<p>The mysteries of fencing recruiting. We have a friend who just received a Likely Letter for Yale. This fencer’s academics are stellar, but they are not ranked in the top 30 nationally.</p>
<p>That would be surprising if not for the fact that nothing about Yale recruiting surprises me.</p>
<p>So, let me see if I understand, some fencers get admitted via regular admission pathways and then try-out for a walk-on spot on the team. Some top-ranked fencers are actually “recruited” by the coach and if they have the academics, get offered early admission. What is there in the middle? Can the coach “support” an application that has been deferred? What if you are not the coach’s first choice but he’d like to have you to fill out the roster?</p>
<p>can coaches affect admission even if you apply regular decision</p>
<p>yes</p>
Other excellent coaches, advocates for the sport and straight shooters = Vassar (Div3), Brandeis (Div3), Tufts (Div3), Northwestern (Div1) and Duke (Div1). They have pull for the fencers they want, especially in early decision. Places like Harvard, Princeton, Notre Dame are going to use their spots on internationally ranked fencers, but would welcome you to try out for the team if you can get in on your own.
@saskatchewan why is that about Harvard and Princeton? Are Internationals so much better than Americans?
@bsalum Many US fencers are internationally ranked. I didn’t mean to imply international fencers, but rather those who compete internationally. Check the roster and results of fencers on school websites and you will get a sense. Some are highly ranked US fencers, some hail from other countries, some have bios touting their credentials. It doesn’t mean you couldn’t fence at those schools, but the competition will be tougher and they have a recruiting system to gain the very best fencers that are also academically qualified. So they are less likely to use their recruiting pull on someone who isn’t at that level. The academic bar at Ohio State or Penn State isn’t as high as an Ivy, but their fencing teams are as strong and they too want to recruit the most competitive fencer they can. Sacred Heart might have a scholarship for a fencer who couldn’t walk on to one of those other teams. So what I’m really saying is do some homework - you can narrow down the list of schools that might be a fit for you for other reasons, and then investigate their fencing programs.
@saskatchewan gives good advice, but I’d like to clarify one thing. Yes, the HYPS coaches will want the strongest academically qualified fencers, but those fencers don’t necessarily need international rankings. If an academically strong US fencer never competed internationally due to financial or time constraints, but was nevertheless still highly ranked on the USFA point lists, the coaches would still be very interested.