If your kid wants to go to a selective university, do not let them play sports in high school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:🙄

There’s more to life than sacrificing your kid’s authenticity and interests to try to match the ever-changing whims of admissions committees.

Sure, if your kid doesn’t like sports, don’t force them to play one in an attempt to impress admissions. That’s silly and worthless. Same is true if they’re all-in on their instrument, musical theater, dance, or any other super time-consuming passion.

But if your kid loves sports (or the equivalent) and wants to pursue it in HS but not at a recruited level, there’s plenty of upside for them as a human being: authenticity, grit, leadership, social skills, physical health, mental health/wellness, and more.

All that said, if playing three varsity sports is what keeps our 4.0/1500+/12AP student out of the T-20, that’s fine with us. We’re thrilled to see our kid enjoy and excel at the EC’s they have chosen. It’s been wonderful for their growth, resilience, sense of self, and relationships with their peers, coaches, and teachers, alike.

IMHO that’s more important in the long run than dropping their authentic self in an attempt to make themself marginally more attractive to a school with an already tiny rate of admission. But you do you.

It is not a marginal boost. I don’t think that many parents realize here how much sports actively hurt your chances in admissions because of the time factor. Most college admissions advisors actively tell kids to give up on sports if they aren’t being recruited

This +1
or the non-recruited student athlete continues with their sport knowing that it will not be a boost in any way come college application time
it is the parents that seem the most delusional to me as they really think that playing on a travel team will move the needle in any way when it doesn't

There is no evidence for what you are saying though. Colleges look for students who aren’t just pulling in the grades. They want to see persistence and a time commitment. It doesn’t have to be sports, but suggesting sports aren’t a benefit on an application is ridiculous.

I completely agree. But applicants have to keep it in perspective at the same time. Their travel sport commitment that takes 16 hours a week is no better or worse than any other regular EC that may take the same time or just an hour or two.

Tell me what that “other regular EC” is and I’ll tell you if it’s better than travel sports. Not all “regular ECs” are equally impressive or as impressive as sports.

[Anonymous]

OP’s kid didn’t make JV cross country because she told him to run slow his whole life so he wouldn’t fall and sustain a lifelong injury.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unless your kid is recruited, admissions officers do not really care about sports. I know a kid who has perfect grades and a 35 ACT who was a captain of the varsity football and lacrosse teams (and was class treasurer, NHS president, volunteered, and did part time work), and he got rejected from every remotely selective college. The Ivy Leagues, Notre Dame, Michigan, Duke, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, UNC, and UVA all rejected him. Many other kids who are two or three sports athletes have similarly bad results.

At most top schools, the students will tell you most people there did not play sports outside of the recruited athletes. Most of their extracurriculars were centered around the major they want to study. Sports are time consuming and take away time from these more impactful extracurriculars. For sports like basketball, baseball, or lacrosse, you are easily spending 20+ hours per week on an activity that ultimately won’t help you in admissions.

And it doesn’t help that in the DMV area, you have to be super talented or spend years playing a sport just to make into the JV team. You have to spend a ridiculous amount of money on sports. Sports are just a waste of time for most kids

I agree that varsity sports is not an impactful EC if I was to do it all over ago. Unless you are recruited athlete, it would help to focus more on grades.

Maybe you just weren’t good enough? I know kids who keep a 3.9+ with a dozen APs and a 1560 SAT that they nailed ina single take with a few hours of review. They do this while leading a top team as a captain and starter. They still find time to rack up 1500 hours of volunteer time because they are consistent and disciplined. What about them? Maybe they are just plain superior all around to those who study furiously to achieve less then whine about recruited athletes being less worthy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. How many threads are you going to start about this, OP?

DCUMs anti-athletics posters are such a bizarrely obsessed group. It’s weird.

+2 Who are these people? Athletes are often the most charismatic and driven people. The social skills, confidence and EQ learned in sports usually translates to success in the business world and legal world.

They are antisocial computer programmers whose CS offspring were rejected from Purdue.

Programmers don't care about college because they know they are the only mainstream high wage career that uses a mostly objective skills test for hiring.

And they stay as programmers because they don’t have the wider skill set needed to rise beyond a relatively low level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The sport will not help but kid should play if they are interested. I know many kids who got into ivies with no sports and pursuing other interests (including my niece).

What other interests? My rising 9th grader has no sports but is thinking about leaning in to theater.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Four years ago I heard an AO from UVA say they like students who played sports and still got good grades because that shows they can manage their time.

Bingo!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The sport will not help but kid should play if they are interested. I know many kids who got into ivies with no sports and pursuing other interests (including my niece).

What other interests? My rising 9th grader has no sports but is thinking about leaning in to theater.

Well that’s amazing! Theater!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The sport will not help but kid should play if they are interested. I know many kids who got into ivies with no sports and pursuing other interests (including my niece).

What other interests? My rising 9th grader has no sports but is thinking about leaning in to theater.

Look into beekeeping, birdwatching and knitting groups.

[Anonymous]

So in other words, push your kid to the brink academically without the value of having a physical outlet/stress relief and then wonder why they are burdened with mental (and physical) health issues for the rest of their life. Solid advice there.

[Anonymous]

Mine graduated last year from a local public HS where they played a sport in a fabulously mediocre way, and also played on a similarly mediocre travel team. They are now at one of the U.S. news top 10 schools and doing well, playing club sport (different sport!) for the fun of it. My kid was gojng to quit the sport in MS but coming out of the pandemic it was great just to get out there and interact with real humans and while I was often aggravated at the time and crazy driving all over the mid Atlantic for games, I was glad they were doing something they enjoyed that got their head out of the books for a minute. I think it did probably keep their mental health more balanced. My guess is that it did not play a huge role in their admission but maybe it showed they are good at balancing commitments and had some drive. Who knows. The whole thing is basically a crap shoot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The sport will not help but kid should play if they are interested. I know many kids who got into ivies with no sports and pursuing other interests (including my niece).

