D1 vs. D3 Timing of Decisions

Athletic Recruits
1

<p>How should recruits handle the issue of the different timelines for D1 vs. D3 recruiting. Our child is a current Junior/Class of 2011. They started receiving emails on Sept. 1 and were invited to some Junior Days and to some "clinics" which really function as Junior Days in October from various D1 schools. Additionally, D3 coaches have been emailing, inviting our Junior to visit if they are in town, unofficial visits, etc.</p>

<p>This month, the three weekends in November are official evaluation periods and coaches have contacted our child asking for their tournament schedule.</p>

<p>Our child's HS team is nationally ranked very high. All the Seniors over the last few years have gone to good D1 schools or D3 schools.</p>

<p>One question that we have as we start to evaluate schools, decide between D1 and D3, is -- what if our child is interested in a D1 school <em>and</em> a D3 school. Typically, the D1 coaches are wanting verbal commitments in the Spring of the Junior year with decisions and offers made in July and August. The official visits the students make in the Fall are really just for fun since the decisions have already been made.</p>

<p>So, we think it is very likely that our child will get some good D1 offers and have some good D1 offers and she could be done with the whole process over next summer. BUT...what if, in fact, a D3 school is her first choice (and money is not an issue). Is it possible to get a firm admission decision from a D3 school in the summer? Most ED decision dates seem to be in mid-December. But, D1 coaches want answers and do NLIs by November at the latest. The dilemma is that the D1 might be a bird in the hand, even though the D3 is the first choice...but are D3 decisions ever made that early? Can we just ask the D3 coach straight out? Does a D1 coach ever withdraw an offer because you are taking too long to decide?</p>

<p>I guess it's an issue because I think that academically, our child meets the standards of the D3 school, but without athletics, it would be very iffy whether or not they would get in on their own.</p>

<p>Thoughts? Experiences with D1 vs. D3 timing issues?</p>

2

<p>Just curious what the sport is?</p>

3

<p>Can’t answer all your questions, but if a D3 school ends up being your athlete’s first choice, I’d pose your dilemma to that potential coach - saying this school is athlete’s first choice, but we hate to jeopardize offers that have been made by D1 schools while waiting to hear from the D3 school. See what kind of assurance of admission the D3 school (admissions - not just the coach) can make.</p>

<p>In response to this question: “Does a D1 coach ever withdraw an offer because you are taking too long to decide?” - sure, this is not uncommon. Coaches are filling rosters every week and they don’t want to lose another potential recruit while waiting for an undecided athlete. For those athletes at the top of the food chain, this is certainly less of a risk, but for those in the mid-range of recruits, a coach may not choose to wait.</p>

<p>One of the hardest issues for me to get my head around when S was being recruited 2 years ago (also considering D1 and D3 schools) was that we might not be able to have all the cards on the table at one time to decide. In fact, our S opted to go with a sure offer from one school (a great offer for him) rather than jeopardize that offer by waiting on another (also would have been a great opportunity, but more of a long-shot). It would be much nicer if you could compare all offers at one time, but that didn’t happen for us (with a mid-level recruit).</p>

<p>Good luck with this dance!</p>

4

<p>The sport is Lacrosse.</p>

<p>Thank you so much for your response. And, yes, that is exactly the dilemma with the different time-lines and different admissions issues in D1 vs. D3 – you can’t compare all options at once.</p>