If your dc is an athlete (potential recruit) - how are you/dc navigating the sport versus academics?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I’ve seen on here, most parents seem to care much less about the sport and more about the boost to admissions (no flames if that’s not you, it’s just what I’ve seen).

But what about if your dc feels the opposite? The sport and the team is the primary focus, with the ‘rank’ of the school being much less important? Think academic d3 versus d1. My dc is not interested in academic d3s because their teams are not that great.

Thoughts? Btw if you/your dc think sports is pretty much mostly just an admission hook, please move on. Also I’m aware many kids quit their sport, etc. And I’m aware of the commitment to a d1 versus d3. Money etc.

My son is using sport (he is a top 25 recruit on this sport) to get into the best academic school he can. We have enough money saved to pay for 4 years of private full pay. No need for scholarships. So academics are key here. Some of the Top academic schools didnt even recruit him because he was being targeted by Big 10/SEC schools. So he went on a direct contact path with coaches from Ivies and others. We are hoping this opens up the door for some of the better schools. He has a 1500 SAT and 3.7 UW GPA.

You didn’t name the sport so assume you don’t want to say it - but it really does matter in terms of how to approach

I dont want to say because people can figure it out. But it is an individual Olympic sport….

That’s ridiculous. Nobody can figure it out if you say it’s track and field or swimming.

We don’t even know where you are.

We dont care about you. The coaches know….

Yes they are all here on DCUM…another ridiculous statement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I’ve seen on here, most parents seem to care much less about the sport and more about the boost to admissions (no flames if that’s not you, it’s just what I’ve seen).

But what about if your dc feels the opposite? The sport and the team is the primary focus, with the ‘rank’ of the school being much less important? Think academic d3 versus d1. My dc is not interested in academic d3s because their teams are not that great.

Thoughts? Btw if you/your dc think sports is pretty much mostly just an admission hook, please move on. Also I’m aware many kids quit their sport, etc. And I’m aware of the commitment to a d1 versus d3. Money etc.

Just my two cents, but I think you're going about it the wrong way. I don't think that a sport or team should be the primary focus. So many things can happen and your kid can stop playing in college for various reasons that academics should always trump the sport or team as the primary focus. My DD played at a very high level (NCAA all years) but always kept in mind that she was not turning professional and that she needed strong academics for grad school, employment, etc.

I’m not going about it the wrong way. My dc arguably is. Or isn’t. Pretty sure this was in the original post btw. Yes, parents on a board like dcum are typically aware their dc aren’t going pro in their sport. But a kid who is 18 has some say in their lives

Then let them do what they want? Why are you asking DCUM if you don't like the answers and want to argue with everyone? Let them pick an academically mediocre D1 school with dreams of going pro or just for the fun of playing the sport for a decent college team and see where it takes them. You aren't going to get much support for that on a board of parents/snobs obsessed with academic status, though, so why argue back and forth with strangers?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I’ve seen on here, most parents seem to care much less about the sport and more about the boost to admissions (no flames if that’s not you, it’s just what I’ve seen).

But what about if your dc feels the opposite? The sport and the team is the primary focus, with the ‘rank’ of the school being much less important? Think academic d3 versus d1. My dc is not interested in academic d3s because their teams are not that great.

Thoughts? Btw if you/your dc think sports is pretty much mostly just an admission hook, please move on. Also I’m aware many kids quit their sport, etc. And I’m aware of the commitment to a d1 versus d3. Money etc.

Just my two cents, but I think you're going about it the wrong way. I don't think that a sport or team should be the primary focus. So many things can happen and your kid can stop playing in college for various reasons that academics should always trump the sport or team as the primary focus. My DD played at a very high level (NCAA all years) but always kept in mind that she was not turning professional and that she needed strong academics for grad school, employment, etc.

I’m not going about it the wrong way. My dc arguably is. Or isn’t. Pretty sure this was in the original post btw. Yes, parents on a board like dcum are typically aware their dc aren’t going pro in their sport. But a kid who is 18 has some say in their lives

Then let them do what they want? Why are you asking DCUM if you don't like the answers and want to argue with everyone? Let them pick an academically mediocre D1 school with dreams of going pro or just for the fun of playing the sport for a decent college team and see where it takes them. You aren't going to get much support for that on a board of parents/snobs obsessed with academic status, though, so why argue back and forth with strangers?

Op here. I’m hardly arguing back and forth. I checked out mostly and came back to see lots of discussion. It’s all helpful, even if I don’t agree with all of it. The college forum is known to have the nastiest posters, but there were some good responses on here. If you don’t like how I’m handling the info, you are free to move along.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter was recruited by several lower level D1 teams and a bunch of D3 programs. Initially she was focused on the D1 programs. But the more she talked with them, the more it became clear that while they would be happy to have her, she wasn’t going to get significant scholarship money. While she was going to be a star of most of the D3 programs she talked to. Also we had a lot of talks about what happens in four years because her sport doesn’t go pro.

She is going to a D3 school where she applied regular decision but with a coach “recommendation”.

That’s great. Did she get merit scholarship at d3?

Yes. She got huge merit aid. She is a very good student, so it may be just because of academics. About half the D3 schools she applied to gave her significant merit aid, but about half didn’t. Price was a factor in our decision process.

That’s great heat. Congrats

[Anonymous]

^ to hear

[Anonymous]

Has anyone heard of experiences at The Citadel? It’s D1

Curious if the guy posting on here has any thoughts?

[Anonymous]

To go back to the original question- our recruited athlete wanted a big school over a small D3. Luckily she was recruited by many good, large D1 programs. She decided on a well ranked (top 30) state university because it fit her personality and she would be happy there even if she wasn't doing the sport. She was offered spots in higher ranked schools but they weren't a good fit from the sport standpoint.