What other interests? My rising 9th grader has no sports but is thinking about leaning in to theater.

Look into beekeeping, birdwatching and knitting groups.

No. That’s not related to theater….
Do things related to theater.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:🙄

There’s more to life than sacrificing your kid’s authenticity and interests to try to match the ever-changing whims of admissions committees.

Sure, if your kid doesn’t like sports, don’t force them to play one in an attempt to impress admissions. That’s silly and worthless. Same is true if they’re all-in on their instrument, musical theater, dance, or any other super time-consuming passion.

But if your kid loves sports (or the equivalent) and wants to pursue it in HS but not at a recruited level, there’s plenty of upside for them as a human being: authenticity, grit, leadership, social skills, physical health, mental health/wellness, and more.

All that said, if playing three varsity sports is what keeps our 4.0/1500+/12AP student out of the T-20, that’s fine with us. We’re thrilled to see our kid enjoy and excel at the EC’s they have chosen. It’s been wonderful for their growth, resilience, sense of self, and relationships with their peers, coaches, and teachers, alike.

IMHO that’s more important in the long run than dropping their authentic self in an attempt to make themself marginally more attractive to a school with an already tiny rate of admission. But you do you.

It is not a marginal boost. I don’t think that many parents realize here how much sports actively hurt your chances in admissions because of the time factor. Most college admissions advisors actively tell kids to give up on sports if they aren’t being recruited

+1

It’s considered a “me” activity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:🙄

There’s more to life than sacrificing your kid’s authenticity and interests to try to match the ever-changing whims of admissions committees.

Sure, if your kid doesn’t like sports, don’t force them to play one in an attempt to impress admissions. That’s silly and worthless. Same is true if they’re all-in on their instrument, musical theater, dance, or any other super time-consuming passion.

But if your kid loves sports (or the equivalent) and wants to pursue it in HS but not at a recruited level, there’s plenty of upside for them as a human being: authenticity, grit, leadership, social skills, physical health, mental health/wellness, and more.

All that said, if playing three varsity sports is what keeps our 4.0/1500+/12AP student out of the T-20, that’s fine with us. We’re thrilled to see our kid enjoy and excel at the EC’s they have chosen. It’s been wonderful for their growth, resilience, sense of self, and relationships with their peers, coaches, and teachers, alike.

IMHO that’s more important in the long run than dropping their authentic self in an attempt to make themself marginally more attractive to a school with an already tiny rate of admission. But you do you.

It is not a marginal boost. I don’t think that many parents realize here how much sports actively hurt your chances in admissions because of the time factor. Most college admissions advisors actively tell kids to give up on sports if they aren’t being recruited

+1

It’s considered a “me” activity.

Yet another dim bulb. There are so many of them on DCUM.

It isn’t a “me” activity but I understand that certain groups really wish that it was. You do need a level of ability to have the greatest impact but that is the case for many ECs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:🙄

There’s more to life than sacrificing your kid’s authenticity and interests to try to match the ever-changing whims of admissions committees.

Sure, if your kid doesn’t like sports, don’t force them to play one in an attempt to impress admissions. That’s silly and worthless. Same is true if they’re all-in on their instrument, musical theater, dance, or any other super time-consuming passion.

But if your kid loves sports (or the equivalent) and wants to pursue it in HS but not at a recruited level, there’s plenty of upside for them as a human being: authenticity, grit, leadership, social skills, physical health, mental health/wellness, and more.

All that said, if playing three varsity sports is what keeps our 4.0/1500+/12AP student out of the T-20, that’s fine with us. We’re thrilled to see our kid enjoy and excel at the EC’s they have chosen. It’s been wonderful for their growth, resilience, sense of self, and relationships with their peers, coaches, and teachers, alike.

IMHO that’s more important in the long run than dropping their authentic self in an attempt to make themself marginally more attractive to a school with an already tiny rate of admission. But you do you.

It is not a marginal boost. I don’t think that many parents realize here how much sports actively hurt your chances in admissions because of the time factor. Most college admissions advisors actively tell kids to give up on sports if they aren’t being recruited

This +1
or the non-recruited student athlete continues with their sport knowing that it will not be a boost in any way come college application time
it is the parents that seem the most delusional to me as they really think that playing on a travel team will move the needle in any way when it doesn't

There is no evidence for what you are saying though. Colleges look for students who aren’t just pulling in the grades. They want to see persistence and a time commitment. It doesn’t have to be sports, but suggesting sports aren’t a benefit on an application is ridiculous.

I completely agree. But applicants have to keep it in perspective at the same time. Their travel sport commitment that takes 16 hours a week is no better or worse than any other regular EC that may take the same time or just an hour or two.

Tell me what that “other regular EC” is and I’ll tell you if it’s better than travel sports. Not all “regular ECs” are equally impressive or as impressive as sports.

I think we are not agreeing on what it takes to have an impact on a college admissions application reader. It is not a matter of an EC being "impressive" or not. It is very much a matter of an EC making the applicant stand out from the pack - to seem different in some way. Playing a sport on any level, other than when being recruited, is as common as one can be. Hundreds of thousands of college applicants play sports, which is fine. But do not for a moment think it will help any stand out unless they are being recruited to play in college.

[Anonymous]

Playing a sport as an EC is similar to listing National Honor Society. Everyone lists these. Good to list but nothing unique.