<p>Sounds fishy to me. Recruiting is a strange business and some coaches do not display high levels of integrity. Some might even recruit an athlete and string them along in an attempt to make them unavailable to the competition in their conference- they promise anything and keep the recruit from accepting a spot on another team. All athletes are taking a chance because all athletes rely on verbal agreements and offers made during the recruiting process. Most of the time, this works out. Sometimes not. This particular coach and A.D. sound like they did a disservice to the athlete and her family. Just be glad that coach will not be running her life for the next four years. Good luck to the OP.</p>
<p>Most of the time, the coaches are on target. They also do not tend to give guarantees unless they know they are good. However, sometimes they do miss, and sometimes things happen. In such cases, they should immediately let the athlete know. They are remiss in that area. </p>
<p>Though they do exist, there are few coaches that deliberately mislead. The "process" if you can even call this free for all, is such that it is shrouded enough in uncertainties that they do not have mislead. There are no guarantees until you get an offer. The faster you get that offer, the better off you are. In my experience the likely letters are pretty much as good as offers. However, even with an offer, if the student changes circumstances, such as getting into trouble, dropping grades, dropping courses, etc, the offer can disappear.</p>
<p>just a FYI ... from the NESCAC ... New</a> England Small College Athletic Conference</p>
<p>At our house the first time through a college search recruiting was not an issue at all ... it likely will be at least once in the future. The OP's story is unfortunate and highlights the ambiguity in the process. It seems to be me that while demphisizing sports the DIII overall the schools have, unintentionally and ironically, made the recruiting process in some ways more ambigious at the DIII level (and the IVYies). At DI either the player receives a scholarship offer or not and the player either signs the LOI or not and the coach tends to have more pull than a DIII coach ... are there surprises at DI, sure, but surprises seem to be much more prevalant at the DIII level.</p>
<p>do the schools in NESCAC not send likely letters? my only experience with recruiting was my younger sister who was recruited by stanford, and she got a likely letter sometime in the month or two before decisions. even with the likely letter, it is still pretty nerve-wracking, though...</p>
<p>i guess it's kind of comparing apples and organes with NESCAC and stanford bc stanford is so into its athletics.</p>
<p>There was an article not to long ego in the NYT regarding IVY recruiting specifically and Harvard's basketball team, likely letters, and kids ending up without a college. It was said that it becomes ethically irresponsible when you must leave things open ended like that. There was a call to make the process more transparent and ethical.</p>
<p>In any event: What I think was wrong in this case is the coercion of the student to apply ED in order to better or secure her chances of admittance. And yes, the coach should have been made well aware long before hand. However, I am now curious... by moving on, did you turn down deferral?</p>
<p>^
i guess getting rid of EA threw a wrench into the recruiting process at harvard. it's one thing to be told one is at the top of the list but then be deferred/rejected EA and quite another to be told one is at the top of the list but that one must wait until april to be absolutely sure.</p>
<p>
[quote]
do the schools in NESCAC not send likely letters?
[/quote]
That was the question that sent me looking for the NESCAC recruiting rules. As I mentioned my kids have not been in this (yet) ... I think schools with ED or EA do not use likely letters because the ED/EA acceptance secures the commitment ... I think likely letters are used for non-ED/EA schools. (But after writing this it feels wrong ... it seems folks have written about likely letters at IVYies with ED or EA options ... ????)</p>
<p>ohh.. I completely forgot about Princeton and Harvard getting rid of EA or ED. That DOES throw a wrench in the system. We have a hockey player at our school who Dartmouth passed on, but Harvard really wants her. I honestly wonder what kind of guarantee or letter she got. She is brilliant regardless, but still.. make you wonder: would you apply to one other school just to hedge your "all in" status?</p>
<p>We have had a lot of experience in this area this year. Here is what I have personally seen. Complete and total honesty from each and every coach. At one school, during an official athletic visit weekend, with about 100 athletes, from many sports, the group was advised by both the Admissions Director and the Athletic Director, that their profiles had been pre-screened and they were all "eligible" for admissions. However, it was imperative that they complete their applications in a responsible and competitive manner. They were not to write 3 essays about sports. They needed to show depth and breadth in their application. Their recommendations were important also. Final decisions rested with the Admissions Department at each and every school. At one school, the person who serves as the Liason from the Athletic Dept. to the Admissions Dept. was the most important person in the Athletic Dept. The kids were encouraged by the coach to introduce themselves to the Liason....and to Admissions reps.... and to visit the special tables set up to get info on the different schools within the university, to get info on Financial Aid etc. </p>
<p>We personally went into this experience very tentatively. We had the incredible good fortune of working with coaches who were very candid right out of the gate. One school's coach had no ability to "tip" athletes for his team. Another coach had an "A" list and our child was on his "B" list, which meant if he got his A player, our kid would not be recruited any further. If he did not get his A player, then our child was now an A recruit, albiet later in the cycle, meaning a likely letter in mid-December instead of late October or early November. </p>
<p>We have heard of a few results of the recruited athletes we met this year, kids who were deferred and rejected....and of several who were accepted. We do not know why the results were the way they were. We can only speculate that perhaps these kids were marginal and decided to use their early app to try and land their dream school. When our child was attempting to clarify what one coach's support meant, the very experienced coach told our child that he has never set up any student for failure. </p>
