Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 19:57     Subject: Re:Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:"True about life lessons but IMO what carried the day for my injured athlete were the tangible accomplshments he was left with once sports was out of the picture. Using sports really complicated the whole admissions process. If he had to do it all over again, I doubt he would repeat that path much as he loves playing."

I don't see it that way at all and I think if you talked to college councilors and admissions people, they would agree.

I think colleges love the student who has had a shining passion and whose time with it was cut short through no fault of their own.

In the applications you list not only the EC but the number of hours per week spent. That totally explains not having any backup activity in most cases of sports.

Then if the sport has to end, the colleges do not ask, Why wasn't the student also a world class pianist or researcher? but rather how quickly and completely did they apply all they learned from their sport into new activities?

They know the student can't catch up to other students who were focused on the new activities since middle school.

They are just looking for the athlete who spent 32 hours a week training for gymnastics to switch to 20 some odd hours of activities where they are searching for their next thing rather than sitting in their room feeling sorry for themselves.

They know the ability to not feel sorry for yourself is huge and if the student knows they are doing it and can write coherently about the process, it can certainly be as big of a hook as the sport was in the first place.

No, it's not a sure thing, anymore than being #20 at tennis in the country is a sure hook at Stanford where you are likely competing against students ranked #3, #7 and #14.

But schools really want a former #20 tennis star who moved on to class vice president or district triple jump champion without missing a beat.


How do you know they think all this? That was not my DC's experience nor the feedback from his college counseling office. Fortunately he had some decent long term non-sports ECs as back up. In fact, he was advised NOT to write about the injury and his journey to focus in on other endeavor in his essays.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 12:49     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:As context, I was a D1 athlete, and all of the kids on my club team went to D1 schools. Half of them became All Americans. I was happy going to the best school that I could on a full ride.

OP - a few thoughts.

Playing elite sports prior to HS teaches several key traits that are hard to replicate in other environments: time management, team work, leadership, drive, and discipline. That should be the case whether DC plays sports or not and will translate into other areas if varsity college athletics are not in his/her future.

Talk to the kids' coaches about the recruitment process, when it starts for your sport, your kid's prospects, etc. I was getting letters from a lot of colleges by the time I was a freshman in high school so we knew it was a possibility, and I committed the summer before my junior year (as did my peers by and large).

Let the kid do what he/she wants. If he/she is ready for the commitment, go for it! But, have realistic expectations if it doesn't pan out at the collegiate level. Club sports in college are popular too.


This is how I look at it too. The reason to do the sport is love for the sport and playing, and the main benefits that come from that approach are health and happiness and the teamwork, discipline, etc. benefits that come from playing seriously. My eldest was a great student and a pretty good athlete. Her sport was far and away her biggest extracurricular, even though she knew she was unlikely to be recruited even at the D3 level, and she wasn't. She just absolutely loved it even though it didn't allow time for more than a couple other minor ECs, which were unimpressive from an admissions perspective. She got into an excellent school on her academic merits, and plays her sport at the club level now. She has no regrets at all about the time spent on the sport in HS.

My other kid was always extremely talented at his sport, and did get a significant admissions bump from it, along with a sizable scholarship. He also is happy with his choice, and for him it helped him stay focused on academics. Their feelings about playing the sport are pretty much the same--it's a major part of who they are. I think and hope they'll both continue with it as adults.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 10:11     Subject: Re:Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks to all PPs for the helpful input. The goal is not a scholarship but to use athletic recruitment as the hook to get into an elite school.



Please do not make this a goal/plan. You are one torn ACL away from disaster.


I have a HS sophomore on this path. She is happy, busy, surrounded by friends who are similarly committed to their sport. They study, they train, and they socialize. She has two part-time jobs (teaching younger kids her sports) and will do peer tutoring for academic honor societies. That's it. I do think she'll have a hook for a Div 3 school at a minimum (she's in the mid-major/division 3 range of performance). But really, even if it didn't work out that way I would not change this approach. She is happy, works hard and is staying out of trouble. She will get into college and be a productive member of society and her sport is crucial to her identity. If she's injured, things would have to change but we'd adjust and she'd obviously pick up new activities.


Mine has had this experience as well. It’s primarily a friend group for a girl who isn’t great at cultivating friendships on her own, and has given her a sense of place in high school that can be elusive for a shy girl. That’s the other thing that sports can give kids: a built-in friend group from the start of college. She’s done some D3 camps and every team that hosted her appeared to be very, very close.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 09:31     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:DS was on this track, but burnt out completely by start of junior year and completely quit his sport. I would never have imagined it, given that he would argue to go back to the gym at 10:00 PM the summer of his freshmen year to get in another hour of practice (after multiple hours of team and individual practice during the day), but it happened. That really impacted college plans and caused some awkward conversations with college coaches who wanted to know why DS wasn't responding to them. It will make college applications interesting because his life was 24/7 this sport until this (his junior) year and then there's not a lot outside of school and volunteer work.