In the end- she picked the place she felt was the best fit for her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To go back to the original question- our recruited athlete wanted a big school over a small D3. Luckily she was recruited by many good, large D1 programs. She decided on a well ranked (top 30) state university because it fit her personality and she would be happy there even if she wasn't doing the sport. She was offered spots in higher ranked schools but they weren't a good fit from the sport standpoint.

In the end- she picked the place she felt was the best fit for her.

Sounds like you did things right and made a choice based on the best fit.

That isn’t the norm for DCUM where the “right fit” for most parents is the school that has the most prestige in their social circle regardless of what the child actually wants.

[Anonymous]

I went back and read the original post, I think the answer is that you have let your child pick a school where they are going to be happy. If your child wants a school with a better sports program or a large university, they will not be happy at a small liberal arts college with an outstanding academic reputation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To go back to the original question- our recruited athlete wanted a big school over a small D3. Luckily she was recruited by many good, large D1 programs. She decided on a well ranked (top 30) state university because it fit her personality and she would be happy there even if she wasn't doing the sport. She was offered spots in higher ranked schools but they weren't a good fit from the sport standpoint.

In the end- she picked the place she felt was the best fit for her.

Sounds like you did things right and made a choice based on the best fit.

That isn’t the norm for DCUM where the “right fit” for most parents is the school that has the most prestige in their social circle regardless of what the child actually wants.

Op here I’ll agree with that. Many people I know IRL assume dc will try to use the sport to go to X prestigious LAC or smaller school, and are a little taken aback that ‘no, dc isn’t interested in X school, it’s not a great sports program’. I’m sure they think he’s dumb/I’m dumb if we don’t follow that path. I have to get over that.

[Anonymous]

I don’t think it’s much of a dilemma. No one posting here likely has a future NBA or NFL athlete. So you choose the best fit - academics, vibe, community, and finances. If there’s a scholarship - incredibly difficult in the non-revenue sports today - or generous “merit” that is gifted them, you take that under consideration. But the point is to have a good college experience that prepares them well for whatever they want to do next.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’re in the thick of the academic D3 recruiting process for baseball. We’ve made it clear to DS that academics come first, and he has been on board with that. He’s not really a D1 prospect, so ivies and patriot league schools are on the back burner for consideration only if the baseball thing does not work out.

Aha, lucky you! How does your dc feel about it?

That seems to be the typical path I see on here. Athletics to academic d3. Unfortunately or fortunately (bc dc has found his passion, which I can’t dismiss), my dc isn’t particularly interesting in the d3 schools that like him because their teams are just ok. His semi ‘dream’ schools are two state schools where he could likely get in academically but his recruiting chances aren’t great (keeping him on the back burner for now). He would likely have to try to walk on.

Dc will not do this sport professionally but he wants to push himself to the limits in the time he has left, and I have to respect that.

If he’s not going to be recruited, you should encourage him to apply to more academic schools as well as his dream schools. In the end, it’s best that he ends up in a place where’s he’s happy—he may have a different mindset about that when the recruiting process is over and he’s starting to apply to schools.

I’m going to insist that he applies to both, but the problem is that the d3 recruiting schools will likely cut him off if he’s not expressing interest. Do you happen to know how this works for your sport?

He’s been asked to submit materials for pre reads at most of these schools and he’s been slow to respond. One place came back and said his submission looked good, they’d like to see him on the team, and they asked him to apply ED which he doesn’t want to do…

Generally coach support means you have to apply ED. He might as well submit the pre reads so he knows what his options are, but applying to both isn’t going to be one of them if he wants to play. One of the downsides of being recruited is that you need to make decisions much earlier than the other kids.

There are exceptions to this, but this is how it works for most of the high academic programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think it’s much of a dilemma. No one posting here likely has a future NBA or NFL athlete. So you choose the best fit - academics, vibe, community, and finances. If there’s a scholarship - incredibly difficult in the non-revenue sports today - or generous “merit” that is gifted them, you take that under consideration. But the point is to have a good college experience that prepares them well for whatever they want to do next.

Op that’s a parent’s perspective though. That’s the issue. A kid who is so dedicated to their sport that they want to continue doing it at a D1 level might not feel the way you or I do. As example, two of my dcs older teammates are now at schools- one at a top 15 LAC. One at a state school ranked 75 of universities, 35 for public u.

Which one would you want dc to go to? If you had to guess, who is the better athlete? (I guess that’s obvious, right?).
I will give you a hint- it’s not even close.

[Anonymous]

For us, the D1 offered many more financial incentives and it was a better fit. Plus, being on a team with equal caliber skills was really important.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To go back to the original question- our recruited athlete wanted a big school over a small D3. Luckily she was recruited by many good, large D1 programs. She decided on a well ranked (top 30) state university because it fit her personality and she would be happy there even if she wasn't doing the sport. She was offered spots in higher ranked schools but they weren't a good fit from the sport standpoint.

In the end- she picked the place she felt was the best fit for her.

Sounds like you did things right and made a choice based on the best fit.

That isn’t the norm for DCUM where the “right fit” for most parents is the school that has the most prestige in their social circle regardless of what the child actually wants.

Op here I’ll agree with that. Many people I know IRL assume dc will try to use the sport to go to X prestigious LAC or smaller school, and are a little taken aback that ‘no, dc isn’t interested in X school, it’s not a great sports program’. I’m sure they think he’s dumb/I’m dumb if we don’t follow that path. I have to get over that.

I think the primary issue is that he is not choosing between D1 and D3 offers. He doesn’t have D1 offers. So either take the D3 or don’t play at all. That’s fine if he wants to turn his nose up at the level that wants him, but please do not allow him to operate under the assumption that he will walk on at a D1.