Just about everyone receives camp invitations and questionnaires to fill out, so be careful about confusing these types of contact for real interest. I played four years of college soccer already and I am still receiving these invitations. Attending camps and filling out questionnaires are important in the recruiting process, but you must always take them a step further.

When you fill out a questionnaire at a school, it will put you into their database of kids. You will receive program updates and basic information about the team and school. Personal contacts are a rare result of completing a questionnaire. Once you complete one, you should always follow-up with the coach personally about a week later. Introduce yourself, stress interest and make sure they have everything they need from you.

When it comes to camps, you should plan on attending at least one or two each summer. Ideally, you should be going to camps at schools you have interest in. To make the most of the experience, you should be in contact with the coach prior to signing-up so you can determine the coach’s interest level in you beforehand. Camps are a great place to be evaluated by coaches, but those coaches must know about you before; you will not get discovered at a camp.

Camp invitations and questionnaires should be considered as a foot in the door; there might be real interest there or you might just be another number. Do your homework first and be pro-active before you get too excited.