What are your chances of competing in sports in college? The NCAA, which is the main organization that sanctions collegiate athletics in the United States, has published information about the number of athletes participating on teams in their member institutions for the 2018-19 school year. In the table below, you can see how many high school students participated on their school teams during the year and how many athletes participated on their college teams during the year. The NCAA breaks down the information by Division.
This table does not include athletes participating on teams at NAIA-member schools or in junior colleges.
| NCAA Sports | High School Participants | NCAA Participants | Overall % HS to NCAA | % HS to NCAA Division I | % HS to NCAA Division II | % HS to NCAA Division III |
| Men | ||||||
| Baseball | 482,740 | 36,011 | 7.5% | 2.2% | 2.3% | 2.9% |
| Basketball | 540,769 | 18,816 | 3.5% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.4% |
| Cross Country | 269,295 | 14,303 | 5.3% | 1.8% | 1.4% | 2.1% |
| Football | 1,006,013 | 73,712 | 7.3% | 2.9% | 1.9% | 2.5% |
| Golf | 143,200 | 8,485 | 5.9% | 2.0% | 1.6% | 2.2% |
| Ice Hockey | 35,283 | 4,323 | 12.3% | 4.8% | 0.6% | 6.8% |
| Lacrosse | 113,702 | 14,603 | 12.8% | 3.1% | 2.5% | 7.3% |
| Soccer | 459,077 | 25,499 | 5.6% | 1.3% | 1.5% | 2.7% |
| Swimming | 136,638 | 9,799 | 7.2% | 2.8% | 1.2% | 3.2% |
| Tennis | 159,314 | 7,785 | 4.9% | 1.6% | 1.0% | 2.3% |
| Track & Field | 605,354 | 28,914 | 4.8% | 1.9% | 1.2% | 1.7% |
| Volleyball | 63,563 | 2,355 | 3.7% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2.3% |
| Water Polo | 22,475 | 1,072 | 4.8% | 2.7% | 0.8% | 1.3% |
| Wrestling | 247,441 | 7,300 | 3.0% | 1.0% | 0.8% | 1.2% |
| Women | ||||||
| Basketball | 399,067 | 16,509 | 4.1% | 1.3% | 1.2% | 1.7% |
| Cross Country | 219,345 | 15,624 | 7.1% | 2.7% | 1.7% | 2.7% |
| Field Hockey | 60,824 | 6,119 | 10.1% | 2.9% | 1.4% | 5.8% |
| Golf | 79,821 | 5,436 | 6.8% | 2.8% | 1.9% | 2.1% |
| Ice Hockey | 9,650 | 2,531 | 26.2% | 8.9% | 1.1% | 16.2% |
| Lacrosse | 99,750 | 12,452 | 12.5% | 3.7% | 2.6% | 6.2% |
| Soccer | 394,105 | 28,310 | 7.2% | 2.4% | 1.9% | 2.9% |
| Softball | 362,038 | 20,419 | 5.6% | 1.8% | 1.7% | 2.2% |
| Swimming | 173,088 | 12,980 | 7.5% | 3.3% | 1.2% | 3.0% |
| Tennis | 189,436 | 8,596 | 4.5% | 1.5% | 1.0% | 2.0% |
| Track & Field | 488,267 | 30,326 | 6.2% | 2.8% | 1.5% | 1.9% |
| Volleyball | 452,808 | 17,780 | 3.9% | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.6% |
| Water Polo | 21,735 | 1,217 | 5.6% | 3.3% | 1.1% | 1.2% |
Sources: High school figures from the 2018-19 High School Athletics Participation Survey conducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations; data from club teams not included. College numbers from the NCAA 2018-19 Sports Sponsorship and Participation Rates Report.
Last Updated: April 8, 2020
