<p>After lurking for a while, I've decided to seek your wisdom. Was waiting for student athlete forum, but I guess that's going to be a while. Parent of a child in olympic sport in the midst of official visits to D1 schools. Some schools offer early action and some offer merit $ opportunities with deadlines approaching. My question is: Do most athletes being recruited fill out regular applications with counselor rec,teacher rec etc. directly to admissions or do you just deal with the coach who sends paperwork through their own admissions liason? What is your experience? Confused as to what you do on your own vs what you do through coach? I guess it varies by school, but would love to see if merit $ is possible sooner (EA) rather than later (RD).<br>
Thanks!</p>
<p>I would suggest asking the coach. The school my son applied to ED had notations on the athlete applications designating the applicant as a recruit. Other schools did not have a special application (the athlete application required all the same things as the regular one and was sent directly to Admissions) but the coaches notified Admissions who their recruits were.</p>
<p>In my experience, the athlete is expected to fill out all of the same forms and fulfill the same requirements for recommendations, etc., but maybe they don't HAVE to be as good as someone who does not have a coach pulling for them. For example, the athlete could conceivably have a coach at the high school write his recommendation instead of a physics teacher. (But I wouldn't advise it if you can get an academic rec) Usually, there is an admissions liason who deals with the most highly recruited athletes; they have to review the applications for NCAA eligibility, take it to the committee that reviews the applications. etc. Athletic admissions DO go through a separate process. The coach, asst. coach, or secretary of the sports office should be advising your son. Feel free to have your son (or you!) call the coach and ask him exactly how this works at his university. At Stanford, for example, they ask the athletes to fill out the same application packet, but they make sure the athlete knows it needs to be sent in in the envelope they provide, which is a different color and identifies it as an athlete application. (Or at least they did this a few years ago) They were emphatic on insisting that this be done. I wold imagine that every school has their own procedures. Also, you should be able to ask the coach who your liason is (whether in the admit office or the athletic dept.) and be able to speak to them directly regarding the applications process. Your son should have been told by this time where he is on the coach's priority list if he is a senior. Even at Harvard or Yale, if they REALLY want an athlete, they communicate exactly how that will happen and make the recruit comfortable with his chances of admission. Otherwise, the recruit could decide someone else wants him more and the original coach might lose the recruit. First step, have a talk with the coaches who are recruiting him and ask them directly where your son stands with them and the class they are recruiting. It may be very instructive for your son and could change how he approaches the application process. Good luck.</p>
<p>When through this last year. Depends on NCAA div in part and school. But in the end you will need a regular app. Most of the good schools expect a kind of pre app that goes throug the coach (in part it is to see if it is a waste of time to even try to recruit you). However, in many cases (e.g., Stanford) the coach needs permission from admin to go after a recruit (so admissions sets a bar of sorts). However, being allowed to recruit you does no get you in, you still have to submit the regular App and get by admissions. But at that point the coach gets a say (often in the form of slots and or ranks).</p>
<p>This is based on non-revenue sports at ivy and ivy level schools. If you have a nationally famous HS football/bball player, going to a top twenty school, it may be way different, I don't know.</p>
<p>Even the top guys in revenue sports have to fill out the same paperwork as every other applicant.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the informative replies! This recruiting thing sure is confusing and I appreciate you all sharing your experiences. Transcripts/SAT scores/etc were prescreened for child before official visits, but visits are still in process. Now understand better from you all that the coaches should be asked about their own application procedures so as not to screw things up by sending them in on our own. I have many more questions as we go through the process and appreciate all you have to share.</p>
<p>I know two athletes, two different sports (track, soccer), two elite schools - both recruited. They had to fill out regular apps. In the end, neither was accepted to the schools. It was really odd - and disappointing for them. I don't think either realized that he could be "not" accepted. One was waitlisted & one was rejected.</p>
<p>Kelsmom's post is a good reminder for athletes to ask where they stand on the recruiting list with the coaches. Usually, the top one or two athletes the coach asks for manage to find their way in if they are even close to the lowest admission standards. Ask the coaches where your child stands. If it is discus, ask if they are recruiting other discus players. If it is a team sport, ask where they will be on the depth chart when they arrive. If a coach is reluctant to reassure you that they are 100% behind the recruit, apply to other schools. I'm sure coaches are asking the recruits where the school stands and parents have the same right to ask coaches where their kid stands. Keep in mind that a certain percentage of coaches will lie about everything. My son was told by different coaches where he stood on their list. Everything from, "You are our top priority at this position," to "You could really help us out if you end up coming here." Guess which school was serious?! Listen carefully and write notes down when you can so you can be objective. Coaches need to have a lot of recruits for every position and they do not have room for everyone they recruit. That is the nature of the business. Enjoy the visits and try to have fun with this exciting process!</p>
<p>Most kids, most apps were filled out just as any other student would complete apps. I have "heard" but not seen with my own eyes any apps just going through the athletic department. However, it is smart to give the coach a copy of your student's app, transcript, test scores and athletic resume complete with current athletic reference phone numbers, e-mails, so that the info is right at his fingertips if necessary.</p>
<p>it's not uncommon with d3's that the students are applying to more than one college since there are no athletic scholarships and because there are uncertainties about admissions decisions. for those doing it this way, they then review the acceptances and financial aid packages and make a decision by May 1. </p>
<p>just a reminder......in some cases, there may be other athletes (d1 transfers and junior college transfers) that may be showing up in the fall along with the incoming freshmen.</p>
<p>cpt: I'm not suggesting that applications go "through" the athletic department (THAT would be bad PR, eh?), rather that many athletic departments have a person in the admissions department who oversees or previews the applications of recruited athletes and makes sure they are in order. This gives the coach an idea of which athletes he can expect to see on campus next year and helps him ensure he doesn't end up with ten quarterbacks and no linebackers. For example, my son applied the regular way along with 50,000 other applicants to the college he had been recruited to. However, prior to his doing so, he got a call from an admissions officer to ask why he wasn't taking a particular science his senior year and to advise him on how high his grades would have to stay. There was some discussion of the minimum requirements of the university versus the average admitted stats and encouragement to finish strong his senior year. And, I know for a fact that there was some differentiation with his application since the school has an approx. 22% acceptance rate and he was all but guaranteed admission after the preview of his application by the admissions office representative assigned to deal with athletes at that school. Since he was recruited early, these discussions were taking place as early as his junior year. The day he took his SAT's, he had messages from five coaches asking how it went before he got home from the high school. So someone is paying attention outside of the normal admissions people. If the coaches know what the admissions department needs to admit their athletes (and they do), then they should share that information with the recruits. Some do; I remember a friend who was told his Harvard admission could be guaranteed if he brought his SAT score up to 1200 (old), but this kid had taken the test 3 times and felt he had done his best at 1120 so he went to Cornell instead.