By "burnt out" you mean personal freedom (driving) and parties and hormones (dating/sex) because that's how probably 95% of teen sports obsessions end. My in-laws are 100% convinced their twin daughter are going to be recruited swimmers. They're 12yo. It's just delusional to put all your eggs in the athletic basket.


You are right on target. I was D1 level and almost went this "burn out" route once I hit 16, but thankfully got a second chance after partying for a year, but I also had a natural advantage for my sport.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 09:29     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
As context, I was a D1 athlete, and all of the kids on my club team went to D1 schools. Half of them became All Americans. I was happy going to the best school that I could on a full ride.

OP - a few thoughts.

Playing elite sports prior to HS teaches several key traits that are hard to replicate in other environments: time management, team work, leadership, drive, and discipline. That should be the case whether DC plays sports or not and will translate into other areas if varsity college athletics are not in his/her future.

Talk to the kids' coaches about the recruitment process, when it starts for your sport, your kid's prospects, etc. I was getting letters from a lot of colleges by the time I was a freshman in high school so we knew it was a possibility, and I committed the summer before my junior year (as did my peers by and large).

Let the kid do what he/she wants. If he/she is ready for the commitment, go for it! But, have realistic expectations if it doesn't pan out at the collegiate level. Club sports in college are popular too.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 09:27     Subject: Re:Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks to all PPs for the helpful input. The goal is not a scholarship but to use athletic recruitment as the hook to get into an elite school.


We had a similar approach. DD played travel all year around, 3 years varsity starter, not good enough to be recruited at the reach D-I schools (Duke, Brown, etc) where she would be applying, but qualified academically (single sitting 35.25 ACT, 4.0 UW GPA, 12 APs, etc). Didn't get in to the reaches but has other good options since we live in VA. I'm glad she focused on her sport, but there was an opportunity cost when it came to other activities (i.e. Governor's school, etc) she missed due to the sports schedule. I don't think the focus on her sport helped her when it came to the reaches. The sport was not a hook since she was not good enough to play D-I. If it was D-III, the story may have been different.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 09:19     Subject: Re:Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
My son is a D1 athlete but many of his friends did plan B which ended up being playing club and they are so happy.

Playing the sport they love without the pressure and going too great colleges.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 09:16     Subject: Re:Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
"True about life lessons but IMO what carried the day for my injured athlete were the tangible accomplshments he was left with once sports was out of the picture. Using sports really complicated the whole admissions process. If he had to do it all over again, I doubt he would repeat that path much as he loves playing."

I don't see it that way at all and I think if you talked to college councilors and admissions people, they would agree.

I think colleges love the student who has had a shining passion and whose time with it was cut short through no fault of their own.

In the applications you list not only the EC but the number of hours per week spent. That totally explains not having any backup activity in most cases of sports.

Then if the sport has to end, the colleges do not ask, Why wasn't the student also a world class pianist or researcher? but rather how quickly and completely did they apply all they learned from their sport into new activities?

They know the student can't catch up to other students who were focused on the new activities since middle school.

They are just looking for the athlete who spent 32 hours a week training for gymnastics to switch to 20 some odd hours of activities where they are searching for their next thing rather than sitting in their room feeling sorry for themselves.

They know the ability to not feel sorry for yourself is huge and if the student knows they are doing it and can write coherently about the process, it can certainly be as big of a hook as the sport was in the first place.

No, it's not a sure thing, anymore than being #20 at tennis in the country is a sure hook at Stanford where you are likely competing against students ranked #3, #7 and #14.

But schools really want a former #20 tennis star who moved on to class vice president or district triple jump champion without missing a beat.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 08:44     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Your child may get in on his/her own merits. That happened to my athlete. Was promised a letter for RD but told to apply ED and got in. Unfortunately once DC accepted the ivy RD offer, DC could not ED at a different school.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2019 05:37     Subject: Re:Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks to all PPs for the helpful input. The goal is not a scholarship but to use athletic recruitment as the hook to get into an elite school.



Please do not make this a goal/plan. You are one torn ACL away from disaster.


I have a HS sophomore on this path. She is happy, busy, surrounded by friends who are similarly committed to their sport. They study, they train, and they socialize. She has two part-time jobs (teaching younger kids her sports) and will do peer tutoring for academic honor societies. That's it. I do think she'll have a hook for a Div 3 school at a minimum (she's in the mid-major/division 3 range of performance). But really, even if it didn't work out that way I would not change this approach. She is happy, works hard and is staying out of trouble. She will get into college and be a productive member of society and her sport is crucial to her identity. If she's injured, things would have to change but we'd adjust and she'd obviously pick up new activities.
Anonymous
Post 04/21/2019 12:33     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
While it's never bad to look ahead, I would highly encourage his academics during the next few years. I understand you child is a smart 8th grader, but the next few years will prove it. For extra curriculars, your DS will be a wonderful X sport volunteer or mentor. For example, assist a coach of younger kids or referee. Lots of opportunities. Teaching a young, uncoordinated kid a new skill would probably be very rewarding to your DS too.



