This purpose of this paper is to describe several methodological strategies designed to ascertain college students’ domain-specific volleyball knowledge which focused on the tactics used to set-up for an attack in volleyball (pre and post instruction) and decision-making during game play. Participants were college students enrolled in an elective basic instruction volleyball class (N=16; 11 M, 5 F) and their expert instructor. The data were collected using a pre-post skill test, written questionnaire, interviews, videotaped field notes, thought sampling and the Game Performance Assessment Instrument (GPAI). First, to assess skill level participants completed a pre- and post-skill test, which focused on forearm passing a free ball to a target setter, which was videotaped and scored using a 4-level rubric. Second, participants completed a demographic information and prior volleyball experience questionnaire. Third, formal semi-structured pre- and post-unit interviews included open-ended and application questions. Open-ended questions were focused on "What can you tell me about volleyball?" followed by appropriate probe questions (i.e., rules, positions, skills and movements). Application questions included four visual scenarios focused on solving the tactical problem of setting up to attack to elicit cognitive understanding in context-specific situations. Fourth, lessons were videotaped, extensive field notes recorded and the GPAI was used to assess student decision-making during game play. Thought sampling by talk-alouds and written protocols was used during game play to record students’ thoughts and decision-making processes (e.g., "What were you thinking about?"; "What might you do differently?"). Substantive results (reported at length elsewhere) indicated that students had mostly declarative knowledge about rules, procedures, and isolated skills. Post-instruction knowledge structures added more information about generic strategy, teamwork and communication. Students understood more about offensive skills and strategies than defensive. Some data collection methods used proved more valuable than others at ascertaining students’ domain-specific knowledge. Interviews provided the richest descriptions of students’ domain-specific knowledge structures. Thought sampling revealed students’ decision-making during game play, although in some instances interrupted the flow of the game and resulted in superficial, repetitive statements. Scenarios elicited basic knowledge about tactical problems in a situated manner however they lacked the sophistication, incorporation of defensive tactics, and the power to uncover the complex sequences of events often found in competitive game play. The use of multiple methodologies proved helpful in investigating students’ knowledge from a variety of perspectives with the basic interviewing processes providing the most substantive data about these college students’ domain-specific knowledge of volleyball.Keyword(s): research