Cheer tryout tips: seven college cheerleaders in navy with ice-blue LED pom poms lead a clinic finale on mats in a dark gym

Cheer Tryout Tips for Clinic Season: How to Get Seen Before College Cheer Tryouts

For high school seniors, college students and their parents: how college cheer clinics feed tryouts, what programs test, a clinic-season calendar, what it costs, and how to practice motions at home with light-up poms.

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For high school seniors and college students heading into clinic season: practice your motions with our light-up pom poms. The LEDs are built into each 7 oz pom, so a dim-room practice video shows exactly where your arms land. Get a practice pair on the product page, and follow each program’s posted dress code and material.

How do you get seen before college cheer tryouts?

Cheer tryout tips: seven college cheerleaders in navy with ice-blue LED pom poms lead a clinic finale on mats in a dark gym

Go to the clinic. At many college programs the clinic is where coaches first see you work, and some build it into selection:

  • Texas Tech Cheer picks its squads through a preliminary video round and then invitation-only tryouts, and some athletes can earn a video bypass through designated Texas Tech Cheer clinics. The bypass moves you past the video round; it does not guarantee a spot (source: Texas Tech Cheer recruitment).
  • Utah Valley University asks recruits to submit an application and video and to attend at least one in-person clinic, camp or intensive on campus before March 2027 (source: Utah Valley University Cheer).
  • Southeastern Oklahoma State University ran two prep clinics in early 2026 at $10 each, open to high school and college-aged cheerleaders interested in trying out (source: Southeastern Oklahoma State Cheerleading).

A clinic gives you three things a video can’t: the program’s own material, its coaches’ corrections and a face the staff remembers on tryout day. Pick the two or three programs you want most and get to their clinics first. For how programs use clinics to recruit, see our guide to college recruitment clinics for cheer and dance.

What college cheer tryouts test

Skill lists differ by program and by squad, so read the packet for every school on your list. Two published lists show the pattern:

Area Southeastern Oklahoma State Utah Valley University Your clinic-season drill
Jumps Pike, toe touch, double toe touch, jump of choice Toe touch, hurdler, pike flexibility, technique, height Jump sets three times a week, filmed from the side
Tumbling Standing pass and running pass Standing tuck and toe-touch tuck; layout or full passes; running pass optional Your cleanest pass first, then the next skill up
Stunts Extended liberty and a stunt of choice Back handspring up, double down; full up heel stretch minimum; a sequence of choice The same stunt group every week
Game day and voice Fight song; spirit, dance and chant Rally: vocal clarity, projection, showmanship, professional appearance Fight song learned early; motions and voice together
Interview An interview question A staff interview for finalists Two honest sentences on why this program

Sources: Southeastern Oklahoma State Cheerleading, Utah Valley University Cheer. Texas Tech notes that skill expectations differ between its CoEd and All-Girl/Small CoEd squads (source: Texas Tech Cheer recruitment).

Sharp motions win the close calls

Cheer tryout tips: six cheerleaders in red and white hold red LED pom poms at arm's length in a dark arena as fans film

Jumps and tumbling get the attention, but game day is mostly motions, chants and the fight song, and that is what the game-day part of a tryout checks. Motions are also the fastest skill to clean up in one season:

  • Lock the wrists. A high V ends at the fist, not the fingers.
  • Hit and stop. Every motion lands on the count and holds still until the next one.
  • Match levels. A T sits level with the shoulders; both arms of a high V reach the same height.
  • Add the voice. Run motions and a chant together, the way the rally section asks.

Practice with a pom in each hand. Our light-up pom poms weigh 7 oz each, so your arms learn to hit and stop with weight in your hands, not empty fists. The LEDs are built into the pom itself, not one light in the handle, so in a dim room every pom shows up on your phone video. Play it back and you see at once whether your high V is level or your T is drooping. The full metallic streamers work as a regular pom in daylight, and one charge runs 3 to 4 hours (white and rainbow modes drain faster). See the light-up pom poms page for a practice pair.

Which clinics should you put on the calendar?

