Most rowers don’t get recruited because they don’t understand the process.
Swipe through for a step-by-step breakdown of exactly how US college recruiting works and what you need to do at each stage. Link on the link in our bio for links to the full resources!
👉 Save this for later.
Getting recruited is not just about talent. It’s about showing your character, demonstrating your trajectory, understanding the process, and taking the right steps at the right time.
We help athletes with performance, recruiting strategy, and ongoing support throughout the journey.
To find out more book a free introductory call via the link in bio.
At 16, I nearly quit rowing and took up cycling instead.
That’s me with Alan Campbell, Olympic bronze medallist, after a talk he gave. I was at a crossroads. Small club, rowing a single, sitting in B finals at nationals. Great community around me, but I wasn’t winning. I was working hard, showing up, and just... not quite kicking on.
I genuinely thought about walking away. Maybe my build was better suited to cycling. Maybe rowing just wasn’t for me.
But I gave myself one more race. Six months. See what happens.
So I reset. Stopped thinking about where I wasn’t and started thinking about what I could actually control, my strength, my power on the ergo, the small things I could improve week to week. And slowly, I started making bigger strides.
First milestone: get under 6:50 on the 2k R24. I’d never gone sub-7. That autumn I did it. Then 6:36 by summer. Not fast by GB standards, but I was on a trajectory. And that felt different.
Then out of nowhere I came 4th at Boston long distance trials. People said it was the stream (I start 200th and apparently there was a stream that kicked in later in the day). Maybe. But I didn’t let that take the confidence away, because that confidence pushed me further than any result could.
One good race, one bad race. But I held onto every good one.
I made Coupe. Moved to Marlow. And that’s when something shifted, I started to genuinely believe I could be fast. Not just hopeful. Believing.
Once you get that first real taste of belief, that’s when the dream is allowed to start.
Short-term memory for setbacks. Long-term memory for small wins.
Keep resetting what you think is possible. I never fully knew I’d become Olympic champion, but every small confidence gain brought that possibility closer.
Fake it until you make it. Then one day, you won’t be faking anymore.
Find your confidence. The rest follows.
10 conferences. 22 spots. The D1 national title. 🏆
If you want to row in college, you need to follow the sport. That means watching the racing, knowing the programmes, and having something real to say when a coach picks up the phone.
Swipe through for every women’s conference championship happening right now, how to stream each one, and how it all feeds into the NCAA Championship on 29–31 May.
Comment below and tell us which races you’re following.
What do you think about in racing?
Theo Bell from Princeton sat with us earlier this year on the podcast and talked about how his approach to racing has changed.
This weekend he lines up at Eastern Sprints as part of the #1 seed Princeton squad.
Who’s your pic for the Eastern Sprint Title this year?
Why you need to be watching college rowing!
Championship season is here and knowing the racing, who’s racing, and how to follow it is one of the easiest ways to stand out on a call with a recruiting coach.
Swipe through for everything happening this month, how to watch, and why it matters for your recruiting.
And listen out for our very own Sholto, who will be commentating live at Eastern Sprints and the IRAs. Follow along and you’ll know exactly what coaches are looking!
Comment below your top picks for the IRA 🏆
Princeton Women’s Rowing’s Anna Kalfaian on what actually matters in recruiting conversations.
Coaches know college rowing is hard. They’re not expecting a perfect record, they’re watching how you respond when things go wrong. Do you own it, show what you learned, and explain your plan? Or do you avoid it?
The way you talk about your setbacks tells a coach exactly how you’ll behave on their team when it gets hard.
Don’t hide the bad results. Use them.
Every rower hits the same wall. Training, school, grades, and recruiting pressure, all at once.
The ones who make it to the next level stay calm have a plan and handle each task systematically.
Save this if you’re a student-athlete trying to figure it out or send it to a rower who needs to see this. 🚣
Straight from a D1 recruiting coach: Emma Luniewicz 👇
The recruiting timeline is longer than most athletes expect, 6 months, a year, sometimes more. But what actually keeps you on a coach’s radar? Asking good questions when you reach out, and sending short constant updates.
Coaches remember the athletes who make it easy to recruit them.
Nate Goodman on what actually defines the Washington program.
Two decades of dominance doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built by the people who walk through the boathouse door every morning ready to work.
Windermere Cup this weekend, watch the Huskies match up against the British National Team 8+
Women’s college rowing in the U.S. is one of the best-kept secrets in sport.
More teams. More Recruiting Spots. More scholarships. More opportunity all because of Title IX.
But the timeline matters. Fully funded programmes offer spots early, and waiting too long means missing out.
This is the women’s recruitment timeline, what you need to know and when.
Link in bio to learn more
Comment MASTERCLASS for the full video
Your 2K isn’t enough to get you recruited.
Coaches are judging how you communicate, how you follow up, and how you present your work ethic just as much as your erg and results.
If you come across unprepared, or hard to coach, you’re not helping your chances.
The athletes who get recruited are the ones coaches trust to represent their programme every day.
Comment “timeline” and we’ll send you our free youtube guide.
