Transferring Rules for D1, D2, D3, NAIA and JUCO

You are able to go to juco and play I also think you can go D-2 and play. my son left his D-1 went juco and signed with another D-1 best thing he ever did was go juco

It is my understanding that the player must graduate from the juco before he can play at another D1 school.

you are correct you need to graduate

If you're required to get your JC degree to move on it shouldn't be much of a problem, you just need to check with the school requirements. My son transferred to a JC for one semester and got an AA degree as the school only required one semester of attendance and accepted just about every class he took at the 4 year school he started at.

As an aside, we also found that several D1 coaches didn't know the transfer rules and wouldn't bother to check with their compliance officer. Be ready to explain the 4-2-4 transfer rule to some coaches, and be prepared for them to not believe you or go to the trouble to figure it out.

quote:

Originally posted by threestrikesyourout:
you are correct you need to graduate

You have a PM.

When transferring, the rules of the new division or association are the ones that matter.

Here's the requirements to avoid sitting out a year:

4-4 transfers
So if a player transfers to a D2, the D2 rules apply, no matter what kind of school was previously attended. D2 allows players who transfer from any kind of 4 year school a one-time exception to the year in residence requirement.
Conversely, for baseball, D1 rules do not allow (in most cases) the one-time exception for players transferring from any kind of 4 year school.

D2 2-4 transfers and D2 4-2-4 transfers
Transfers from a 2 year school to a D2 need a 2.0 GPA and 12 transferrable hours per full time term. Qualifiers need to have attended for one full-time term, and others need 2 terms. These rules also apply to 4-2-4 transfers.

D1 2-4 transfers
For players who have only attended 2 year school(s), transfers in the fall term to a D1 are eligible to compete in the spring if they were academic qualifiers out of high school, have 2.0 GPA, 12 transferrable hours per full time term, and have attended JC for at least one full-time term. Non-qualifiers must have graduated from the 2 year school.

D1 4-2-4 transfers
Player who leave 4 year school, attend a 2 year school, and then transfer to a D1 need to have graduated from the 2 year school in addition to the above GPA/hours requirements.

3 FG, thanks. So if I read this correctly you can go from a D-1 to a D-2 without sitting out a year but you cannot go from a D-2 to a D-1 without sitting out a year?

More important than the NCAA rules are the academics---how many credits will he lose in the transfer?

quote:

So if I read this correctly you can go from a D-1 to a D-2 without sitting out a year but you cannot go from a D-2 to a D-1 without sitting out a year?

That's right.
Here's the more general statement:
A player can transfer (once) from any (D1, D2, D3, NAIA, or not affiliated) 4 year school to a D2 school without sitting out a year.

A player has to sit out a year if he transfers from any (D1, D2, D3, NAIA, or not affiliated) 4 year school to a D1 (usually).

The requirements to be eligible in D1 are different from the requirements for D2.

3 FG; Thanks.

3 FG - I have a question for you. Yesterday a parent called me and told me that if you went to a D1 school and left to go Juco for a year (and graduated with your AA) then if you transferred back to a same conference school you would have to sit out two years.

I told him bs... bad info. After the year at a juco (and graduating with AA) the player would be fully eligible to play where ever he was wanted.

Did I give bad info?

I did say that maybe there was a two year penalty assesed on a player that transferred D1 to D1 same conference no juco year but I did not know for sure.

I can't think of any instance in which the NCAA considers which conference a player transfers to.

So if there is such a rule, I think it would have to be a rule made by the conference itself. Many conferences require a one-year sit out for an intra-conference transfer, even in sports for which the NCAA rules allow playing immediately.

But a two year sit out seems unlikely to me, especially with a JUCO stint in between.

Most conferences post their rules on the web.

thx 3FG, I did look on the conference web site and could not find anything. I did however call the parent back and give them the conference compiance department contact name and phone/email.

It just sounded so hinky to me that I looked into it and then wanted to check my grammar so to speak.

thx,

as always you are invaluable here!

If you have a specific situation that you want the definitive answer on, call the NCAA. Page 30 from the Transfer Guide, lists the number and times you can call. I have found them very helpful.

Phone: 317/917-6222
Monday-Friday
Noon to 4 p.m. Eastern
Fax: 317/917-6622

PA Dino, you are completely correct if you want NCAA rules. But, conferences also have their own specific rules above the NCAA rules.

You must first check with the NCAA then with a specific conference.

fanofgame,
How do you know that? I personally know a golfer who transferred from USC to Cal, and she had to sit one year.

The PAC 10 Handbook says on page 16 (at least the way I read it) that a direct intra-conference transfer must sit out for one academic year, loses a season of eligibility in all sports, and can't receive athletic aid during that year. A player who didn't have athletic aid at his first school is excepted from this rule.

As I read it, if a year of JC intervenes, no sit out is required.

playfair,

The PAC-10 site also has this listing of D1 conferences' rules on intra-conference transfers. (As of 9/06) You can probably see at a glance the rules for the conference you're interested in.

playfair

quote:

You must first check with the NCAA then with a specific conference.

Agree.