<p>I don’t think parents are invited to be part of the OV from our communications with HYP and a couple other Ivys.</p>
<p>In case it helps anyone in figuring out their timelines (something I admit I am always looking at, looking up posts from previous years at around the same calendar dates), our player currently has an interview with a NESCAC admissions office scheduled through the football coaches for first week of September, 3 open overnight visit offers (not yet scheduled), and one standing slot offer (not at the school who scheduled the interview). Getting lots and lots of email with game ticket offers from other D3 schools in different geographic areas.</p>
<p>I still think we are in a bit of a “quiet” period which I hope will pick up as soon as school starts again.</p>
<p>Edited to add something to the OV visit/parent question. If I could do it at all, I’d travel with my son and stay clear of the entire business at a local hotel, but use the time to walk around campus myself. If it’s gone to the OV level, I’d like to get a closer look myself just to see what we’re paying for, but I would stay clear of anything I didn’t need to be present for.</p>
<p>On parents and OVs.</p>
<p>We went on each - from the west coast. There is no right answer. The OV is for the athlete to scope out the school, the coach, and the team. But, the parents meet the coach, maybe even watch a practice (sitting well apart for the athlete); and this may well add the extra eyes which can also give additional insight.</p>
<p>Each visit was different - S picked the coach we liked least; but the school was a consensus (but it was his decision). As things developed, the program was the worst, coaching terrible, and it was completely apparent from watching the very disorganized practice and from the incredibly brief (and flat) interaction with the coach. But the school was a perfect fit for him.</p>
<p>I would suggest that all other things being equal, parents go on the OV. Kids are generally overwhelmed by the process; they have no real context within which to evaluate “coach speak” nor evaluate FA discussions. The kids focus on the social aspects and the team. From what I have since learned, the players are pretty straight about the schhol, less straight about the coach and program (but if the kid can read between the lines, the players comments will be spot on). I guess another way to put it is this: an 18 year old doesn’t have a well developed BS meter; and the coaches are great with the BS.</p>
<p>If you go on the OV, stay away from anything you are not invited to, don’t inject yourself into the athlete/team/coach interaction. Have the BS meter turned on and scope out every aspect of the school and the surrounding area while you remain on standby when the coach calls to say his/her piece.</p>
<p>After all, would you let your child purchase a car on your behalf without you - and here, especially if your athlete isn’t getting 100% COA, the money to be shelled out over four years is way way more then a car. This is very much a joint decision making process and the more eyes and brains at work, the better.</p>
<p>I appreciate everyone’s insight on OVs. It is very helpful to hear about other experiences especially since I was under the impression that I would not be going on the OVs. I think that I may let my S go to the schools that I have already met with the coach alone, but I will try to go to the ones where we have not had a chance to get to. I have a comfort level with the coaches I have already met, and since they are doing FA pre-reads and plan to give us that info prior to the OV, I am OK with him attending alone the second time there since he is fine with it. The price of attendance is going to be the bottom line for me and if my S comes home confused about what that will be, then I will make a call. But he has to be comfortable with the coach and team and I trust his judgment on that. I have not gotten a sense that the coaches really want to be communicating with me anyway on the UVs that we have been on</p>
<p>Are NESCAC pre reads only a football/helmet sport thing? One coach is after me big time and I am going on a trip there, but has not said anything about a pre read.</p>
<p>swimmer24, if it makes you feel better, we have not yet either actually heard the exact words “pre-read.” We have just had schools ask for all scores and transcripts to date and figure that’s what’s going on, for better or for worse. Particularly with the school where they want an interview with admissions, we figure it’s for better, and with the school where we feel we have a strong slot offer, we figure they have been comfortable with us for a while (and our son still loves them, so like I said earlier, we’re just hoping for a soft landing).</p>
<p>Circling back on pre-read timing and OVs.<br>
In late-July kid scheduled an OV for mid-September for HYP. At that time, Coach said no official preread was required unless they were concerned about the academics. (School had ALL academic info). Then about mid-August, Coach came back and said that they had met with admissions to get initial feedback on a handful of recruits and that kids’ academic profile was absolutely positive. We are relieved, but not surprised to hear this.</p>
<p>So we are interpreting this as:
The pre-read was by the coaches, before OV invitations went out.
Now that they have scheduled first round of OVs, they are getting the blessing of Admissions, and ‘initial feedback’. The real Pre-read perhaps?
We also know that another kid from team has just last week been offered an OV with this school for October. Maybe because one of the initial group did not pass the initial feedback with Admissions?</p>
<p>Terrafin,</p>
<p>The timing of the second athletes’ pre-read and OV probably has more to do with how valuable the athlete is to the team rather than not passing pre-reads. Traditionally, the September recruiting weekends are the premier athletes–most coaches want to go early in the process in hoping of getting a commitment prior to all OV being completed. Then second and third recruiting weekends are for filling in the spaces not taken by athletes in the first weekend. </p>
<p>It could also be that the second athlete was slow to submit academic information, SATs/ACTs were incomplete, etc.</p>
<p>Maybe Swim4School. Honestly we do not see any patterns at all - not from Ivy to Ivy (only OVs to Ivies) - nor from coach to coach. Each situation seems different. Actually two are the same - handwritten letters of Invitation, quick responses that seem very personal, kind of warm feeling. Not surprisingly those are kids’ top 2 picks.
