The Best College Dance Teams in the USA
Top Dance Competitions
Each year the Universal Dance Association (also known as UDA) hosts the National Dance Team Championship. The UDA was established in 1980 and their goal is to inspire leadership among today’s dance teams. The UDA dance team competitions are strictly for college age dance teams. The best college dance teams who wish to compete at the UDA Dance Team Championship must attend a UDA camp and submit a video entry. Those who submit a video and meet the deadlines are invited to the competition. With-in the competition there are various levels at which college and university dance teams may compete. Division IA is designated for schools that have a NCAA Division IA football program. Division I competition is for NCAA Division I schools. The Open NCAA Division is designated for NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, junior colleges, and all other colleges. It is important to know that schools are not allowed to compete at a higher level, they must compete with in their schools division. More information on the division break downs may be found on the UDA website.
A second competitive arena for college dance teams is the National Dance Alliance (NDA). The NDA is actually a “sister company” of the National Cheerleaders Association who made its official debut in the late 1970’s. It was not until 1999 that NDA took on a name of its own. The NDA hosts a yearly NDA Nationals competition which college dance teams from various levels may participate in. As with UDA, college teams must attend a NDA summer camp (or an Elite Home Camp) in order to qualify for the national competition. Then each team much submit a video and meet specific deadlines in order to officially compete. NDA has 12 divisions in which teams compete: Division IA, Div. I, Div II, Div III, NAIA Large, NAIA Small, Open Div. IA, Open Div I, Open Div. II, Hip-Hop Div I, Hip-Hop Div. II, and International Teams. These divisions correspond with the college or university athletics; thus, schools who have a Division IA Football team would compete in the NDA Division IA and so forth. More information on the division break downs may be found on the NDA website.
2010 Universal Dance Association Champions
Jazz Division IA Results: University of Minnesota- Minneapolis.
Jazz Division I Results : California State University- Fullerton
Jazz Open Division Results: University of St. Thomas
Hip-Hop Division IA Results: Louisiana State University
Hip-Hop Division I Results: University of Delaware
Hip-Hop Open Division Results: Lindenwood University
2010 National Dance Alliance Champions
Division IA Results: Brigham Young University
Division I Results: Towson University
Division II Results: Hawaii Pacific University
Division III Results: McLennan Community College
Open Division IA Results: West Virginia University
Open Division I Results: Sam Houston State University
Open Division II Results: Valdosta State University
Hip-Hop Division I Results: University of Louisville
Hip-Hop Division II Results: Hawaii Pacific University
The Finalists
If you enjoy being a part of poms team or dance team in high school, you will find many colleges and universities will have the opportunity to get involved in a college dance team. Students will find even a smaller community college may have a strongly competitive dance team. Yet, not all colleges and universities will compete on a national level, so be sure to do research. Those that participate in a national competition prepare for months and put much time and effort into their routines. As you can see, for the schools listed above, their hard work, time, and effort have paid off! If you are looking for a strong competitive college dance team, look into these schools and see what they have to offer. Between the National Dance Alliance National competition and the Universal Dance Association Championships, you won’t find a better competition. This is the place to find the best college dance team.
References
Universal Dance Association: https://www.uda.varsity.com/
National Dance Alliance: https://www.nda.varsity.com/
