As many of you begin your recruiting journey the first thing you will fill out or be asked to complete by a coach is the recruiting questionnaire. This questionnaire is generally a form asking for player metrics like height/weight and position specific numbers, player academics like SAT or ACT scores and GPA, player contact and parent or guardian information, and any other random pieces of information the coaches would want to get to know you better and how you may fit in their locker room. Think of this like the job application, it is a needed document to apply for a position on the team. What many don't realize is how important it is to constantly keep this data updated in the coaches recruiting system. The questionnaire shouldn't be a one time fill out and submit but rather a living document that you update 3 to 4 times a year as your information or metrics change. Let's look further into the reasons why updating the questionnaire is so important for your recruiting success.
First, Colleges and Universities have recruiting compliance regulations they have to adhere by. These regulations will vary by sport and division of college athletics. To stay in compliance with these regulations schools spend money on Recruiting Management Software. This would be products like ARMS, Jumpforward, Warroom, and FrontRush just to name a few. These software products provide the schools the features to be able to create recruiting questionnaires, send out game and camp invites, track player metrics and potential offers, monitor a players social media, depth charts or working boards for player positions of the recruits they are interested in, and many other features. This software is used by the colleges for all sports at the school to recruit their players. The questionnaire is how you first get your information into this system. The questionnaire is also how you can keep your information updated in their system. For example, if you just recently hit a growth spurt and have added height and weight that you want the coaches to know about, filling out the recruiting questionnaire with that updated information would be the quickest and easiest way to get that on the coaches radar.
Second, coaches meet regularly to discuss by position the recruits they are focusing on. If you have recently changed positions, updating that with the questionnaire will add you to their lists for that new position. This is how you can in essence apply for a spot with that new position group. This is how you can make it easier for those coaches to find you. Less than 7% of all high school athletes received the opportunity to continue play their sport at the next level. Just like competing on the field, you have to compete to get your spot on the team.
Third, by resubmitting updated questionnaire information it shows the coaches you are still actively interested in their program and you are willing to keep them updated on the player you are becoming. There is always turn over in the college coaching ranks, whether it is a position or head coach, most teams make changes every season. Having accurate data on your profile in their system gives you the best chance to catch the eye of the new coach entering the program.
How can Digitivos Help?
Here at Digitivos we understand the importance of the recruiting questionnaire and the importance of keeping that data accurate to reflect you as a player recruit. We provide a questionaries tool for keeping track of the colleges and universities you have submitted questionnaires too. This tool provides notifications as to when data may have become stale on your profile and that it would be good to resubmit a new recruiting questionnaire. It provides a quick view for filing out the questionnaire inside of Digitivos and we make your Digitivos profile data available for convenient updating. There is also a progress meter to help guide you on your recruiting journey and the steps to take to solidify an opportunity to play at the next level.