The recruiting process is regulated by numerous rules regarding who, when, and how colleges may contact and communicate with potential prospective student-athletes. The majority of these rules affect only the NCAA Division I and Division II prospects.

According to the NCAA, a prospect is any student-athlete in the ninth grade or above. A student-athlete not yet in the ninth grade becomes a prospect if an institution provides him with any financial aid or other benefits that are not generally provided to prospective students.

Starting in ninth grade, student-athletes are going to progress through various recruiting milestones that dictate when and how they can be contacted. However, there are two methods over which the prospect has control - unofficial visits and telephone calls at his/her own expense.

No matter how many letters or phone calls a prospect receives, the student-athlete needs to realize that these don't necessarily guarantee scholarship offers. Colleges use these methods to gather information about prospects.

The tabs to the right provide the regulations on each of the methods that colleges use to recruit prospective student-athletes.