JAMESTOWN, ND (KXNET) — The University of Jamestown has been approved to join the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC), an NCAA Division II conference, as its 16th full-time member starting in July 2025.

Pending their acceptance into the NCAA Division II membership process, the Jimmies would participate in 17 of the NSIC’s 18 sponsored sports beginning in the 2025-26 academic year.

“I would like to express enormous gratitude to the NSIC Board of Directors, the Conference Council, the site visit team, and especially Commissioner Erin Lind. We couldn’t be more excited to receive an invitation to one of the best conferences in all of Division II. We look forward to a long and competitive future together,” said University of Jamestown President Dr. Polly Peterson. 

Since Jamestown moved into the Great Plains Athletics Conference (GPAC) in the fall of 2018, 277 athletes have earned all-conference honors, with seven student-athletes being named conference Player of the Year. Collectively, Jimmie athletic teams have won nine postseason championships while in the GPAC, with women’s volleyball winning the 2022 NAIA national championship.

UJ is expected to file its application with the NCAA by the February 1 deadline and then will officially begin its transition into the conference. With a successful NCAA Division II membership application, UJ will enter a three-year transition period before earning NCAA active membership status. The 2024-25 academic year will be the Jimmies’ last in the NAIA. 

The move will go as follows, during the 2025-26 season, Jamestown will be included in NSIC team schedules, but the Jimmies will not be eligible for NCAA Championships.

In the 2026-27 season, Jamestown will be granted provisional membership in NCAA Division II and will continue to play an NSIC conference schedule but will still not be able to compete in the NCAA Championships.

Finally, the Jimmies will gain NCAA Division II active member status in the fall of 2027, as long as all benchmarks are met during the transition process, and will be eligible to compete in the NCAA Championships during the 2027-28 academic year.