What are the different types of college visits?

There are two types of visit at the NCAA DI and DII levels and NJCAA DI and DII levels; Official Visits and Unofficial Visits. At the NCAA DIII level, NJCAA DIII level, and NAIA level there are no official visits. All visits at those levels are considered unofficial.

Official Visit: An official visit is a visit that the student-athlete is invited to by the college coach. There are specific rules within each sport regarding the timeline of when official visits can happen, and how many official visits a student-athlete can take. There are also rules regarding what the school is allowed to pay for on these visits, and the length of period these visits can last. Official visits can last a total of 48 hours. Schools are allowed to pay for transportation to and from the visit, housing via hotel or dorm room, 3 meals on or off-campus, and admission to a sporting event on-campus. A student-athlete is not allowed to practice with the team during an Official Visit, though they are allowed to do a workout provided that they complete a physical and fill out paperwork from the compliance department and athletic training staff. A student-athlete is required to have an NCAA Eligibility ID number and also have an unofficial transcript on file with the school’s compliance office.

Unofficial Visit: An unofficial visit can be scheduled by the student-athlete with the coach or with the college’s admissions department. There are no restrictions on how many unofficial visits a student-athlete can make or at what age they can make the unofficial visit. There is also no guarantee that on an unofficial visit that there will be an opportunity to meet with the coaching staff. There are certain rules as to what college coaches can provide on unofficial visits. College coaches are only able to pay for one meal on an unofficial visit, they are not allowed to pay for any transportation, and they are not allowed to pay for any housing. They are allowed to provide transportation around the campus’ facilities as part of the tour. student-athletes do not need to have a NCAA Eligibility ID number or any paperwork/transcripts on file with the compliance department in order to make an unofficial visit.