What are the Differences Between D1, D2, and D3?

About 7% of all high school athletes will go on to play a sport at the collegiate level. The chance of playing at the Division 1 level is even lower at around 2%.

It is important to understand the differences between D1, D2, and D3 to give yourself the best shot at playing in college.

You will first start to notice discrepancies between the levels while you are going through the recruiting process. Division 1 coaches will recruit earlier, often evaluating kids who are only freshman or sophomores in high school.

Division 2 coaches start looking at athletes when they are juniors, but it usually carriers over until senior year as many of these kids believe they are D1 talents. Division 3 coaches typically follow local talent, but not until senior year do they start pushing their recruiting agenda.

Colleges coaches have to recruit a certain way depending on what division they are in. Make sure to keep this in the back of your head during the recruiting process as it will help you understand where you are in the process.

Differences Between D1, D2, and D3

The Breakdown

The NCAA has three main levels of competition: Division 1 , Division 2, and Division 3. There is also the NJCAA and NAIA, but in this article we will focus on the three main divisions that make up the NCAA.

D1 consists of the largest schools that also have big budgets to support their athletic programs. It is considered to be the most competitive division with the best athletes and teams.

There is a separation within Division 1 as well. You have the high major, mid-major, and lower D1 conferences.

D2 has some pretty solid teams and athletes, but the schools tend to be a little smaller and have lower budgets.

D3 is the lowest division and it is comprised of many small private universities with fairly low budgets. These schools prides themselves on having “true” student-athletes.

The differences between D1, D2, and D3 are significant in some areas, while in others there are only slight changes.

(Please note that in this article we are generalizing for the majority of schools and sports in their respective division. There will be some exceptions!)

Differences Between D1 D2 and D3: Scholarships/Financial Aid

D1: Offer full scholarships that cover everything including tuition, room and board, books, dining plans, etc.

D2: Offer some full scholarships and a lot of partial scholarships.

D3: Do not offer any athletic scholarships, but can provide financial aid packages.

Budget

D1: The majority of schools at this level have very large budgets. Athletes are provided with lots of gear and new uniforms yearly. Training facilities are top notch with the best trainers available. Stadiums/fields will seat thousands of people and have big crowds.

D2: Some schools have larger budgets than others, but the highest budgets at this level are still substantially lower than the highest D1 budgets.

D3: Budgets are often very minimal for athletics and are just a step higher from the high school level.

The College Recruiting Guidebook

The college recruiting guidebook is the ultimate manual to earning an athletic scholarship for student-athletes and parents.

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Inside the guidebook you’ll have access to:

• step-by-step instructions freshman through senior year
• every single college coaches email in the country (broken up by division and school)
• sample email/dm/text templates you can use
• a manual for parents on how to negotiate scholarships/financial aid with college coaches
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Parents will pay $20 just for admission in to their kids game. You can get this guidebook for the same price.

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Coaches

D1: The best coaches are typically at this level and earn a hefty paycheck. These programs will also have a lot of assistant coaches on the staff that are compensated well.

D2: This level has a bunch of good coaches, but not nearly as many assistants.

D3: Most of the coaches are younger and are trying to move there way up to higher divisions. On the flip side some of them are older in age and have been at the same place for a long time. These programs have very few assistant coaches and some of them are volunteers.

Competition

D1: The best athletes and teams with the most pro players come from this division.

D2: A step below D1, but still have some really good athletes and a handful of teams that can compete with low level D1’s.

D3: Athletes and teams don’t compete at the same level as the other two divisions mostly due to the lack of scholarships. However, when you consider how few athletes play beyond high school this division is still really good competition.

I played D1 basketball in college, from personal experience I would say these comparisons are purely team-based. There are plenty of D2 and even a few D3 players I knew who were better than players at the D1 level.

Schedule

D1: Lots of traveling all over the country with intense schedules that push student-athletes to their limits. Athletes have very few breaks during the season and off-seasons are a tough grind. Some athletes have to attend summer school to keep training depending on the sport.

D2: Lots of variations at this level which greatly depends on what conference you are in. Traveling distances are shorter, breaks are a little longer, and athletes are usually not required to come in the summer. The off-season is a little less intense compared to D1, but not by much.

D3: Pride themselves as having “true student-athletes. Traveling will be close, off-seasons will be much more laid back, and summers will be free for jobs or internships. The season is still a grind but it is shorter and has breaks installed in it especially around the holidays.

Academics

D1: Will be provided with lots of tutors and advisors to help you stay on top of school work. Traveling makes school work much more difficult especially when missing class, assignment dates, and tests.

D2: Like a lot of other categories it is a mix here at the D2 level. Some schools will have solid tutoring help, while at others you will be on your own. Traveling is not as big of a factor so you won’t miss too much academically.

D3: May not be provided with tutors or advisors, but will have lots of extra time compared to D1/D2 schools to get your work done. Traveling is rarely an issue.

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Conclusion: Differences Between D1 D2 and D3

It is truly an honor to play a sport at any level of competition within the collegiate world.

Division 1, Division 2, and Division 3 schools can vary greatly in some areas, but for the most part the differences are small. There are a lot of myths out there about these distinctions.

Feel free to comment any specific questions you might have.