<p>I can only say that the athlete must be in the range of the school's general population to ensure success.... the further the athlete deviates from the general population, the greater the risk. If totally blindsided by the result, then I would absolutely engage the high school guidance department to inquire what aspects of the application package kept the student from being accepted. If deferred, I would want guidance to assist in determining what improvements or supplements/recognition is needed to ensure acceptance in the regular decision cycle. </p>
<p>For the parents, talk to others.....folks in the know.....other coaches in other sports, coaches from your local area colleges, get a book or two on the process..... use forums like CC to help.... send a private message to folks who offer their own experiences as a guide. There are at least 3 folks here on CC who helped us.</p>
<p>To the students, spend an extra 30 to 60 minutes 3X a week on your schoolwork.... it is extra practice, if you will. Drop an extra curricular if your grades are faltering. You will not regret it if an Ivy or a top LAC is in your line of sight. Always choose a tough courseload. Ask for help if you are struggling with a subject. (Our HS National Honor Society kids tutor other kids. Ask your advisor or the NHS advisor for help. They are there to help you, even if it is only for 1 test.) Demonstrate your bandwidth; for example, having a job while in school or competing is an excellent testament to your commitment levels. Show in the essays that you are a multi-dimensional kid. Feature how you will contribute on campus, besides in the gym..... because if you are injured, you will still be a student at that school. Try to show that you can add value in more than one area. </p>
<p>Finally, always, always have safeties on your list. Have a Plan B and even a Plan C. Celebrate any and all success....yours and others. College is one stop on a lifelong journey. Good Luck.....</p>
<p>3togo, Ivies are not part of NESCAC. Some (maybe all?) of the Ivies use likely letters, whether or not they have EA or ED, in order to compete with letter of intent from other D1 programs.</p>
<p>schools still do likely letters even for EA (at least some schools do).</p>
<p>i guess the smart thing to do if one is being recruited at harvard/princeton is to apply somewhere else EA, but that is dicey because in most cases, the coach at the EA school would probably expect the athlete there if s/he used a tip on him/her...not always, though, i know...my friend's younger sister got a tip at stanford EA this year, but the coach knows that she's going to apply to harvard and may not come to stanford in the end. i'm not sure if he was just benevolent to her or if he knew that recruiting at harvard in that sport is really tough this year, so he's banking on her not getting in.</p>
<p>My son received a rejection letter earlier this week after applying ED to a Midwestern top LAC. The coach had his gpa and his SAT scores and sent a letter to my son in September advising him that he was on his "short list" of recruits and that he should apply ED and should visit the school in the fall. We did so and my son met with the coaches and was again strongly advised to apply to the school ED to secure a spot on the roster. Numerous e-mails were exchanged between my son and the coach, none of which ever cast any doubt on my son's prospects with the school. I have written a letter to the Dean of Admissions asking for reconsideration and my son has e-mailed the coach inquiring into what happened. We are awaiting a reply from both. I am bewildered and upset with what has occurred because my son passed on other ED opportunities with NESCAC schools and is now scrambling to get everything out for the January 1 deadlines. Any advice as to what further steps I should consider would be most appreciated.</p>
<p>^^ How were your son's stats for that school? There isn't much more you can do except wait to hear back from the coach. I'm sorry this happened. You might want to check and see if any of your son's other choices have EDII. Sometimes coaches are very interested in kids who didn't get into their ED1 schools.</p>
<p>Son's stats were within the mid 50% range but test scores were on the lower side. In addition to athletic skills, son is a gifted musician. Good news is he is being recruited by other LACs that are closer to home. The thing that concerns me is that the LAC's now interested in him are more highly ranked and arguably more selective than the school that rejected him. Coaches at three of these schools (two of which are NESCAC) have agreed to give strong support in admissions but importantly have indicated that they cannot "promise" anything and cannot guarantee admission.</p>
<p>I was going to suggest the same thing MomofWildChild said, because you mentioned passing up ED at some NESCAC schools. I don't know how many of them have EDII, but I know that Tufts does because we looked there for baseball. You should consider that, but just be sure you do not want to pursue the original school for RD after you find out more about what happened.</p>
<p>Actually Tufts is one of the NESCAC schools (soccer) that we have been in communication with. The coach there has been very supportive.</p>
<p>The problem we faced is that the coaches wanted a 100% commitment from our son that their school was first choice. That was without any guarantee that he would get into that school. If he did not say that he loved a school best, it was clear that he would not be on the top list. This is an issue that comes up a lot. Side stepping and avoiding the question is not going to get you first list unless you are very, very good. What happened with us was that he had to lower the level of competitiveness to his sport. Since he was a first level athlete, that was doable. Had he not been, I don't know what he would have done. Most kids justify telling each coach that his school is the one and only by saying that they meant it when they said it.</p>
<p>Just for the record, a coach promising to "give strong support to the application" carries about as much weight as "the check is in the mail" and "I'll still love you in the morning".</p>
<p>The take-hom lesson in all of this: When a coach starts whispering sweet-nothings in a kid's ear, pin 'em down with specific questions:</p>
<p>"Are you using one of the 66 tips on me?"</p>
<p>Unfortunately you are right Interesteddad. Coaches are not only recruiting athletes but applicants as well. I guess we learned "our lesson" the hard way.</p>
<p>disillusion:</p>
<p>I feel for ya and for the kids. It only took reading one college report on athletic recruiting to understand that the various terms have very specific meanings -- meanings that would not be at all clear to the average 18 year old recruit.</p>
<p>I believe that Division III athletics is about to get blown up in the next few years. The recruiting has gotten out of hand.</p>