Concluding the college career - athletics made the difference

Athletic Recruits
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<p>S is in his senior year; the end is in sight. AND IT IS GOOD!</p>

<p>He matriculated thinking chemical engineering. That thought lasted til the day before the first semester. After tasting courses in language, sociology, political science, history, and economics, he chose economics.</p>

<p>Econ has big classes - absurdly big (especially the prerequisite classes); and is taught very often by non-English speaking professors. But, that approach taught him to teach himself, rather then rely on lectures.</p>

<p>His first year, the big decisions were "eat or sleep" after morning lifts. Skinny freshman need to compete with hulking seniors; and it takes lots of energy to keep up. Each succeeding year was physically easier.</p>

<p>His grades were not what grades had been in high school; while he was away for entire weekends a large number of his classmates were ensconced in the library or study groups. He did join a frat, then in his soph year, an eating club. He had a extremely active social life - intramurals, parties, girl friend, attending plays his friends were in, etc. His GPA put him around middle of the class.</p>

<p>During the summers between his freshman and sophomore year, he played his sport. After his junior year, got a real job -on his own - in NYC for MLB.</p>

<p>This year was the mad scramble for the JOB. His school is a well oiled job machine; the school knows how to revise resumes, bring in potential employers, etc.</p>

<p>And so began the interviewing process: indentify the fields he may be interested in, electronically submit the resume, find out which potential employer selects the resume from the enormous pile seeking employment, preparing for the interviews. It's a mad scramble; a game of musical chairs (similar to recruiting). But, it seems that, for once, there are actually more chairs then job seekers (everyone is interviewing with the same firms, but there are sooooo many firms that there are jobs aplenty).</p>

<p>I have to tell you'll, THE ATHLETICS made the difference. Employers in his field, once the academic is hurdle is cleared (no extra points for really clearing it - just need to get over the hurdle), cared more about every soft skill athletes bring to the table. So, teamwork, team goal achievement, multi-tasking, discipline, consensus building, dealing with pressure, etc., all became more important than the GPA. </p>

<p>The interviewers were very often parents themselves. As parents, virtually all wanted to know how he got from t-ball to D1 and how could he/she get their child to become so passionate about a sport. This built a rapport with the interviewer; and connecting on a personal level is very very important.</p>

<p>So, as his career may or may not end with a whack at the professional level; the athletics are what is bringing in job offers - good, incredibly good and interesting job offers.</p>

<p>The employers love athletes. So, get a decent GPA, stick it out to the end (even if the athlete doesn't have the most successful athletic collegiate career), prepare for the interview, throw enough ***** at the wall so some sticks, and a good result is probable.</p>

<p>There are tremendous advantages to being an athlete!</p>

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<p>I love this. I wish there were a way I could sticky it for myself so I can read it again when times get challenging for my son…as I know they will at some point. Only 8 weeks in and I can already see how invaluable his (fall) sport has been in acclimating him to college. With motivation, time management, social life, general health and well being - both physical and (maybe more so) mental. This time last year I was really questioning whether the effort was worth it. Now there’s no question in my mind. Good luck to your son!</p>

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<p>Stemit thanks for your post. It’s nice to know all of this work the athletes put in will be appreciated by many companies after graduation. My D is starting the recruiting process and it’s exciting for her, but daunting when I think about her balancing the difficult academics and a demanding sports schedule.</p>

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<p>Stemit, How did the coach feel about your son not playing summer ball after Jr year. Not sure my son’s coach would give him that freedom, and we are wondering what affect it will have on job recruiting…no jr year internship, only 3 years of summer college ball.</p>

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<p>S had the same experience - his athletic participation was a huge factor in his recruiting experience, for both that critical summer internship before senior year and for his job offer in fall of senior year. Employers in his field highly value the commitment, dedication, team work, perseverance demonstrated by college athletes - across a variety of sports. It was a great bonus to the opportunity to pursue his sport in college :)</p>

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<p>Stemit, thanks. Great post. I wonder however, if your S wouldn’t have still got his offers anyway - after all that is why many on here would give their right arm for their child to attend an Ivy, especially H, Y or P. I do not doubt that the athletics made the interviews more pleasurable for your S to attend, but just wonder if the athletics made that big a difference to the final outcomes. I am not disagreeing with you, just genuinely wondering because my S is currently thinking about which direction to focus on, and your post hits a number of very important considerations. Thanks again. </p>

