Division I
- Sponsor at least seven sports for men and seven for women (or six for men and eight for women) with two team sports for each gender
- Each playing season has to be represented by each gender
- There are contest and participant minimums for each sport, as well as scheduling criteria
- For sports other than football and basketball, Division I schools must play 100 percent of the minimum number of contests against Division I opponents — anything over the minimum number of games has to be 50 percent Division I
- Men’s and women’s basketball teams have to play all but two games against Division I teams
- Men must play one-third of all their contests in the home arena
- Schools that have football are classified as Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) or NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA)
- Football Bowl Subdivision teams have to meet minimum attendance requirements
(average 15,000 people in actual or paid attendance per home game), which must be met once in a rolling two-year period - NCAA Football Championship Subdivision teams do not need to meet minimum attendance requirements
Division I schools must meet minimum financial aid awards for their athletics program, and there are maximum financial aid awards for each sport that a Division I school cannot exceed
Division II
- Sponsor at least five sports for men and five for women, (or four for men and six for women), with two team sports for each gender
- Each playing season has to be represented by each gender
- There are contest and participant minimums for each sport, as well as scheduling criteria — football and men’s and women’s basketball teams must play at least 50 percent of their games against Division II or Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) or Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) opponents
- For sports other than football and basketball, there are no scheduling requirements
- There are not attendance requirements for football, or arena game requirements for basketball
- There are maximum financial aid awards for each sport that a Division II school must not exceed
- Many Division II student-athletes pay for school through a combination of scholarship money, grants, student loans and employment earnings
- Division II athletics programs are financed in the institution’s budget like other academic departments on campus
- Traditional rivalries with regional institutions dominate schedules of many Division II athletics programs
Division III
- Division III institutions have to sponsor at least five sports for men and five for women, with two team sports for each gender
- Each playing season has to be represented by each gender
- There are minimum contest and participant minimums for each sport
- Division III athletics features student-athletes who receive no financial aid related to their athletic ability and athletic departments are staffed and funded like any other department in the university
- Division III athletics departments place special importance on the impact of athletics on the participants rather than on the spectators
- The student-athlete’s experience is of paramount concern
- Division III athletics encourages participation by maximizing the number and variety of athletics opportunities available to students, placing primary emphasis on regional in-season and conference competition
