Athletic Aid Agreement (LOI)
An athletic aid agreement or letter of intent is used by some amateur athletic associations as a way for the student and school to “officially” commit to each other. A financial aid statement is generally a document the school asks the student to sign that outlines the financial aid they will provide to the student in exchange for the student enrolling at their institution and participating in their sport. These documents vary on terms and duration and the NAIA would strongly recommend you read them thoroughly before signing.
The NAIA as a national office does not recognize these documents and does not enforce them against either party. That is, the NAIA will not make a student stay enrolled at an institution if they signed an intent document, nor will the NAIA force a school to honor a financial aid agreement. In the eyes of the NAIA, each school has autonomy on how they want to allocate and regulate financial aid in the same way as playing time. There is no document the NAIA recognizes that will identify a student with a school. The only way a student can identify with an institution is by enrolling in 12 institutional credit hours or representing an NAIA institution in competition.
Other organizations do recognize letters of intent such as the NCAA and NJCAA. However, the NAIA does not give any authority to these types of documents from any non-NAIA organizations.
**Exception - The Southern States Athletic Conference Constitution states in Article 8.2 that "A student who signs an athletic aid agreement to participate in a given sport at an SSAC member institution, but does not participate (does not attend the institution or attends the institution, but does not participate in a varsity contest in that sport as outlined above) cannot participate with any other conference institution in that sport for one calendar year from the date of enrollment at the second institution. A written release may be granted by the athletic director or compliance officer." This only applies to sports competing in the SSAC (Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Soccer, Men's and Women's Golf, Baseball, Softball, Volleyball and Competitive Cheer)
FAQ:
Can a student sign a letter of intent and still participate in the recruiting process?
Yes, the NAIA does not recognize LOI's as legal binding documents. Until you identify (12 institutional credit hours or by representing an institution in competition) you are free to be recruited and pursue all options.
What if a student signs a letter of intent and once they get on campus they realize the school was not a good fit?
Per NAIA bylaws, if a student has not competed for the institution, then they would be able to transfer and play immediately. If they student has competed for their NAIA institution, then they will be subject to NAIA transfer rules.
If the student wishes to transfer, whether it is to a school within their conference, another NAIA institution, or to another sport organization, it would be up to the student to read his/her letter of intent or financial agreement to see what implications might come from transferring.