Work back from the video deadlines. Published dates for the 2027 cycle:

When What to lock in
Now (fall 2026) Pick your programs, register for their clinics and start your skills video
January 1, 2027 Utah Valley recruitment videos due
January 2027 Texas Tech Cheer tryout application opens
Before March 2027 Utah Valley recruits attend at least one on-campus clinic, camp or intensive
April 20, 2027, 5 p.m. Central Texas Tech qualifying skills video and application due
By April 30, 2027 Texas Tech sends invitations to in-person tryouts
May 14 to 16, 2027 Texas Tech invitation-only semifinal and final tryouts

Sources: Texas Tech Cheer recruitment, Utah Valley University Cheer. Spring prep clinics often land weeks before a video deadline: Southeastern’s 2026 clinics ran in February and March, with videos due April 5 (source: Southeastern Oklahoma State Cheerleading). Use the clinic to ask what the coaches want to see in the video. For camp versus clinic, see cheer camp vs. cheer clinic, and for seniors’ prep clinics, college cheer prep clinics for high school seniors.

Clinic-day habits coaches remember

  • Arrive early and warmed up, with forms and fees done.
  • Wear the posted dress code exactly; see what to wear to cheer tryouts.
  • Learn fast and stay sharp on the last rep, not only the first.
  • Take a correction and show it on the very next run.
  • Introduce yourself to one coach at the end, by name, with the program you are aiming for.
  • Follow up with your video once the window opens.

Coaches remember who improved between the first hour and the last. That is the one thing a clinic shows that a highlight video can’t.

What clinic season costs a family

Item Published example What to plan
Prep clinic $10 each at Southeastern Oklahoma State (2026) Two or three clinics per program on your list
Tryout application $45 at Texas Tech Cheer; $40 audition fee at Utah Valley One fee per program
Season, if you make it $2,400 annual participation fee at Utah Valley, payment plans available, USA Nationals travel extra Ask every program for its number before you commit
Practice pair of poms See the product page One pair that lasts every season

Sources: Southeastern Oklahoma State Cheerleading, Texas Tech Cheer recruitment, Utah Valley University Cheer. The practice pair is the one purchase you keep: it goes to every clinic season and into your first year on a squad. For a full family budget, see what clinics, tryouts and a first season cost.

When you make the team

If your new squad wants lit poms for game nights, send your coach our team order page. The team rate is $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs, made in your team colors, and one remote changes the whole squad’s color together. A squad of 16 with two spares is 18 pairs, or $2,160. Coaches who need a sign-off can use our booster club approval guide, and our guide to LED pom poms for college cheer and dance teams shows how college squads use them.

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Frequently asked questions

What are the best cheer tryout tips for college?

Go to the program’s clinic, learn its game-day material, follow its posted dress code exactly and clean up your motions. Published skill lists cover jumps, tumbling, stunts, the fight song and an interview.

Do college cheer clinics help you make the team?

They can. Texas Tech says designated clinics can earn a video bypass, though that does not guarantee a spot, and Utah Valley asks recruits to attend an on-campus clinic, camp or intensive.

How much do cheer clinics cost?

It varies by program. Southeastern Oklahoma State’s 2026 prep clinics were $10 each; check each program’s own page for its current fee.

How can I practice cheer motions at home?

With a pom in each hand and a phone on a stand. Hit and stop on every count, film it, and check that both arms land level.

How heavy are your light-up pom poms?

7 oz per pom, with full metallic streamers and the LEDs built into the pom, not one light in the handle.

Do you sell poms to whole squads?

Yes. Our team rate is $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs, in team colors, with one remote that changes the whole squad’s color.

See also: college recruitment clinics for cheer and dance, what to wear to cheer tryouts, dance tryouts and pom routine practice and LED pom poms for college cheer and dance teams.

Sources: Texas Tech Cheer recruitment, Utah Valley University Cheer, Southeastern Oklahoma State Cheerleading.

Texas Tech University, Utah Valley University and Southeastern Oklahoma State University are named for their published tryout and clinic information only. None is affiliated with Neon Cowboys.

Questions: info@neoncowboys.com.

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