Is kayaking a viable sport for college scholarships?

I love kayaking and was wondering if it's considered for college sports scholarships. Do colleges offer scholarships for students skilled in kayaking, and how competitive is it?

While kayaking is a great activity and can certainly contribute to your college application in the context of extracurricular involvement, it's not commonly associated with traditional sports scholarships in the United States. The majority of colleges with competitive sports teams and corresponding scholarships tend to focus on sports sanctioned by the NCAA, such as football, basketball, soccer, etc., and unfortunately, kayaking is not currently recognized as an NCAA sport.

However, there are unconventional ways that this could potentially contribute to a scholarship indirectly. Some schools have outdoor adventure clubs that might involve kayaking and leadership or involvement in these clubs could be taken into account when considering general leadership or involvement scholarships.

There are also external scholarships that reward students for their various hobbies and interests, and you might find one dedicated to students who are involved in kayaking or other non-traditional sports. A search on scholarship databases such as Appily or the College Board scholarship search might be useful here. Let this not discourage you from continuing to pursue kayaking. College admissions value unique interests and activities, and kayaking could certainly contribute to creating a diverse and engaging student profile.