Unofficial visits
An unofficial visit is any visit you pay for yourself — you can take one at any time, as often as you like, with no restriction on timing. Coaches can meet with you, show you the athletic facilities, and arrange for you to sit in on a practice when the team's schedule allows. Pair it with a normal campus visit booked through Admissions so you also get an information session and a tour; the two are usually scheduled together.
Official visits
An official visit is one the university pays for, in whole or part — transportation, meals, and lodging within NCAA-defined limits. Division III programs use these far less often than Division I programs, and mostly for a prospect traveling a real distance. A coach has to invite you; you cannot request one, and there is a strict limit on how many official visits you can take across all schools and how long each one can last. Ask your prospective coach directly whether an official visit is something the program offers for your sport.
Prospect camps and clinics
Sport-specific camps and clinics run on campus in the off-season, usually for a fee that covers instruction, facility use, and sometimes meals or overnight housing in a residence hall. They're open to any prospective student regardless of whether Porter has otherwise recruited you, and they're the most common way a coach gets a first look at a prospect who wasn't already on their radar from film or a coach referral. Camp dates and sport are posted on each team's page and the athletics events calendar closer to the season.
What Division III rules mean for you
Division III recruiting rules exist mainly to prevent the same excesses Division I addresses — there is no letter-of-intent signing process, no athletic scholarship to negotiate, and generally lighter contact restrictions than Division I. That means conversations with a coach can be more informal and can start earlier, but it also means nothing is officially binding until you are admitted and enrolled; treat any verbal encouragement from a coach as informative, not as a guarantee of a roster spot.
Questions?
See the full staff & office directory for any phone number or email. Because this is a fictional parody site, addresses and phone numbers are illustrative and do not reach a real university.