The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) includes what is known as a Season of Competition (SoC). Student-athletes earn Season of Competition (SoC) credit in order to be classified as eligible to play in certain games.
NAIA student-athletes are charged a Season of Competition for each season they represent an institution in competition. No competitive season will be credited for practice games. Generally, no more than one season of competition can be credited within a year. However, students who compete for more than one institution in the same academic year may receive credit for one Season of Competition for each institution for which they compete.
A freshman playing basketball competes in six basketball games in his first Season of Competition in the fall for school A. He transfers to school B at the end of the fall semester. He practices with the team and is expected to participate in the team's games in the spring. However, he must first be determined eligible to play. Since he played his first Season of Competition at school A and that season ended when he left that school, he must be cleared to play his second Season of Competition at school B in order to compete against outside competition. This means that he must meet the rule for students entering their second Season of Competition and have accumulated 24 institutional credit hours to be eligible for his second season.
- A Season of Competition ends when a student leaves their institution.
- Students must be admitted for their next Season of Competition.
- Students will not be credited with a Season of Competition for participation in testing games. Students must be determined eligible to participate in certain competitions.
Source: https://www.naia.org/legislative/seasons-of-competition