Does anyone know how many athletes typically make an Official Visit to each school each weekend? Do most schools have two sets each weekend - Thursday to Saturday and Sun to Tuesday?</p>
<p>Would an athlete be one of two, one of four or more?</p>
<p>Can anyone comment on baseball ivy recruiting at this point?</p>
<p>Debinator. I suggest you begin a new thread explaining more specifically what you’d like to know.</p>
<p>terafin;</p>
<p>There are no patterns that we ever saw. Just good signals from some coaches, lukewarm interest from others, and that the signals changed coach to coach until we finished the recruiting process. </p>
<p>Each school focuses on weekends (so recruits miss less school typically) and not Sun-Tues. They want campus to be vibrant and hopping while recruits are there. Usually each school has 2-3 recruiting weekends, surrounding major football games if possible. </p>
<p>In our experience, there were 8-10 recruits per weekend in swimming. However, each sport brings its own numbers in based on volume of recruit needs. Ie: football would bring more, cross country perhaps less.</p>
<p>Debinator…there is a lot of info on this board re baseball. Many parents have successfully shepharded their kids through. Use the search function re baseball…</p>
<p>News at this house is that after all of the pre-reads, all were green lights except one.</p>
<p>K2 got a coach call last night and there are 2 OVs in the works.
The dates are being worked out.</p>
<p>K2 got a first acceptance letter today. So at least k2 has a place to go to school and to continue with sport/passion</p>
<p>How is everyone doing with OVs and apps?</p>
<p>My S has a OV coming up for his #1 choice. He has heard nothing about the pre-read. Is that strange to have an OV before a green light from admissions?</p>
<p>He got a call the other day from another school just checking in making sure they were still in the running. Wonder if they are looking at their list and narrowing it down? No info on pre -read.</p>
<p>One school is a go but, we just had to turn down an OV due to the difficulty of getting there during the season.</p>
<p>Another program, we haven’t heard about his preread, yet he has spent considerable time with the team.</p>
<p>As far as the app goes. He gets asked about his progress and what to be thinking about and what to be ready for. But, I think S has got an account and a few basic pieces of info filled in. He needs some pressure to get cracking.</p>
<p>happymom: My kid only got specific feedback from one coach about the pre-read. Since he’s in the midst of OVs right now, we’ve come to the conclusion that no news is good news in the realm of academic pre-reads, as all seems to be moving forward as he hoped it would. </p>
<p>First OV down, one right now and one to go…and, I suspect, a difficult choice to make in a few weeks. Son’s app is basically complete and ready to go, except for part of one school’s supplement, which was more detailed than the others and so placed into “wait and see if I really need to do it” limbo.</p>
<p>Kid has received 2 very specific pre-reads: “We sat down with admissions and reviewed all your stats, and you are a go”. That feedback was received before the OV happened but not before it was offered. I believe the coaches thought he was fine when they offered the OVs.
One school HYP said “we only need your transcript and SAT/ACT scores in hand before the OV” They have not done a pre-read, although if the other schools said we were fine, this one would as well.
Kid has done 2 OVs; both went very well. No commitments asked or given on either side. Both schools said finish your visits and keep us informed what you are thinking. We are not sure if that means kid is not an important recruit for them or what. Two more OVs to go.</p>
<p>We thought D was going to hear something this week, but that didn’t happen (not surprised). Coach is very busy and is a 1 man team. He sent her an email last Friday saying he hoped to hear something this week from Admissions, hopefully by Wednesday, but she hasn’t heard anything yet. We, more like me, were starting to think that maybe he had lost interest, but when she got the email last Friday, we were both feeling better. </p>
<p>We have been in this process since July 22nd, when she sent coach her transcripts and SAT scores. Ugh, 2 months later and still here we are waiting!! Monday starts another week, right??</p>
<p>I am starting to think coaches don’t know the difference between financial aid and merit aid:</p>
<p>School 1: “Based on your test scores I feel that our admission’s office and financial aid office would supply you with financial aid, if needed, to get you to come to school here.”</p>
<p>School 2: School “x” “is not likely to offer you a large financial aid package with your current test scores”</p>
<p>It is the financial aid pre-reads that are causing me the most frustration. Then there is school 3: "unfortunately admissions cannot do pre-reads on financial aid. However I encourage you and your parents to come for a visit… Having you and your parents both visit would give you guys to ask that question (about financial aid).</p>
<p>So they want me to pay to fly accross the country to find out if we can get financial aid. My S’s counselor told him his parents will come up with the money once he gets an offer so don’t worry about it.</p>
<p>My daughter had to supply transcript and ACT scores to be allowed to do OV. The coach contacted her after OV, to ask how she liked it. Now what? Do I as the parent, make an appt with the admissions office to find out about merit/grant money? Can I do that over the phone? This is a D3 school. So no athletic money.</p>