<p>Thanks also Runners2, but as you are also an Ivy, did the athletics give a NEEDED/CRUCIAL edge? Thanks.</p>

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<p>Interesting thread! D is an HYP senior, going through the job recruiting/ interview process and we were just talking about the parallels to athletic recruiting. The initial contact, the phone interviews and finally being flown off for an in-person interview (the Official Visit).</p>

<p>As for the importance of the athletic experience, that really seems to vary by company and interviewer.</p>

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<p>Imafan: the coach is very low key about summer ball. In S’s case, S was just burnt out from non-stop play since he was 8. The fun came back once fall started. If pro ball is a high priority, it is certainly better to play; if not, resume building may take priority. Most kids on his team do not play - though the starters generally do play summer ball. Of his friends who got jobs after their junior year (athletes and non athletes), many received permanent offers from those jobs. There is no “true” answer.</p>

<p>Researchmum. While it is impossible to know a negative, he got interviews and call backs from firms his non-athletic, better GPA friends in the same major did not. I would imagine that having great stuff on your resume is equivalent to athletics; but, for the most part, his time in college was athletic centered (no research apart from the junior paper which all students write; no collegiate academic honors or awards; no inventions, etc.). Certainly the interviews were interesting in that all went way beyond connecting on the personal level; business problems were posed, problem solving and thought processes were explored. None of his classes prepared him for this; that knowledge was gleaned through preparation (by having older friends who had gone through the process).</p>

<p>There have been many studies that show that physically fit, taller applicants have an advantage in interviews. Generally athletes tend to be fit and taller then the average student.</p>

<p>I don’t want this to sound sexist, but virtually every male interviewer wanted to be a stud athlete at some point in his life; they project that onto the athlete that interviews. As to Varska’s point, it is very true that athletic importance varies from employer to employer. But, the athlete needs to research which firms do give weight to athletics. For example, S had no interest in grinding in back office quant type operations; but he understands those operations enough to be able to explain what those back office grinders develop in interfacing with a client. I don’t think that being an athlete (with the corresponding GPA hit) helps in getting into medical school; but in the employment areas where the employers are loioking for smart people who are trainable rapidly, athletes fit the bill and already have the soft skills needed.</p>

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<p>Just a few more random thoughts on the topic. Last year GFG posted a thread on the topic with a different take:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/athletic-recruits/1410435-athletics-all-you-do-next.html?highlight=interview[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/athletic-recruits/1410435-athletics-all-you-do-next.html?highlight=interview&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>I think stemit’s point that taller, fit applicants have an advantage in interviews is spot-on. I wonder how much of the job recruiting success is attributable to being tall, fit and confident (in addition to having the Ivy degree and requisite smarts), and how much is attributable to actually having played the sport?</p>

<p>We can’t really know for sure, of course. Also, I wonder if the athlete advantage is gender related? I don’t doubt a charismatic quarterback or pitcher is going to wow the interviewer, especially a male interviewer that played high school ball, but how about a female field hockey player? Are the sacrifices that she may have made in terms of GPA and lack of other ECs going to be balanced out by the fact that she was an athlete when it comes time to get a job?</p>

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<p>And this…
[Wall</a> Street Hires Losers Turned Winners After College Athletics - Bloomberg](<a href=“Bloomberg - Are you a robot?”>Bloomberg - Are you a robot?)</p>

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<p>Stemit thanks for the further analysis - it certainly makes things clearer. Good luck to your son, it sounds like your job is nearly done…</p>

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<p>Great topic, and it hits very close to home. While I see athletics helping some athletes, it is not universal in its appeal to all employers. Son is a senior Ivy starting baseball pitcher, and engineering & material science major. He has an engineering job offer as a result of a junior summer internship. My sense of it is that athletics did not play a part in opening the door open or getting the offer. I’m sure they looked at it favorably, but it was not the primary or secondary reason. It was his education, work ethic, and alumni network. </p>

