In order to represent Division I men’s basketball student-athletes as they weigh their professional prospects without negatively impacting the athlete's remaining eligibility, the agent must be NCAA certified by the Enforcement Certification and Approvals Group (ECAG).

News

• Information regarding the 2024 NBA Draft process – Q&A Session (Feb. 28, 2024)
• Agent Certification Update on Allowable Expenses (Mar. 1, 2022)
• NCAA-certified agents helping college athletes test NBA draft waters (Oct. 12, 2021)

Basic Application Process

To become NCAA certified, an agent must:

1. Be certified by the NBPA for at least three consecutive years and be in good standing.
2. Maintain professional liability insurance that covers agent activities.
3. Create or login to the NCAA Certified Agent Portal (NCAP) account.
4. Submit an application to the NCAA in NCAP.
5. Successfully complete the required background check (accessed as part of the application in NCAP);
6. Pay the nonrefundable application fee (paid to the NCAA-selected background check provider).
7. Respond to any requests for information received from the NCAA within 10 days of being notified. (If additional information is needed to complete the processing of the application, the NCAA will identify those issues in NCAP and the agent will receive an alert via email.)
8. Make plans to fulfill the required education component. (Once the NCAA reviews the application, the agent will be notified of their eligibility to take the required exam or complete the continuing-education course.)
9. Pay the certification fee. (Agent will be notified of the necessary photo upload and certification fee amount once the educational component has been successfully completed and the NCAA has determined that all other requirements have been met.)
10. Conduct duties necessary to be an agent in compliance with NCAA requirements.
11. Re-apply the following year using the same NCAP user account.

For more specific details regarding the application process, see: Application Process Description.

Application Dates

The NCAA agent certification application will be available in NCAP from August 1 at midnight to September 30 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time for the following draft season [August 1 to September 30, 2023, for the 2024 NBA Draft].  Late submissions are traditionally NOT accepted. Failure to apply while the application is available will require the agent to wait until the next year's application is available.

Fees

1. Application Fees.

   At the conclusion of the application, the agent will be redirected to Sterling Volunteers to provide information for the required background check and will need to pay a non-refundable application fee of $250.

2. Late Application Fees.

   Under unique circumstances, ECAG may allow late applications up to 30 calendar days after the application closes. In those cases, the agent will pay the typical non-refundable application fee to paid to the NCAA-selected background check provider and an identical application fee will be collected when the certification fee is paid at the end of the process.

3. Certification Fees.

   1. First Year Applicant - Certification Fees.

      Fees are based on the number of calendar days between when the agent pays and the date the notification of eligibility email was sent.

      • 0-30 days (base) = $750
      • 31-60 days (+$150) = $900
      • 61-90 days (+350) = $1,100
      • 91-120 days (+650) = $1,400
      • 121-150 days (+950) = $1,700
      • Not available more than 150 days after the email notification was sent. If an agent has not paid the certification fees prior to 150 days, the certification will be denied.

   2. Returning Applicant - Certification Fees.

      Fees are based on the number of calendar days between when the agent pays and the date the notification of eligibility email was sent.

      • 0-30 days (base) = $250
      • 31-60 days (+$150) = $400
      • 61-90 days (+350) = $600
      • 91-120 days (+650) = $900
      • 121-150 days (+950) = $1,200
      • Not available more than 150 days after the email notification was sent. If an agent has not paid the certification fees prior to 150 days, the certification will be denied.

NCAA Educational Component.

Once the application and background check are initially reviewed by the NCAA, the agent will be notified that he/she needs to complete the appropriate educational component.

1. First-Year Applicant Exam. Agents who have not previously been NCAA certified must take the First-Year Applicant Exam.
   1. PREPARATION: Study materials are posted on www.ncaa.org/agent-certification and the NCAA will host a review session for agents prior to administering the exam.
   2. WHERE: The exam will be administered online. Dates TBD.
   3. WHEN: First year applicants will receive an email that includes a link to the online exam, instructions and hyperlinks to resources available for assistance once the exam is available. The exam is open book and must be submitted by the deadline that will be specified in the email with the hyperlink to the exam.  NOTE: You can start the exam, exit and return to complete it at a later time and you answers will be saved.  CAUTION:  However, if you intend to complete the exam and go back at a later time to review your answers one last time, DO NOT ANSWER THE LAST QUESTION until you are ready to submit.  Once you answer the last questions, the Learning Management System will automatically submit the exam for you if after a short period of time assuming that you forgot to do so.
   4. FORMAT: The exam will be open book and consist of 50 multiple choice or true/false questions focusing on: NCAA initial and continuing eligibility requirements, NCAA recruiting and related rules, NCAA agent rules and certification requirements, amateurism, extra benefits and financial competency. Electronic devices are not permitted during the exam.
   5. REQUIRED SCORE: Applicants must achieve a score of at least 80% (40 correct responses) to pass the exam.
2. Returning Applicants - Continuing Education. Previously certified NCAA agents are required to complete an online educational course. When the NCAP application is processed by the NCAA, information about access to and deadlines for this course will be provided as part of the request for information and the agent will be alerted via email.

History.

In 2018 the Commission on College Basketball reported that NCAA student-athletes needed earlier professional advice to determine whether it is in their best interests to declare for the NBA draft or return to college. As a result, the NCAA agent certification program was created. Student-athletes whose team’s basketball season has concluded and who have requested an evaluation from the NBA Undergraduate Advisory Committee via email at UAC@nba.com may be represented by an NCAA-certified agent and still retain their NCAA eligibility.

Additional Help and Information.

If you have questions, please visit the ECAG FAQ. Additional information is available at www.ncaa.org/agent-certification or you may contact the ECAG at 844/562-6201 or by using the Email Contact Form [ https://web3.ncaa.org/bbcs/contactForm].