Eligibility

For FAQ on U SPORTS Eligibility & Recruiting for Recruits & Perspective Student-Athletes, please visit this U SPORTS link

For FAQ on U SPORTS Eligibility for Current Student-Athletes please visit this U SPORTS link

For FAQ on the U SPORTS Letter of Intent (LOI) program, please visit this U SPORTS link 

For FAQ on U SPORTS New Transfer Exception Rule, please visit this U SPORTS link

• In the semester in which you complete within U SPORTS, you must be enrolled in a minimum of three (3) courses that are recognized towards a degree (minimum 9 degree-granting credit hours or equivalent, as confirmed by the registrar).
• However, if there are circumstances within your academic program which would warrant an exception to this ruling and where the university continues to declare you as a fulltime student in that semester (such as graduate students, exchange students, registered special needs students, and co-op students), you may still be eligible.

How do I get charged with a year of eligibility?

• If your team does NOT have an exhibition schedule, you are charged with a year of eligibility when your name appears on the playing roster (or equivalent) of two or more regular season competitions; otherwise if your team DOES play in exhibition, you are charged a year for a single regular season competition with an exception in football and rugby 
• For U SPORTS exhibition and playoff competition, CEGEP participation, as well as National Team and Professional participation, please consult your Athletic Department.
• Men's basketball and hockey have sport-specific regulations related to non-U SPORTS participation which can result in the loss of eligibility; please consult your Athletic Department. Within related jurisdictions, such as the CCAA or NCAA, you are charged with eligibility in accordance with that jurisdiction’s rules.

Eligibility consumption by sport:

• Cross Country/Track: Participation in 3 or more exhibition games, meets or tournaments (up to three games in consecutive days) will consume eligibility.
• Basketball/Hockey/Soccer: Participation in any conference game will consume eligibility, given we have exhibition schedules in these sports.
• Football/Rugby: If there is a one game or event exhibition schedule, participation in two conference games consumes eligibility.
• All Sports: Participation in and AUS or U SPORTS Championship game will consume eligibility.

How many years of eligibility do I have?

• U SPORTS allows you to compete for 5 years.  In the sport of football, those 5 years must be used within an 8 or 7-year period following the earlier of high school graduation or the completion of high school eligibility (for Quebec and non-Quebec high school graduates respectively).
• Athletes who have completed their eligibility to participate in another post-secondary jurisdiction, such as the CCAA, are ineligible for U SPORTS competition.
• Athletes who have been charged with a year of eligibility or a season of competition in four separate academic years within a non-Canadian post-secondary jurisdiction, such as the NCAA, are ineligible for U SPORTS competition.

THINKING ABOUT TRANSFERRING?

As a current U SPORTS student-athlete, how soon can I play after transferring to another U SPORTS school?

• One year (365 days) must pass from your last participation in that sport, subject to all other rules.
• New 2026 Transfer Exception Rule:  This transfer exception, which allows a student-athlete to transfer from one U SPORTS university to another U SPORTS university and compete immediately without sitting out for 365 days is available to student-athletes who are transferring prior to their third academic year. They can’t have previously used this exception, and they must submit a Declaration of Intent to Transfer on their U SPORTS Central account. Both the departing and receiving university will need to agree to the unencumbered transfer.
• If you want to be eligible for an unencumbered transfer, you must submit your declaration before December 15 for fall sports and April 15 for winter sports. Missing these deadlines does not mean that you cannot transfer, it simply means that you are not able to access the unencumbered transfer and are subject to the 365-day sit-out period.
• For FAQ on U SPORTS New Transfer Exception Rule, please visit this U SPORTS link

Are there any other exceptions?

• When either the sport you play or your academic program of study has been discontinued at your school, subject to all other rules.
• If you enroll in a graduate or first professional degree program at a school different from the one you attended the previous year, you may be able to participate immediately in U SPORTS competition (please consult your Athletic Department).
• Specific to the sports of swimming, track & field, and cross-country running, a student-athlete can transfer to a U SPORTS institution from any degree granting post-secondary institution without restriction in an immediately subsequent academic year under certain conditions (please consult your Athletic Department).

What else should I know about transferring?

• If you contact another school’s coach or Athletic Department representative regarding a potential transfer, the Athletic Director of your present school will be notified.
• If you are contacted by another coach this is not allowed. U SPORTS coaches and Athletic Department representatives are not permitted to contact athletes already attending a U SPORTS school.

As a CCAA student-athlete, how soon can I play after transferring to a U SPORTS school?

• You can participate immediately in U SPORTS competition, unless:
  1) you have participated in any game(s) in that semester or term; or
  2) you have not achieved a minimum 60% average or equivalent on those college courses utilized to determine your university admission; or
  3) you have completed your CCAA eligibility; or
  4) you have not maintained your academic eligibility in the CCAA.

As a NCAA or NAIA student-athlete, how soon can I play after transferring to a U SPORTS school?

• Subject to all other U SPORTS rules including academic requirements, and provided you have not been charged with a year of eligibility in four separate academic years within the NCAA or NAIA, one year must pass from your last participation.

ELIGIBILITY QUICK CHECK

1.  Am I registered for 3 or more six-credit courses OR 6 or more three-credit courses?

• If the answer is NO, then you are NOT eligible to participate on a StFX varsity team.
• The actual U SPORTS rule states that a student athlete who is registered in a minimum of 3 full credit courses or 6 half credit courses has satisfied the requirement necessary to be classified as a full time student.

2.  Am I currently in my 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, or 5^th year as a member of a StFX varsity team in any sport(s)? 

• If the answer is YES, then you must have passed 3 full credit courses or 6 half credit courses in the last calendar year (12 consecutive months) to be eligible to participate as a StFX student athlete.
• The U SPORTS rule states that a continuing student, who has previously been a registered U SPORTS athlete, must be a ‘student in good standing’ in each subsequent year of participation in a U SPORTS sport.
• You are eligible to participate once you have achieved the status of ‘a student in good standing’ – having attained 3 full or 6 half credit courses in a 12 month period.

3.  Have I been a member of an interuniversity team at another university during the past season? 

• If the answer is YES, notify your coach immediately. You may not be eligible to participate as a StFX varsity athlete.
• The U SPORTS rule states that any athlete who transfers from one degree granting institute to another member institute, must not participate for a period of one calendar year (365 days) in the U SPORTS sport in which the athlete participated at the previous institution - unless the athlete qualifies as an unecumbered transfer prior to your third academic year and you have submitted your Declaration of Intent to Transfer form.
• Transfers to a master’s degree are excluded from this rule and may participate immediately.
• A student who transfers from a degree granting institution to a member institution who, during the immediate previous calendar year, did NOT participate in a particular sport is eligible for participation in that U SPORTS sport.