Guide to Becoming a Youth Basketball Coach

Becoming a youth basketball coach can be extremely rewarding. You’ll get to work directly with kids, helping them develop new skills that prepare them for success on the court and off.

You could even go down as one of the greatest high school coaches, like Bob Hurley, who won four national championships and 26 state championships across an impressive 43-year high school coaching career.

If you’ve been wondering how to become a youth basketball coach, you’re in the right place. We’ve created the following guide to help you get started, so keep reading to learn everything you need to know to start coaching youth basketball.

Educational Requirements for Basketball Coaches

As you think about becoming a certified youth basketball coach, the first step is to fulfill the position’s educational requirements.

The answer to this depends on the level of youth basketball you want to coach. You may need a bachelor’s degree if it’s high school. But for lower levels, like middle and elementary school, having an associate’s degree may be enough to lead the team.

It’s also worth noting that you could pursue a youth basketball coaching certification or a coaching license, such as the one offered by USA basketball. Earning these can help you stand out as a coaching applicant.

Best Degrees For Youth Coaches

The best degrees for youth basketball coaching jobs include any fields related to sports, nutrition, and bodily movement. 

For example, many youth coaches have degrees in nutrition, kinesiology, physical education, and related subjects. You can even pursue a psychology degree to make it easier on you to deal with young children.

That being said, no degrees are required to become a youth basketball coach. However, you can help your application stand out by having one in a related field.

It’s also worth mentioning that many youth basketball coaches work as teachers that lead basketball teams before and after school. If that’s the route you’d like to take, you’ll need a college education that qualifies you to become a teacher in the subject you’d like to cover.

Youth Basketball Coach Job Description

A youth basketball coach has a wide variety of tasks and goals. They’re responsible for the following:

• Organizing practice
• Keeping kids engaged in what they’re doing
• Creating workout routines
• Working on skill development with individual players
• Creating and calling plays
• Developing teamwide basketball fundamentals
• Promoting positive attitudes and teamwork
• And more

Coaching youth basketball is a job unlike any other. You’re doing as much to help the children you work with develop lifelong skills as you are turning them into a functional basketball team.

The best youth basketball coaches can leverage their experience in the real world and basketball to accomplish those two objectives at the same time.

Expected Salary and Benefits

The average youth basketball coach makes around $34,000 per year. As a result, many coaches become involved with summer programs and other kinds of rec leagues to supplement their income and increase their annual salary.

It’s also worth noting that you can become a teacher working in youth sports. Teachers make more than $60,000 annually on average, and those who coach school sports teams on the side will often get a stipend added to their salary, which is usually worth thousands of dollars.

How to Find Coaching Jobs

Now that you know what it takes to become a youth basketball coach, it’s time to begin searching for jobs. That process will take several steps, which we’ll cover below.

Get the Right Education and Experience

First, you want to make sure that you have the right education level and experience for the kinds of youth basketball coaching you want to do. As we discussed, this can vary based on how you want to coach youth basketball.

For example, if you want to be a teacher who coaches youth basketball on the side, you need a bachelor’s degree and a teaching credential. But if you want to coach youth sports without being a teacher, you may be able to do that with just a certificate.

Having the right experience will also make your job hunt easier. You can typically get this by volunteering for non-paying youth coaching jobs.

Build a Network

Building a network can also make your job hunt much more manageable. The more people that you know who are involved in youth sports in your area, the easier it should be for you to find a coaching position.

The truth is that people that the hiring director already knows often fill competitive jobs like these. You can get a much better chance of getting hired if you know those people in your area.

You can engage in networking by volunteering for youth sporting events, working as a referee in local leagues, and attending conferences, award ceremonies, and even games.

Apply Early with JobsInSports.com

Sometimes, a hiring decision comes down to who applied for the position early enough to get an interview. But you don’t want to let a late application keep you from getting the youth basketball coaching position you’ve always wanted.

That’s where JobsInSports.com comes in. We maintain an up-to-date list of the best coaching jobs in your area. When you create an account with us, you can receive notifications the second that a new youth basketball coaching job becomes available so that you can always be one of the first to apply for it.

Applying earlier is what it takes to get your first chance in youth basketball coaching. It may even be the beginning of a legacy that rivals Bob Hurley.

So why wait? Set up an account with us today to start receiving notifications and to take the first step towards charting your course as a youth basketball coaching legend.