College Powerlifting: These 8 Schools Have the Best Programs

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I got into powerlifting as a teenager and it completely changed my life. Through hours of training in the gym, the awkward, scrawny, unsure kid of my youth slowly gave way to a strong, confident, competitive young man. I had finally found a sport I was better than mediocre at.

When it came time to apply to college, I knew I didn’t want to let powerlifting fall by the wayside. The problem is, not many colleges have serious, developed, active powerlifting programs. I wrote this guide to the top college powerlifting programs for students who find themselves in the same position I was in.

A row of power racks.
A row of power racks.

Table of Contents

Colleges That Offer Powerlifting Scholarships

Only a handful of colleges offer powerlifting scholarships, and unless you live nearby, you probably haven’t heard of these schools. Not because they’re bad — several of them have quality academics and nice facilities — but because they’re small and tend to attract a regional student body.

Most of the powerlifting scholarships offered by these schools aren’t full rides, either. They aren’t going to roll out the red carpet for you like Alabama to a five-star football prospect. You likely won’t be presented with any ready-made NIL deals, either, though there’s plenty of sponsorship money to be made in powerlifting if you manage your social media right.

But these colleges offer you a way not only to continue your love for powerlifting as you pursue your education but also a way to get paid to do it and be a legitimate college varsity athlete on a scholarship.

Midland University Powerlifting

If you’re serious about being a college scholarship powerlifter, there’s no better place to be than Midland University in Nebraska. This small school located a little under an hour west of Omaha has the top program and arguably the top facilities in the country.

The Warriors have swept the team titles at the USA Powerlifting Collegiate Nationals for several years in a row. Midland offers a whopping 34 partial scholarships each year to powerlifting athletes.

The powerlifting facilities at Midland are, to put it bluntly, ridiculous: 12 lifting platforms, Eleiko plates, state-of-the-art benches and power racks, and plenty of machines for accessory work.

Head Coach Tim Anderson is one of the most respected names in powerlifting and has been involved in the USAPL for more than 20 years.

McKendree University Powerlifting

McKendree University is a small school that competes in the NCAA’s Division II, unlike Midland and most of the other schools offering powerlifting scholarships, which compete in the NAIA. The team competes in several meets per year, mostly USAPL events in the Southern Illinois and St. Louis areas.

The university offers several partial scholarships to powerlifting athletes; however, academics also play a role in who gets these scholarships, so you want to make sure your grades and test scores are as impressive as your lifts.

Missouri Valley College Powerlifting

An outdoor pavilion at Missouri Valley College
An outdoor pavilion at Missouri Valley College

The powerlifting program at Missouri Valley College in Marshall, MO is currently in rapid growth mode, adding opulent facilities and new coaches. The school has recently begun offering partial scholarships to promising powerlifters who also demonstrate strong abilities in the classroom.

The Walker C. Fletcher Athletic Complex — where you’ll be training as a powerlifting athlete at Missouri Valley — is something to behold, especially for a school with only 1,250 students. This is clearly a program on the rise and looks to become much more competitive in the near future.

Ottawa University Powerlifting

Ottawa University rounds out our list of college powerlifting programs that offer scholarships. This NAIA program is a mainstay at USAPL collegiate nationals and has produced multiple All-American lifters.

Head Coach George Neef has served as the strength and conditioning coach at several collegiate athletic programs before taking on his current role at Ottawa.

The powerlifting facilities at Ottawa are top notch, and the program is dominant at USAPL events in the Midwest, often battling with Midland University for top honors.

With a young, energetic head coach in place, this program looks to make moves in the coming years.

Other Colleges With Active Powerlifting Programs

If after reading through the above list of small, regional colleges that offer powerlifting scholarships you decide you’d rather have a traditional college experience — think Greek life, tailgating, and football games with tens of thousands of fans — then a school with an active club powerlifting program might be a better fit for you.

Club powerlifting programs aren’t varsity sports, which means they don’t get funding from the university’s athletic department and aren’t regulated by a governing body like the NCAA or NAIA. Instead, they’re organized completely by the students involved, sometimes with the help of a faculty advisor.

