I'm currently looking at small liberal arts schools, and several of them play in the NAIA. I'm really unfamiliar with this association, or the strength of its programs. I'm also curious about the difference in the level of play in the NAIA and NCAA Division III(I'm looking into several DIII schools as well)as well as the difference in the level of play between NCAA DI, DII, and DIII. I'd appreciate any info. Thanks
The NAIA is an NCAA-like institution, but it operates completely separate of the NCAA. Here's their site: http://www.naia.org/ There are different rules between the NAIA and NCAA, i.e. eligibility and other such things, but the setup is essentially the same. As far as level of play goes, NAIA and D3 are probably fairly close. If your choice came down to NAIA or D3, I'd focus more on which place best suited your educational needs. The best women's programs in D2, from what I've observed, would probably make a good living in any D1 conference up through the mid-majors (MVC, OVC, etc.). Any other questions?
Division comparison In choosing a school to go to, there are things to consider other than sports. And, yes, the best teams in DII are better than the average team in DI. The ratings at soccerRatings.com give a rough idea of the relative strengths of teams. The ratings for women's teams are all on the same scale, so divisions can be compared, although inter-division comparisons are based on a relatively small number of inter-divisional games. In past years I've graphed the data from soccerratings.com. What the graphs show confirms what I have observed. (Disclaimer: the generalizations below apply to women's teams, not men's teams. The power curves for men's teams also overlap, although not in exactly the same way) The power curves for all 3 NCAA divisions and the NAIA overlap considerably. The very best teams in DII, DIII and the NAIA have ratings that are comparable to above-mid-level DI teams. Based on the data, the top DI teams (meaning considerably fewer than 15 teams) are simply out of sight. Nobody can play with the top DI teams, and that includes the vast majority of teams in Division I. The DI curve is extremely steep at the top. Once past the top 20 or so teams, however, the DI curve flattens out, and becomes extremely flat. The very best teams in the other divisions have ratings that fall slightly above the flat part of the DI curve. The other curves fall below the DI curve rather quickly, though, so that average teams in the other divisions have ratings less than average teams in DI. Division III has a zillion teams, and the range of strengths is great. The very best teams are comparable to some teams in DII and the NAIA. This was proven by UC-San Diego, a perennial champion in DIII, which moved up to DII and won that title in their first season. The interesting things is that the soccerRating ratings predicted that UCSD would do very well in DII. But, in general, DII is stronger. Comparisons between DIII and NAIA are difficult. In some ways, the NAIA is more comparable to DII, mainly because NAIA and DII schools give athletic scholarships and DIII schools do not. But the NAIA is a hodge-podge, with a greater range of strengths than DII. The NAIA is kind of a cross between DII and DIII. The stronger NAIA teams are comparable to DII. The weaker NAIA teams are comparable to typical DIII teams (that is, if there is such a thing as a "typical" DIII team, which there isn't)
I agree. If it came down to finding the perfect school, but not being able to play for their team, I'd go, and find myself a rec. league nearby. I'm sticking with smaller schools. I'm not really a "big school" type of person. I would just be totally overwhelmed on one of those campuses that is like a small city. Thanks for all the info. It's been really helpful.
XYZ, As an NAIA women's soccer coach, I'd like to thank you for that excellent description. I'd submit that the top NAIA teams are really just about the same as the top DII teams with the possible exception of the Missy Gregg led, DII Champs. My team playes top DII schools regularly and we find that on average we are nearly as good as they are although we have about 1/10 the budget and 1/10 the size (or less) of some of the schools we play. Thanks again.