As if the act of simply being able to play college volleyball wasn't competitive enough, there is also the task of getting a volleyball scholarship to consider. These scholarships may seem extremely hard to come by; after all, many athletes would love to have them in their grasps. Yes, there is no way around it: the competition for scholarships is fierce.

However, even with this fierce competition, is it still very possible to obtain a volleyball scholarship. In fact, each college volleyball team has several they are allowed to dole out each year. But, how do you make sure you are on the receiving end?

There is no sure fire way to get a scholarship, even when you truly deserve one. Sometimes, scholarships are awarded for reasons beyond your control. But, there are ways to up your chances dramatically and make a scholarship a real possibility. When push comes to shove, the kids who get scholarships are the ones who do the following:

They Get Themselves Noticed: It's pretty simple: no school can offer you a volleyball scholarship if they don't know who you are. For this reason, getting noticed is the most important aspect - and the first step - of getting a scholarship. The way to get noticed is to market yourself to college volleyball officials. Send them a skills video, voice your interest in their college volleyball program, visit their campus, and invite them to come see you play in a high school or club game.

They Aim to be Complete Packages: College volleyball scholarships are not likely to be wasted on people who won't academically qualify to play a college sport. Poor grades can drastically hurt your scholarship chances. For this reason, you should aim to not only succeed on the court, but also succeed in the classroom. Keeping your grades high increases your chance of getting a volleyball scholarship. And, of course, high grades also up your odds of getting an academic one.

They Apply and Apply Often: It may seem like common sense, but most of the people who get college volleyball scholarships are those who apply. Without applying, no one has any way to know that you are even interested in a particular scholarship. So, apply, apply, apply and then apply some more. Don't stop with just one volleyball scholarship application: increase your chances of getting a scholarship by applying for several. Remember, the worst they can say is no.