The great thing about participating in a club sport as opposed to a varsity sport is you can be as involved or uninvolved as you want to or as your academic obligations allow. There are no mandatory workouts or practices, and you can’t lose your scholarship for failing to meet performance expectations.

With an active club powerlifting program, you still get the opportunity to travel to other colleges and universities and compete against their teams, and to participate in high-level national meets, such as college and junior nationals.

The following schools have the most active and serious college powerlifting programs in the country.

The Ohio State University Powerlifting

The Ohio State Powerlifting Club was founded in 2012 and has grown to nearly 100 active members.

About half of these members compete in meets held by various federations, including the USAPL, USPA, and IPF. The other half enjoys training and socializing with the team and not necessarily competing.

Ohio State’s program is great because there are no entrance requirements other than paying your negligible yearly dues which go toward facilities upkeep and equipment maintenance. Even if you can barely bench the bar, the club will welcome you and treat you like family.

At such a massive university like tOSU, the powerlifting program is a great way to find your tribe, make friends, and have an active social life while staying healthy, fit, and strong.

University of Wisconsin—Madison Powerlifting

  • Location: Madison, WI
  • Enrollment: 34,000
  • Varsity or club sport: Club
  • Scholarships available: No
  • Team website: Badger Powerlifting

The powerlifting club team at the University of Wisconsin—Madison competes in mostly USAPL-sanctioned events, with the goal of making nationals each year. This is a highly competitive club team that takes its lifting seriously while also maintaining a fun social atmosphere outside the gym.

Unlike Ohio State’s program, UW-Madison’s powerlifting club requires you to try out and make the team. Due to limited training space, they can only take 40 lifters each year.

To qualify based on your weight class, you’ll have to hit a competition total (meaning squat, bench, and deadlift) over a certain amount.

For instance, if you’re a male in the 198.4 pound weight class, your total must exceed 1,115 pounds. You can find all of the tryout totals on this Instagram post.

West Virginia University Powerlifting

  • Location: Morgantown, WV
  • Enrollment: 21,000
  • Varsity or club sport: Club
  • Scholarships available: No
  • Team website: WVU Powerlifting Club
Aerial shot of WVU's campus.
Aerial shot of WVU’s campus.

West Virginia University’s powerlifting club was established in 2017 and has grown like crazy, now boasting more than 30 members. 

The team is open to all — there are no tryouts or minimum lift requirements — and the cost is only $20 per semester plus $40 a month for access to the private gym where the team trains.

To remain an active member of the team, you must compete in at least one USAPL or USPA meet each year.

WVU’s powerlifting program is a fantastic way to make friends and find your niche at the university, especially if you’re coming from out of state (like half of WVU’s students do) and don’t know many people.

The Move Right Training and Performance Center where the team trains off campus has top-notch facilities and equipment.

University of Pittsburgh Powerlifting

Pitt has an active college powerlifting club program that competes mostly in USAPL meets. It is open to members of all levels, including beginners. Because of the school’s rivalry with nearby WVU — the campuses are barely an hour apart — the growing powerlifting programs at the two universities are developing a nice little rivalry themselves.

Another benefit of Pitt is that the school is academically top-notch, particularly for pre-med and the sciences.

The Bottom Line on College Powerlifting Programs

It’s common for high school athletes to get to college and let their healthy habits slip. Training, exercise, and discipline get supplanted by fast food, beer, and partying. We’re not saying to eschew the college lifestyle completely. You only get to do it once, and it’s only four years long (well, give or take), so you should soak it up.

But your body and your future health will thank you if you stick to good habits, and powerlifting is one of the healthiest and most productive habits you can adopt.

Whether you decided to pursue college powerlifting on a scholarship level or just want a fun and active club program to compete with, you have plenty of options, and the list above provides a great place to start. The important thing is that no matter where you end up going to college, keep lifting and keep adding plates to the bar!

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