<p>I am decidedly not a fencing expert like so many on this thread, but in readng the comments, two Columbias came to mind:</p>
<p>REgarding high school teams not being as good as private club teams, my understanding is that Columbia High School in Maplewood, NJ, which is pretty much always the state champion, puts students on Ivy League and equivalent school teams pretty regularly.</p>
<p>And as far as importance of fencing to top schools, I know that Columbia University takes fencing very seriously, goes to the nationals regularly, and has many national/world championship level fencers on its team. I think that fencing, if you're good enough, would definitely be a hook in an application there.</p>
<p>Of course fencing is a hook if you're good enough. Any sport is a strong hook if you're good enough. The issue is becoming good enough.</p>
<p>As for high school, please understand that there are some high schools with teams that are located near very strong clubs. The club kids fence in the high school. Had the local high school had a team, I'm quite sure it would have been national champion even without a coach. I think that Columbia High School is one of these, but I'm not sure.</p>
<p>Coolphreak:</p>
<p>Yes, it's possible to earn a C in saber after only two years. I saw one kid earn a B in foil after only two years. And, yes, some of the weaker NCAA teams may be interested in someone with a C ranking. I mentioned Duke and Vassar as two of those in an earlier message on this thread.</p>
<p>I will still maintain, however, that becoming national/world level in fencing, and getting a scholarship at one of the strong programs, requires years of dedicated training with strong coaching.</p>
<p>So, are you going to NACs and beating the Olympians yet?</p>
<p>well i'm not beating them yet (of course not) but i'm able to do pretty decent against some of hte better cadets (maybe around 10 points...i've been able to get around 10 on some of hte top people, and my club has some of the top people in the nation) i know it's not beating them...but i personally think that its decent, for my level of experience atleast</p>
<p>but of course...for world cups, and being top in national rankings u do need years of practice...</p>
<p>I will echo fizik. Fencing is a wonderful sport and if you are just a cadet, there's time to get really good. Enjoy it! Unless you've got a substantial trust fund, it will be hard for you to afford to do it once you're out in the world :-).</p>
<p>My son is 13. He has been fencing sabre since he was 7 1/2 (this year he is doing more competitive fencing other than the RYCs), has played bagpipes since he was 8, including competing in Scotland both solo and with his pipe band this past summer, and is a Johns Hopkins SET participant (math SAT score as a 12 yo of 710, verbal 650). He is a boy scout, star scout level. He wants to study math and physics, pipe, and fence. He is a hgh school freshman this year, but he entered HS with 3 high school credits. He can easily finish school by the time he is 16.</p>
<p>So where should he go and what are his chances?</p>
<p>Two of your daughters signed my daughter's fencing glove at the NAC held in Pittsburgh last year (they forged Sada's signature, too). Ask them if they remember a little girl with long hair and a fencing glove.</p>
<p>From what I can tell, CMU has a fencing club, not a team. But this might meet his needs.</p>
<p>You might find other possibilities by googling on bagpipe college programs. Your son might look into colleges in the UK, too. But this might be a bit far to send a 16 year old for college.</p>
<p>It is difficult to assess chances when a lot of the information that a college will look at doesn't exist yet -- more recent test scores, subject matter testing, the high school transcript, etc. Your son will probably do well enough for CMU, though, if I were to guess. My son was admitted with a math of 800 and a verbal of 700, testing much later (he also had good grades, good SAT IIs, lots of AP coursework, etc. - and different extracurriculars). Your son will probably be able to score above that.</p>
<p>The bagpipe angle may actually be a hook for CMU.</p>
<p>Had to have been someone else. I only have one daughter! She also didn't go to any NACs last year and never went to one in Pittsburgh that I can recall (I am a bit fuzzy about everywhere we have gone, but I do know last season she only did college fencing and I've only given birth to one girl :) ).</p>
<p>Could this have been at a NAC held in a previous school year? My daughter often ran about with a younger teammate with the same hair color; maybe they seemed like sisters?</p>
<p>Actually, we live in the Pittsburgh area, so are pretty familiar with the piping (my son's teacher was the first grad from thepiping program and is in the band) and the fencing (it's a club which just lost its funding and can't hold any competitions--and my son can beat their sabre fencers, anyway, even though he is only 13). How about Notre Dame? Any idea of his chances in that direction?</p>
<p>I don't know about Notre Dame admissions. You might check out the stats for the last admitted class and ask on the Notre Dame board. Do they have piping?</p>
<p>Still your son is obviously very bright and so stands a chance everywhere. Maybe it is a little too early to worry about chances ... just look around and see who has the academic and extracurricular programs he is interested in at this point.</p>
<p>To the best of my knowledge, Notre Dame is one of only three schools in the US that offers scholarships to male fencers (along with Ohio State and Penn State). Naturally, it attracts some of the best fencers in the US. If your son is US Team caliber by the time he's ready to go to college, he has a good shot at fencing there. Otherwise, he may not get a chance to fence.</p>
<p>I know nothing about piping. You're on your own there.</p>