sports. So you may need to be patient in waiting for a response, and you should be sure to contact every coach in a program to give yourself the best shot at getting their attention. 

And once they’re in contact with coaches, athletes looking to play JUCO sports en route to an NCAA athletics scholarship should be sure to ask how the program will support your NCAA recruitment. Find out what connections the coaches have to four-year programs, how many players they’ve helped earn NCAA scholarships and roster sports, and how easily your JUCO credits will transfer to four-year schools.

JUCO academic eligibility

Individual JUCO schools may have their own admissions standards, but the NJCAA does not set a minimum SAT/ACT score or GPA for academic eligibility. 

However, athletes must have a high-school diploma, a GED, or another state-approved high-school equivalency diploma to be eligible for JUCO sports. Also, JUCO athletes must be enrolled full-time (at least 12 credit hours per semester) to compete in NJCAA sports. 

JUCO sports have long been a harbor for top-flight high-school athletes looking to establish academic eligibility and boosting athletic resumes to play at the NCAA level and with the changes in the NCAA D1 level, that’s even more common. But that’s not all they can offer! Cost-conscious recruits often save thousands of dollars in tuition money by starting at a two-year college and transferring to a four-year school, and many athletes are drawn to the specific coursework and resources offered by community colleges.

If you think playing JUCO sports is the next step in your athletic journey, create an NCSA profile to get started!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know if I’m eligible for JUCO sports? 

If you’re an amateur athlete and you’re expecting to receive a high-school diploma or equivalency degree, you are most likely eligible for NJCAA sports. However, since individual schools and conferences may have their own requirements, the best way to make sure you’re eligible is to contact the programs you’re interested in. 

Do JUCO athletes ever go pro?

Yes! Ever heard of Jimmy Butler? Bryce Harper? Sheryl Swoopes? All of them played at the JUCO level before beginning their professional careers.

Is JUCO better than D1, D2, D3, or NAIA? 

That totally depends on you. If you’re looking for an athletic or academic stepping-stone toward a four-year program, if you’re trying to save money on core coursework on the road to your bachelor’s degree, or if you’re pursuing a specialized associate’s degree offered by a two-year school, then JUCO is a better fit for you than a four-year program. 

The level of competition varies a lot by program, level and sport, but the top JUCO teams could beat some programs from every other college sports division. As a JUCO athlete for College of Southern Nevada in 2010, Bryce Harper beat out all NCAA baseball players to win the prestigious Golden Spikes Award, then was drafted first overall in the MLB Draft. He was in the Majors and en route to an All-Star season less than two years after his last JUCO game. 

How do I know which JUCO schools in my area compete in my sport?

There are 519 JUCO programs, so it can be hard to keep track. The NJCAA website has a searchable directory that allows you to sort schools by state, region and sport. And NCSA’s network of experts can help you determine which programs are the best fits for you!