<p>He’s been interviewing with other international companies, and I’m curious to see if his athletic background comes into play. My guess is that it will matter very little. My son did not play college summer baseball at all. It was his choice, and the coach supported him. He worked internships for job experience & income every summer.</p>

<p>PS…Best of luck to your son stemit. We’ll see you in a few months.</p>

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<p>Researchmom - S believes that his athletic experience was a strong positive for recruiting in his field - investment banking. It was frequently a topic of discussion in interviews and many interviewers had also been athletes. However, I think he would agree that it is only icing on the cake for a student who is well qualified in other ways - he certainly has friends who were athletes who did not receive job offers they hoped for, presumably because they didn’t have other characteristics employers were looking for. So, I’d consider it a soft factor that can help to differentiate well qualified applicants in certain fields. I completely agree that the benefit of being a college athlete is not universal across occupational fields - in my field and my husband’s, I don’t think being an athlete would be a factor, either positive or negative, but thankfully in my S’s field it was a benefit.</p>

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<p>Runners2, thanks for the post - I really can’t wait for my son to be done with all of this, and be in a job already; and he has only just started his Junior year in HS:(. I really envy you guys and am grateful for the candid sharing.</p>

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<p>Interesting article CT1417, thanks for posting! I wonder if the statement that 4% of college graduate played intercollegiate athletics is accurate, anybody know where to find that info?</p>

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<p>Hi all. As an update, there’s both good and bad news. First, the negative: D is injured yet AGAIN, so her collegiate career is essentially over without having really begun. The athletics aspect has been very disappointing, as she has put in countless hours over these past years for zero performance reward. She never improved after high school, and spent a lot of time injured or below-par after injury. This experience is not at all uncommon on her team, by the way. </p>

<p>The positive is that she has really loved the team experience in all other ways. The fun, the friendships, the training camps in beautiful locations, the free Nike gear, etc. </p>

<p>Re career: She did finally encounter an interviewer–a female one even–who was impressed that she was an athlete, and she landed a nice internship in NYC junior summer. The other positive is she expanded on her involvement in that campus organization, and earned a higher leadership position. She is hoping this involvement will pay off with employers.</p>

<p>While fun and interesting, here’s the negative: lately it has been a major time commitment that has made her senior year very, very stressful. Studies, sport, rehab, leadership position, and the job search are a lot to handle at once. For example, she is in Europe at present for a conference related to the organization, and just got bumped off the return flight. She already missed a midterm that has to be made up, and now it looks like she may miss another due to the delay. This will be a huge hassle.</p>

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<p>I thought I’d add another anecdote to highlight how tough the road can be for an athlete.</p>

<p>When D’s coach learned of her planned summer internship in NYC, he was NOT happy at all. He said “I know how those New York City internships go. You aren’t going to train.” He worried that either the long i-banking work hours or the distractions of the city would impede her. He then decided to take her off the “highly likely” list and put her on the “only maybe” list for attending the pre-season camp in August. D assured him she would train faithfully, and she did.</p>

<p>Every morning she was out at 5:30 AM getting in her miles, so she could arrive at the office before the senior people. It was better to run in the morning because she was not guaranteed to be able to leave work before dark. However, she obviously was not always at her best then and was sometimes rushed. No doubt her training suffered a little. In contrast, some kids on her team do nothing all summer but hang out and train. With no job, or maybe just a low-stress part-time one, they can run mid-morning, take a long nap, do some cross training in the afternoon, maybe run again, make themselves good, nutritious meals, etc. Anyway, some days D had to do a second run after work too and on others she had to go lift weights. Then on weekends she’d take the train to Central Park for her run. It’s also possible that running on the city surfaces caused/contributed to her current stress fracture.</p>

<p>It was a productive summer, but to quote her, “I certainly wasn’t able to take advantage of what NYC has to offer.”</p>

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<p>Running in CP is practically a contact sport! I am not an athlete but walked the six mile loop at 5:30 as many mornings as I could manage—or evenings, at least until the marathon. Post-marathon the park is very empty, but when you can be there in the evening, it is marvelous to see the lights of the buildings.</p>

<p>I hope your daughter can land back in NY, if that is what she wants. How wonderful to have had the opportunity to try it out for one summer.</p>