In part one of our blog series, "The Road to a Tennis Scholarship in the USA," showed you the journey from the initial idea to choosing an agency to help us find and select a suitable US college. Now, in part two, with creating the application materials . What information and materials need to be compiled to create a profile that can then be used for college applications? And how does uniexperts support you in this process? Writing a CV, selecting photos, compiling transcripts and sending them to a translator, filming application videos, and much more – we'll tell you all about it in the second part of Mia's journey towards US college .
Once we had decided on an agency, specifically uniexperts, part of Keystone Sports, a small weight was honestly lifted from our shoulders. Knowing we had a professional and reliable partner for this project was a reassuring boost for us as parents, but primarily for Mia, and provided a foundation on which we could tackle all the next steps in coordination with the agency.
In the next call with Sandy from uniexperts, the three of us went through all the necessary next steps together. Since Mia only decided in mid-January to apply for a tennis scholarship at a US college, there was now some time pressure.
To help prospective student-athletes keep track of all the necessary activities, uniexperts, part of Keystone Sports, provides them with a web-based dashboard . Here, they gradually create their personal profile, which uniexperts then uses for the application process with colleges. The dashboard itself contains various sections that need to be completed:
We received a wealth of information and were able to complete tasks within two to three weeks. The dashboard features a task management system that lists and briefly describes all currently pending tasks. Helpful links are also provided for each task, making it incredibly easy to work through them. And if any questions arose—and there were plenty—Sandy or Steffen from the Admissions Team at uniexperts, part of Keystone Sports, were always immediately available with an answer. The whole process was truly seamless.
Supported by the dashboard, Mia was able to easily and quickly enter all the necessary personal data about herself, us, and her current coach. A small set of photos was also uploaded in no time. Creating the "application letter" . In it, the prospective student-athlete is supposed to introduce herself and write about her motivation, goals, wishes, and also her own strengths (and weaknesses). All of this is done with the aim of making the letter authentic and interesting to a coach. Mia quickly completed this part. Personal information section - checked!
The grade point average (GPA ) is very important at most colleges and can secure additional financial support for applicants on top of a tennis scholarship. To convert the German GPA to the American grading system and thus to the Grade Point Average (GPA) , conversion tables are available, or the GPA can be calculated by uniexperts and displayed in their dashboard.
Many colleges require international students to take the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) . The required TOEFL score varies from college to college, but generally, a score of 79 provides a solid foundation and opens many doors. The four-hour TOEFL test, which costs US$260, is a one-to-one test and can be retaken as many times as needed (though each retake costs extra). It can be taken either in person at a licensed institution (such as a language school) or online. The test is divided into four sections: Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing. Mia opted for the online test. Preparation options include various courses offered by uniexperts, online seminars from different providers, or traditional practice books with one or two sample tests. Mia had bought the book TOEFL iBT Prep 2023 , a really thick tome, which she only glanced at and worked through superficially. But the book helped her understand the test structure and familiarize herself with it. Without much preparation, she achieved a score of 80 points, even though her university only required 60. Her prior preparation for the Abitur (German university entrance exam) in English certainly helped; she was quite familiar with the language.
the SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) . This test isn't required by all universities. At some universities, it's optional and can be taken to receive additional financial aid. The test is designed to assess academic aptitude. It tests mathematics, reading, and creative writing, and also includes various subject-specific tests. All of them are primarily multiple-choice. Uniexperts offers separate preparation courses for the SAT. Alternatively, you could also get yourself a comprehensive study guide. We already have one at home, waiting to be studied.
This area caused us some concern, as Mia had played very few tournaments last year due to injuries, apart from league matches. Consequently, her ranking wasn't very high (5.9). Mia doesn't have a UTR ranking because she hasn't played any TE tournaments recently. So we searched through her match results from the past two years for encounters against players with a UTR ranking. We quickly found some and were thus able to fill the results list with a few entries. This also allows us to include close losses against significantly higher-ranked players.
TIP : Since there are virtually no tournaments in Germany that count towards the UTR ranking, you should play more TE or ITF tournaments to prepare for your application for a tennis scholarship at a US college. Alternatively, you could participate in the Keystone Sports Tennis College Showcase , which always takes place in Leverkusen in July. There, you're guaranteed three UTR-qualifying matches that could be important for you.
The most important thing, besides all the tasks mentioned above, was filming an application video . This highlight video is one of the most important selection criteria for the coaches. We quickly reserved the well-lit tennis hall for two hours and found an ideal hitting partner in Moritz (many thanks!!). Uniexperts provided us with a "filming guide" outlining how everything should be filmed. This included a short introduction by Mia, warm-up, forehand and backhand crosscourt rally, a rally culminating in a down-the-line shot, volleys, smashes, and of course, serves. I recorded the video footage with my mobile phone.
The crowning finale was the points game, which we recorded using the installed Wingfield system. It was absolutely perfect for that!
I edited all the videos at home and submitted them to uniexperts as short videos. The agency then finalized the application video, and voilà, here's the result:
For those who don't want to or can't handle the video shooting and editing themselves, uniexperts, part of Keystone Sports, offers a professional video production package. It truly includes everything from A to Z.
All the necessary application documents were now complete – so the application process could begin! In the third part of our blog series, we'll tell you how the application process with the tennis coaches at the potential US colleges went. University pre-selection, numerous inquiries, and many conversations with the tennis coaches. And at the end of the third part of our series, "Mia's Journey to US College," the decision had been made! Those were exciting and intense weeks!
If you have any questions about college scholarships in the meantime, or if you'd like to know specifically how we approached things, feel free to contact me anytime
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