Hi All,
My daughter just committed to attend Hamilton. She is very excited about it and it was her number one choice. So I don’t necessarily need convincing of that choice but am more looking for advice on what to look out for and what helps a student to succeed there. Of course any and all input is appreciated! Thanks!
Athlete?
Yes, she’s an athlete.
@HamSBDad, Not to be a wet blanket, but I assume she’s had a positive pre-read? Although uncommon, it’s not unheard of for a sports recruit to a NESCAC school to be rejected or deferred despite a coach’s support because all admissions are technically based on academics.
ETA: typo correction.
I hope your choice also works out for you Mario. Next year I will review once she has spent some time on campus. We have visited the campus a couple of times. I would say it is certainly not for everyone but if that is the type of school you are interested in, the campus is beautiful and the people seem quite friendly. And it helps if you like snow!
Sue, the applicant would have to be very far off the academic mark for that to happen. No coach is going to go that far out on the limb without academic info, nor are they going to offer a commitment that they can’t back up as they will have a hard time recruiting after that reputation gets out there. I’m well aware of the process.
@hamsbdad sounds like you are on top of things, but @sue22 is probably referencing the dozens of CC threads where things haven’t worked out for recruited athletes, including those at Nescac schools. Another example, with the huge release of data from the Harvard lawsuit we now know that only 86% of recruited athletes (those who ‘committed to the process’, so had positive pre-reads) were in fact admitted.
@Mwfan1921 My daughter’s college advisor puts it at about a 10% rejection of committed athletes. Of that 10% how many are kids that made significant mistakes after committing? What percent of kids who have good academic credentials and are committed are then rejected? I would imagine it is a very low number. There are all kinds of reasons for a commitment to go wrong.
Being finicky here, but you don’t commit to a NESCAC school. Students do not receive letters of intent nor can coaches guarantee admission. That said, I would agree with @HamSBDad that if his daughter has received a positive pre-read and the coach has offered full support the chances of her being rejected in the absence of a major slip are slim.
D3 does not do letters of intent, however they do give out what is referred to as a verbal commitment. Hence the term commitment. Since it is a verbal, it can be backed out of by either party. When the coach gives a verbal commitment, they request a response, either in a time period or on the spot. So yet it is called committing to the D3 college, even NESCACs. So yes, you do commit to a NESCAC verbally.
My son is a sophomore there, and we all really like it. Great communication with the school, lots of opportunities with speakers concerts and clubs (despite the rural location), small classes, mostly very good teaching (one exception so far) and various types of students to find “your people.” Really no complaints, except the sophomore housing lottery. Place seems thoughtfully run from our vantage point. I hope your student will be happy at Hamilton!
@MomInSB Thanks so much for the input. That is mostly in line with all of what we have heard so far. How do they do at supporting and acclimating freshmen?
@HamSBDad I believe that @chembiodad has twin daughters at Hamilton in their second year of study. One is an athlete (I think) but I can’t remember if she is club or recruited. Look for his posts about Hamilton.
Primary factors that will influence your daughter’s early experiences will pertain to course and residence hall selection. In both cases, she will be offered great choices. The decision as to whether to elect REAL relates to these areas and, for this reason, could be a very important consideration as well.
With respect to academics specifically, interesting and foundational first-year courses can be found within fields such as classical studies, religious studies, government (political theory), literature, history, sociology, astronomy and geosciences.
My D is a current sophomore and she loves it there. She finds it a nice balance of supportive and challenging and she’s found her professors universally approachable.
It’s a great school and a wonderful community. Congratulations!
@merc81 Thanks for the heads up on the REAL program. That looks very interesting and will certainly be something to consider.
I’m a freshman athlete at hamilton congrats to your daughter!! I love it here already and feel so supported. especially as an athlete you have a full support system of teammates, coaches, training staff, other athletes. there are also so many resources like the writing center, QSR center, tutors. classes are hard but professors are always available to help if you reach out. freshmen start the year going on a camping trip so you get a support system out of that too. overall she should have no problem 
good luck
@vballjd11 Thanks so much! I am glad to hear you love it and feel supported. What do you think your biggest transition issues have been? Are professors supportive of athletes?
Honestly the biggest transition for me were the academics, even though I went to a rigorous high school. but like I said there are so many helpful resources and I’m doing great now. Other than that the transition was very smooth. Professors are VERY supportive and understanding, at least in my experience and what ive heard from older students. A lot of our professors came to our games too.