Discovering the hidden enrollment market between the two.
–Jim Rogers, CEO of 3 Enrollment Marketing
For years, enrollment strategies have been built around a common assumption:
“How do we recruit more non-athletes?”
It’s a question I hear on campuses across the country.
The problem is that it’s the wrong question.
After analyzing organized sports participation data and enrollment trends, many institutions have unintentionally built recruitment and retention strategies around a student segment that barely exists.
The Modern Student Isn’t a “Non-Athlete”
More than half of U.S. high school graduates participate in organized athletics. Yet fewer than 8% will ever compete in varsity college sports.
That leaves an enormous group of students who:
- Played sports.
- Identify with athletics.
- Love school spirit.
- Value teamwork and competition.
- Still want to belong to something bigger than themselves.
They simply won’t wear a varsity uniform in college.
Calling these students “non-athletes” ignores one of the strongest influences on how they see themselves.
They’re former athletes.
And that identity matters.
The Largest Enrollment Opportunity Is Hiding in Plain Sight
Many enrollment teams approach students as either athletes for their athletic programs or non-athletes, overlooking a much larger market. The non-athlete, athlete.
They are playing organized athletics today, and likely will continue in some way on campus:
- Club sport participants
- Intramural competitors
- Dance and cheer participants
- Esports competitors
- Students who simply love college sports and campus traditions
Collectively, this population represents millions of prospective students who still want the experiences athletics represent—even if they never compete on an NCAA team. Roughly 2 million students fit this broader “athletic-minded” market compared with approximately 156,000 varsity athletes.
That’s not a niche.
That’s mainstream.
This Isn’t Really About Sports
The biggest insight isn’t athletics. Its identity.
As we all know, many students don’t choose colleges solely because of academic programs.
They choose places where they feel they belong.
Athletics often represent:
- Community
- Tradition
- Pride
- Energy
- Visibility
- Shared experiences
The institutions leading today understand this.
They’re not simply marketing degrees and outcomes.
They’re creating environments where students can picture themselves belonging before they ever submit an application and long after they graduate.
What Should Colleges Do Differently?
If former athletes represent one of the largest untapped enrollment opportunities, then recruiting them as athletically minded students offers a significant opportunity to differentiate your institution and improve conversion rates.
The good news is that this doesn’t require adding another sport or building a new athletic facility.
It requires sharing a different story.
Former athletes are often looking for the same things they valued in sports:
- A team they’ll belong to.
- Traditions they can become part of.
- Competition and achievement.
- Visible school spirit.
- Friends with shared interests.
- A campus with energy and momentum.
Often, recruitment focuses almost exclusively on academics, rankings, affordability, residence halls, and outcomes, while overlooking the social identity students seek.
The institutions leading today showcase something bigger than a degree.
They showcase a community.
Five Ways to Improve Recruiting Former Athletes
- Recruit where former athletes already are.
High school sporting events, club tournaments, youth leagues, and state championships represent one of the largest gatherings of college-bound students. Most institutions recruit athletes there. Very few recruit the thousands of students in the stands. - Make school spirit part of your value proposition.
Prospective students want to experience game days, traditions, rivalries, marching bands, pep rallies, and campus energy. Show them what it feels like to belong. - Showcase participation by students.
Club sports, intramurals, esports, outdoor recreation, fitness, and campus traditions communicate that every student has a place on the team. Make this a centerpiece of your campus tour. - Tell stories about identity.
Marketing shouldn’t only answer, “What will I study?” It should answer, “Who will I become when I get there?“ - Expand the definition of an athlete.
Former athletes, dancers, cheerleaders, wrestlers, swimmers, runners, martial artists, esports competitors, and students who simply love sports all respond to the language of teamwork, competition, and belonging. Recruit the non-athlete like an athlete.
Helping the athletically-minded find this identity on your campus is a differentiator.
Recruitment and Retention Need the Same Strategy
Retention is re-recruitment.
If a student’s athletic identity helped shape who they are before enrollment, why would that identity suddenly disappear after move-in day?
Every semester is another recruitment campaign.
Institutions have the opportunity to formalize student participation at every level.
- Are club sports receiving enough investment?
- Are campus traditions cultivated and nurtured?
- Are there meaningful recreational experiences?
- Are academic, music, and theater teams elevated like club sports?
- Does every student have opportunities to compete, participate, and belong?
You can help every student belong by being involved. No doubt, in the end, the student has the personal responsibility to show up. But an institution can ask students to sign up for student groups at key touch points, from orientation to paying invoices to signing up for classes. Own 100% of students are on a team, club, or group. Your retention rates will improve.
What Enrollment Leaders Should Be Asking
Rather than asking:
“How do we recruit more non-athletes?”
Try asking:
“How do we become the institution where former athletes and students seeking community feel they belong?”
That shift changes everything. It changes your marketing. It changes campus life. It changes retention. And ultimately, it changes enrollment outcomes.
A Strategic Shift for Higher Education
Institutions that recognize athletics as a powerful expression of culture—not simply competition, have an opportunity to win more and retain more students.
They’ll recruit identity instead of labels.
They’ll build belonging instead of segments.
And they’ll understand that the modern student isn’t looking only for a degree.
They’re looking for a team.
Over the past several months, our 3E Intelligence Team has been examining emerging enrollment patterns that challenge long-held assumptions in higher education. This article is based on our latest President’s Brief, which explores how institutions can rethink recruitment and campus culture around student identity rather than outdated market segments.
I believe this conversation is long overdue.
I’d be interested in hearing how other enrollment leaders are thinking about this shift.