Anonymous
Post 04/20/2019 17:11     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:DS was on this track, but burnt out completely by start of junior year and completely quit his sport. I would never have imagined it, given that he would argue to go back to the gym at 10:00 PM the summer of his freshmen year to get in another hour of practice (after multiple hours of team and individual practice during the day), but it happened. That really impacted college plans and caused some awkward conversations with college coaches who wanted to know why DS wasn't responding to them. It will make college applications interesting because his life was 24/7 this sport until this (his junior) year and then there's not a lot outside of school and volunteer work.


By "burnt out" you mean personal freedom (driving) and parties and hormones (dating/sex) because that's how probably 95% of teen sports obsessions end. My in-laws are 100% convinced their twin daughter are going to be recruited swimmers. They're 12yo. It's just delusional to put all your eggs in the athletic basket.

Um... thanks for telling me what I mean but no, none of this. DS doesn’t drive and had uber when he played his sport. What I actually mean is that he loves his sport but got sick of every weekend in a Marriott courtyard and a convention center. He got sick of 11 month a year practices and competition, with August being the month to « get in the gym» and learn some new skills for fall ball at the start of September. He got sick of coaches saying he needed to be practicing 2.5 hours on his own every day there wasn’t team practice. He got sick of remembering to dress based on which sponsor is paying for this team (Nike for school, Adidas for club, and the « low pressure » club he tried to switch to has a list of demands from New Balance of all people). That’s what I mean.


You had me at Courtyard Marriott.

My DS is close to burn out too (junior in HS). A few months ago he suffered an injury that has side-lined him for over two months. He misses the sport and is anxious to get back, but he’s also really enjoyed being able to hang out with friends on the weekends, not getting up before dawn on the weekend to travel to a game, missing school on Fridays for a weekend of meaningless tournament games... He’ll continue playing on his HS team, but he’s considering not continuing with club. And while he could definitely play D3, maybe D2 college, it’s not playing into his decisions at all on where to apply.

Anonymous
Post 04/20/2019 15:38     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:My 16 year old was a nationally ranked gymnast with 32 hours of practice a week and great college prospects. An annoying ankle soreness revealed a dramatic bone injury that required surgery and 6 months of rehab, during which the PT discovered a career ending hip cartilage injury we didn’t even know about.

Definitely don’t let your kid put all of their eggs in one basket. Life can change on a whim, and that is especially true for athletes.


That sucks, sorry. Does she miss her sport or is she happy to be away from those extreme demands?


She misses it a lot, but is also really enjoying exploring new things. Its been scary and exciting at the same time to switch gears after competing since age 6. However, I think it has really been a blessing in disguise as far as college and her future is concerned. She’s getting a chance to genuinely find the college that she wants instead of just picking from the ones who want her for her sport.
Anonymous
Post 04/20/2019 15:16     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Having essentially tried this with mixed success, let me add a couple of thoughts, some of which mimic the above. I would say the key thing to know is to be realistic, and as someone stated, you should look at bios of players of schools where your child might be interested in to see if s/he (don't remember whether it is a boy or girl) is on track. Most kids and parents have unrealisitic expectations entering college, and this is also true for non-scholarship athletes. In some ways, the non-scholarship athlete is harder because it is more of a crap shoot -- if your child is good enough for a scholarship, they will usually be found but the non-scholarship athlete falls into a pretty big basket, and then at elite schools, it is often grades/scores and need for the particular position, but a lot of coaches will have preferences for local kids for a variety of reasons. And it is also dicier in that many kids who think they have a commit as a non scholarship athlete end up at a totally different school often not playing. But to answer your original question, colleges say they are way over the 20 extracurriculars plus feeding the homeless and are now all about single focussed activity, one that shows passion and dedication so probably not a risk in focussing on one activity and probably a greater risk in starting to join 10 clubs in the Fall. Good luck with it all.
Anonymous
Post 04/20/2019 14:01     Subject: Did Your Athlete End Up With Plan B?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:My 16 year old was a nationally ranked gymnast with 32 hours of practice a week and great college prospects. An annoying ankle soreness revealed a dramatic bone injury that required surgery and 6 months of rehab, during which the PT discovered a career ending hip cartilage injury we didn’t even know about.

Definitely don’t let your kid put all of their eggs in one basket. Life can change on a whim, and that is especially true for athletes.


I’m sorry about your child’s injury, but the lessons she learned about determination and persistence through adversity, discipline, and hard work will remain with her and enhance her life in the future. She will always have what she learned from gymnastics and she will be a better person for it.

Colleges will see the kind of commitment she had to her sport and that will give her a big plus as a person with the characteristics they want to see in their students.


True about life lessons but IMO what carried the day for my injured athlete were the tangible accomplshments he was left with once sports was out of the picture. Using sports really complicated the whole admissions process. If he had to do it all over again, I doubt he would repeat that path much as he loves playing.