<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>