Condor: good point! Parents should ask for as much disclosure from the coaches as possible. Be polite and respectful, but it will not hurt your son's chances to ask where he stands and how many are being recruited at his position.</p>
<p>None of my athlete's apps went through anything other than regular channels though there were definitely some special considerations and sharing of info between athletics and admissions which varied from school to school. Only one coach out and out asked for copy of transcripts and SAT scores, but it was very useful giving each of them such packets, including the apps. They did come into use. Other than the very top recruits, the coaches sometimes make quick decisions and negotiations and you want to make it as easy as possible for them especially if your kid is truly in the midstream of candidates and it is no skin off of admissions' tushes to admit him. It can make a difference. Clearly, if the athletic department wants to funnel the apps, that is the way you go. It just was not our experience. I know that my good friend, whose d went to Ohio State as a recruit would not have done the dance she did had they given a copy of app to the coach. Apparently a situation occurred similar to Bessie's story, and though the girl was admitted, it did involve some back and forth that could have been resolved on the spot.</p>
<p>My daughter is a D1 recruit, and, as far as I know, you will always have to submit the regular application forms and the test scores and everything else as required by the particular school of any applicant. How you submit it may vary. For example, in some cases, you do submit the app to the coach, who then walks it through admissions. Once you get and accept an offer, and commit to a particular school, you should talk to the coach about how the application should be handled. If the school has early decision, the coach will often want the athletes to apply ED.</p>
<p>Here's something I've not seen on CC before:</p>
<p>My D was a recruit last year and was submitting her app in the EA/ED round. This can become such a time crunch for athletes, as they try to squeeze in visits, and finalize their choice, often based on an early read, and are then waiting on a likely letter to confirm mutual adoration. </p>
<p>A couple of universities mentioned that if a visit couldn't be made before Nov 1, that the deadline for submissions of the EA/ED app to admission could be moved back days or even weeks. If this is an issue for any of you, it might be worth bringing up with the coach, who can then run it by admissions. I'm used to deadlines being hard and fast, but possibly not so....</p>
<p>Thank you so much for this idea riverrunner. If my S's #1 falls off the edge of a cliff, he will have to scramble among possible number 2s and it would be such a help if the application deadline could be moved even a couple of days. Thanks again!</p>
<p>D2's app to her DI school went through regular channels except that the coach said it had to be sent the first week that apps were being accepted. If I remember correctly the admissions office knew who the recruits were. Her official visit is tenatively scheduled for this month. This coach only does officials for those who have already verballed and been accepted.</p>
<p>It's hard for parents of recruits to navigate these waters when every college does things differently. I get the feeling that even if I had a younger child follow his brother through this process, unless his sport and recruiting were identical, it would still be a learning process. The thing that helped our family was our determination to back up our son's decision to pick the SCHOOL he wanted to attend as opposed to picking a team to play on. Good luck to all! Enjoy the ride.</p>
<p>Riverrunner - that's what happened to our son last year. He was recruited by several ivy's and D3 schools. Wasn't able to finish official visits before ED deadline and didn't plan to apply ED. However, after visiting the school that became his first choice, he applied RD shortly after the ED deadline had passed. After his application was submitted, the coach of the school where he ended up called and said admissions was willing to recategorize his application as ED if he was willing to commit (as long as this all occurred before they began reading the ED applications). S did commit and was accepted ED.</p>
<p>Everyone's additional info is very helpful. The possibility of flexibility in EA/ED deadlines may be very helpful to us as child could not squeeze all visits in before Nov 1st. For those of you who went the EA/ED route, did you get a preliminary read from the financial aid office on your individual situation before making a binding decision or did you make a leap of faith?</p>
<p>^^hi mini
D submitted all materials for prelim read by about Oct 25th, admissions read it within 24 hours and sent likely letter. Coach called to say likely was in the mail. D officially submitted app just prior to Nov 1. PM me for details, although if you look up my past posts, I'm pretty transparent!</p>
<p>Best wishes. I know this is stressful and exciting. Kind of like eating sushi for the first time.</p>