EXACT National ID Camps- Money Grab?
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| Any parents have any feedback on these? |
Anonymous
I've been getting these emails too. What level is your kid? |
Anonymous
|
From experience, stop paying and attending these camps if your kid is not a Junior or Senior. Its simple. As much as you think the coaches are going to maybe notice you 8th or 9th grader its not happening.
They are busy collecting their payment for attending and maybe spotting a standout player that they can slot in for their upcoming (senior) or following (junior) recruit class. Went to the VA Tech Id Camp. The paperwork specifically states that it is not a VA Tech sponsored event and in no way suggests it is supported or for the VA Tech soccer program. It is however held on the campus and it is noted that the ID camp is run by the VA Tech coach but again it is not for their soccer program. In other words, its a money grab by the coaches (which is fine if you understand that) and they have a ton of kids show up some of them way too young to even consider getting noticed. VA Tech is not the only program that does this. Interestingly some of other programs cant get the school to allow them to hold it on campus so they do it off campus with the coachs from XYZ school making you think its a recruiting opportunity. Note the wording is carefully chosen as training and game play and ... |
Anonymous
This was true a couple of years ago but then we had Covid and for many recruits the only face time they had with many college coaches were at these camps. Once Covid hit in person scouting and on campus camps were shut down. Those kids who "wasted" their money on these camps had a significant leg up in the the recruiting process. Yes, the coaches make money on these camps. They are a huge income supplement, that said they serve as an ice breaker for many players in regards to player driven emails to coaches for future showcases and games. The coaches may not remember the player BUT the player will have shown up on their list of registered players and player follow from a camp will peak the coaches interest. Coaches can only really recruit players who have an interest in their school and attending a camp along with a follow up email about a playing schedule moves kids onto the that first big pile. That doesn't mean kids get recruited out of these camps but they demonstrate a level of interest and provide the player with some useful familiarity with the coaches to utilize later. |
Anonymous
|
Anonymous
Nobody said they did get recruited out of the camps. The camps are just one part of the process. Some make more sense than others to do. Going to camps like exact as a freshman or sophomore actually make a hell of a lot more sense when your player is casting as wide a net as possible. Going to multiple schools ID camps Junior or senior are a waste of time. Players should be targeting schools they are more serious about and attend their camps to build a relationship. No, kids are generally not pulled aside at these camps and given a offer based solely on the camp. There is a long process of showcase games watched, highlight videos, emails, phone calls and texts back and forth between coach and player. But the camps do play a role in the overall process. |
Anonymous
U15. Old for grade, young for team. I can't imagine he'd get a lot out of it in 8th grade, but maybe 9th? |
Anonymous
|
My DS attended EXACT ID camps as a HS junior and senior. He found the camps worthwhile in terms of the instruction, the scrimmages, and the access to college coaches/assistant coaches who either do not host ID camps on campus or could not host ID camps on campus (because of COVID-19 restrictions).
My DS also went to college ID camps at D1 schools (Villanova and VCU), D2 (Wingate), and D3 (JHU, UMW & Radford). The biggest difference I saw was getting more 1:1 time with the college coach and staff on campus than with EXACT. If I were to do this again, I would register for an EXACT ID camp as a sophomore to generate interest by college coaches and from there, then go to the college ID camp (or camps) for those schools of interest as a junior/senior. |
Anonymous
| My daughter has attended a about 6 ID camps and a few of them were EXACT Camps. She loves them. She gets to interact at a comfortable level with coaches and the remember her. She's not nervous at all at these camps is showing as a standout because of the confidence she obtained. She has seen some of the coaches at other events and they come up to her to say hello. I definitely suggest them. If your child is driven, this is their opportunity to shine. Not a waste of time in my opinion at all. Several D1 coaches actually coach and interact with kids. She started in 8th grade and it gives them an idea of where they stand or where they need to be. |
Anonymous
|
My son did an Exact Elite ID camp this summer (2024). It was an absolute waste of money. They market it as an elite camp but the talent there is anything but elite. Basically, if you pay the registration fee you can go. You get a limited number of invites you can give out so you can literally invite anyone and I believe you get a kickback. To give you an idea, we had one of our club players sign up 2 weeks before the camp started because he heard a couple of his friends were going and wanted to hang out with them. Nice kid but he doesn't even start on our high school team and has no interest in playing in college.
On top of the large number of mediocre players at the camp, the coaches gave very generic feedback. We had a couple kids from our club team go. We compared the evaluations the kids received after the camp and they were almost identical. As in word for word. We have been to several camps that cost much less and it was a better experience that led to communication/offers from a few colleges. They also bombard you with solicitations before and after to spend more money for their camps and services. In summary, this whole experience was nothing more than a money grab. |
Anonymous
|
My daughter did one in Richmond in the Spring and it was a waste of $$. The coaches didn't rotate among the groups of players so she was only seen by two colleges that she had zero interest in attending (too rural). The only coach we came for didn't even show up. The level of play was extremely uncompetitive IMHO and we have been to several ID camps - mostly run by schools she is targeting themselves. No feedback of any kind when she reached out to follow up. We won't be doing third party camps like Exact, ID Sports, or Ryzer again.
Best tip I was told a few years ago was to look up ID Camps at local travel soccer clubs since they have to open them to anyone. We did at least three and that is where we got the best feedback and connections from college coaches! |
Anonymous
The bolded part depends on if you are talking boys or girls....maybe a true statement for boys, but definitely not for girls. |
Anonymous
|
My 17 yr old son went to camp this spring. He had a decent day and the (assistant) coaches that did show up did provide some good information BUT there were many issues:
They advertise more than you get (in most aspects) and they market aggressively, Many coaches never showed, Communication with organisation isn't timely and they avoid requests to rectify complaints, The video options were very sub par (broken camera, so not all camp filmed, price variations depending on which link you click, you have to do much of the leg work to get the highlight video, which you find out afterwards), Level of play isn't that high bc they take very young players (my son held back bc of the small size of some of the other players), Personalised feedback from only one coach and seems like much of it was high-level, that could apply to most players (horoscope anyone?). Money could have been much better spent. |
Anonymous
| EXACT camps are a waste of money unless you want to get some extra practice in. Go to ID camps of the schools your kid is interested in, not ones where there's a bunch of schools present. |
Anonymous
|
SoccerMasters winter was a decent camp but ONLY for pre junior year because you can meet 4-5 different coaches and you get quality time with them.
By junior and senior year you need to go the actual college ID camp- not these types of camp If you have a boy- unless he is a top recruit in the country- you should definitely start ID camps summer of rising freshman year- it gets your player comfortable and on the radar of some Coaches . Girls is a totally different story. |