Customer Reviews

The Sports Scholarships Insider's Guide: Getting Money for College at Any Division

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a public school teacher and sports coach who was a scholarship athlete at a division one university; I wished Coach Wheeler would have written this book twenty years ago. I have used his book to help out my kids whom I teach and coach at my school-the book is a valuable resource to help kids understand that there are options to help them attend a fine university or college. I ran into a couple of questions I wanted to ask the author (Coach Wheeler), about his book and he promptly emailed me with some guidance. In today's world, which author do you know who will respond to his readers questions?

Coach Wheeler has written a remarkable book! My daughter, Rachel, has completed a successful junior track season. We were confused and disappointed by the paucity and caliber of recruiting contacts she received, so I needed some guidance. An associate of mine alerted me to the Sports Scholarship Insider's Guide. I purchased the book and we entered a high stakes contest as the book says, "and only the opposition knows the rules". And in our recruiting experience it is obvious, they aren't sharing those rules with parents. The mother of one of her teammates learned that I was devouring the book and asked if she too, could read it. My unfortunate answer was yes. Shortly, I realized that one of the book's most valuable assets is as a ready reference and situational guide. The Goal Setting Chapter for the athlete guided her to learn to set a goal and helped her design a plan of action to achieve it. The Chapter on Questions To Ask is valuable to parents because it brutally defines how little we know of the process and for athletes because it can be handily used during phone calls and visits. The Chapter on Negotiating Skills prepares parents with actual dialogues to use negotiating strategies, devices and tactics that would be the envy of any used car salesman. Four chapters illuminate and candidly explain Division III duplicity in awarding financial aid for athletic ability and teach how to use that knowledge to a parent's advantage. Want to cut to the chase? Find the two "killer questions". I now recongnize that her high school coach can't get her an athletic scholarship and it's our responsibility to create the kind of exposure that can. We used one idea from the book and on the shortest of notice a college coach contacted and talked with Rachel at the State Track Meet, as well as generated an unofficial next week. The mother bought her own book.

Susie M, WI

This is a great book if you have a high school athlete who wants to play in college. It really opened my eyes and one coach did something the book predicted he would.

Prior to acquiring this book we knew next to nothing about the whole process. It is especially helpful for those who live in areas where a potential scholarship candidate is not likely to be seen by very many if any recruiters. The author does a great job in laying out a step by step process that a potential college athlete should take beginning long before their senior year in high school. He stresses over and over that it will not be easy and success will likely only be achieved through the same hard work that led to the development of that person's athletic skills. A couple of areas that were not covered as well as I'd have liked were a more delineated seperation of the strategies for Div 1 & 2 schools as opposed to Div 3 and more discussion of the pluses and minuses of parental involvement. These are not significant drawbacks, however, and I would give the book 4 1/2 stars if possible.

First let me start by saying that two weeks ago my son committed to a 5- year scholarship at a D-1A sports program. This school is ranked #2 in the country for this particular sport. Initially I bought 5 books when starting the process. This one was for me very easy to follow and had a nice step-by-step process. It is not all that we used, but it provided us with the framework that we built our recruiting process around. When others ask us how we did it, we tell them to first read this book and then check in with us.

One thing that I really like about it was that it covers how to get a scholarship from a D-1, D-2, and D-3 or NAIA division school. Just add talent and good grades and your kid is on his or her way.

Happy hunting!

This was the first book I've read on this subject and already I feel like I know so much! I don't know about you, but I'm doing much of my son's work in this area, so I feel like I'm doing the reading for him as well. It's important for the parent to be knowlegable even if the child DOES do the work, for they (the parents) will be doing much of the speaking and "negotiating" (key word you will learn much about) for the child. Have the facts to back you up. This author has been around and worn every 'hat' having anything to do with the whole issue of college athletics from parent to recruiter to agent to coach and MORE! You get the impression that you're really getting the inside information that you need to get the best deal for your child's education. Thank you Mr. Wheeler!

This is an outstanding way to gain the knowledge needed to go up against the college coaches and recruiters and still come out ahead of the game. I found this to be an easy read full of valuable information and marvelous insight into the world of college athletic scholarships.

This book was referred to us from a parent who's son has gone through the process of seeking a sports scholarship. It will save you time and money.

Although our first three children got academic scholarships, our fourth was headed for a baseball scholarship. Dion Wheeler's book "Sports Scholarships Insider's Guide" was an immense help. It is written in a way where we could understand the concepts and it helped us feel a lot more confidence in our dealing with coaches, schools and the NCAA. Don't get recruited without it.

I purchased this book based on previous reviews written. I have to say it is an excellent resource. I even contacted the author and he has provided me with some additional information to assist my daughters in our recruiting endenvour.