I am aware that very selective schools (top 50 liberal arts) offer athletes admission at lower academic standards than the general incoming class. In my opinion my older son could have gotten a sports admission at a top 15 school, although we never really explored it to its final conclusion, and that sport was a varsity sport at that school. I’m not saying these schools are totally compromising their admission standard but they want a good (~4.0 gpa, top 10% of standardized testing) and then they want someone who can play the sport well for their school. The question is not about Div 1 sports programs (UCLA, Stanford, University of Michigan …). You have to be a super athlete to be asked to play a varsity sport at those schools. By varsity sports I mean a program formally in the colleges’ athletic department. Club sports travel and play other schools now so it’s confusing to me. But my main question is that I would guess that an elite school (top 50 liberal arts) would not give an admission for a club sport but they would for a varsity sport. Am I correct?
If you mean club sports in HS, for a recruited athlete, in many sports, e.g. soccer, an applicant playing with a travel club will gain more notice than an applicant who is “just” playing varsity.
For the non-recruited athlete, it’s just another EC. A very good EC, mind you, but that’s it.
If you mean club sports for college, colleges are generally not recruiting for those spots.
In general, the prospect of playing club sports in college isn’t the same as being actively recruited (or encouraged) for the main team. There are no assessments of how they need to fill a club team, no projections of how many slots to set aside.
If you’re trying to get him into a school where he doesn’t quite match, stats-wise, better to get to know the whole picture those colleges value, the sorts of engagements, energies and drives those schools like to see.
Just to be clear here, I’m talking about, for example, a volleyball club team when only track, baseball and basketball are varsity sports. Not different levels of the same sport (soccer, basketball).
I mean club sport in the college you are applying to.
I’m seeing another term here, “recruited athlete”. Do elite colleges (top 50 liberal arts) ever have a “recruited athlete” for a club team?
The term “recruited athlete” always refers to a “Varsity” team in college, or in other words, the college sponsored NCAA, NAIA, etc. team for the school. These teams recruit athletes, may offer athletic scholarships (depending on the level-D1, D2 offer them, D3 can not) and can require a big commitment. Many schools also have " club" teams and “intramural” teams. The club teams typically hold try-outs after school starts, and if the athlete makes the team, he/she must pay a fee to play on the team. Those teams usually travel and the fee covers travel costs, uniforms, field rental, etc. Practices are less intense than Varsity and the team may require less of a commitment. Athletes are not recruited for club teams and academic standards would never be adjusted for them. Club teams are often extremely competitive and sometimes include athletes who could have potentially made the Varsity team, but have chosen to play in a less competitive atmosphere for whatever reason. Intramural teams are for the less competitive athlete - still some great athletes who are there to have fun. Intramural teams don’t travel and usually just play other teams from their own school.
If you are looking at Varsity sports in college, be sure to take a look at the different levels, not just D1. Also remember that even within the D1 level there is a huge variation in how competitive teams are. My S plays at a D2 school and his team is much better than some of the lower level D1 programs, but would not have a chance against UCLA’s D1 team. You might want to take a look at the NCAA Guide for the College-Bound Student-Athlete: https://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/CBSA.pdf
I do know of some situations where a student was recruited to play on a club team. But it is rare and only happens if the school is considering moving the club team to varsity status.
Thanks for all the responses, that was helpful. So I think varsity sports are what would help you get in the school if it’s really competitive, but if there is a club sport where you’re really interested in, it doesn’t hurt to ask. Thanks all.