Term-in-ology. College athletics is not immune to industry acronyms or opaque concepts that can throw off the scent. With that in mind, Term-in-ology seeks each week to educate our readers on key NCAA definitions, terms of art, and policies and procedures encapsulating modern-day college athletics. If you are connected in any way to higher education, the business of education, or simply a college sports fan---this weekly morsel can help you decode college sports.
Non-Traditional Courses
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced college students and faculty across the United States to collectively migrate their in-person classes to the virtual world. As far as NCAA eligibility requirements are concerned, Division I student-athletes may be headed to an exclusively online course schedule for fall 2020, if they weren’t already there in prior semesters.
For this week’s Term-In-ology, let’s take a look at how the NCAA defines these remote courses and the criteria for their permissible use for the purposes of progress-toward-degree and competition eligibility.
Enrollment in a nontraditional course -- also known as distance learning, correspondence, extension, Internet, virtual, independent study or any other course or credit that is not earned primarily in a face-to-face classroom environment -- may be used to satisfy the full-time enrollment requirement for competition, provided the following conditions are met:
The course is available to any student at the institution;
The student-athlete enrolls in the course in the same manner as is available to any student;
Enrollment in the course occurs within the institution’s regular enrollment periods (pre-registration or drop-add period) in accordance with the institution’s academic calendar and applicable policies and procedures; and
The course is conducted during the institution’s regular academic schedule (term time) in accordance with the institution’s academic calendar and applicable policies and procedures.
The above NCAA legislation spells out criteria applicable to nontraditional courses offered by the student-athlete’s certifying institution.
Division I has taken a bit more circuitous path toward regulating how student-athletes may use nontraditional courses from other institutions toward their degrees. Specifically, nontraditional courses completed at an institution other than the certifying institution may be used to meet credit-hour and percentage-of-degree requirements, provided the following conditions are met:
The course is available to any student at the certifying institution;
The student-athlete enrolls in the course in the same manner as is available to any student; and
Enrollment in the course occurs within the offering institution's regular enrollment periods (pre-registration or drop-add period) in accordance with the institution's academic calendar and applicable policies and procedures.
The ever-evolving nature of higher education delivery--no better personified than through proliferation of non-traditional course offerings--will remain a focal point for NCAA policy moving forward, including matters related to academic integrity and policing academic misconduct.
Athletics Veritas is presented for information purposes only and should not be considered advice or counsel on NCAA compliance matters. For guidance on NCAA rules and processes, always consult your university’s athletics compliance office, conference office, and/or the NCAA.
