Hi! So I don’t want to go into too much detail on this thread, but I have heard rumors that the recruiting process is unreliable at Haverford. I know that at a D3 school, coaches have considerably less impact on admissions committees. As far as I can tell, I am qualified for Haverford by standardized testing and extracurriculars, but for my GPA is a little low. With that in mind, do you think I have a chance at admission? I really love the school, and would love to attend, but I don’t want to have my hopes too high.
Oops just noticed the typo in the title haha
Haverford puts less weight on athletics than many schools. One coach in particular seems to have a bad rep but I don’t think that is deserved by other coaches. It is hard for anyone to answer you question, especially with so little info provided. If you search, you’ll find several threads on Haverford and athletic recruiting.
Hi! I have seen several threads, but none for my sport (track and field) so far. Is there anything I could add to make it easier to predict? Thank you! @doschicos
80% probability for another sport at Haverford. Your request is specific. I got my answers by asking current players, coaches and assistant coaches. Has the coach reached out to you? Have you reached out to coach? Are you aware of the pre-read?
Hi! Yes, the coach has reached out to me, and told me that the pre-read was good and I have his full support (although he said that there are no guarantees).
The coach gave a good answer. Can you chat with current student athletes to verify % probability? For example, at other colleges we heard students say “90℅” and “coach gets everyone through”.
In addition, I make my high school kids hang out with current athletes to make sure they are the types they want to be friends with the rest of their life. I’m sure Haverford kids are great but we had a revelation elsewhere.
Make sure you essay is top notch and don’t take short cuts in your application. Finally, have a few back up LACs where you are likely to be admitted based on grades.
Best wishes!
The Haverford woman’s T&F coach is a straight shooter who has been there a long, long time. You can flat out ask him if he has had any recruits with your profile turned back by admissions. He will be honest with you.
(don’t be worried because he said “there are no guarantees.” Every D3 coach says that.)
As far as clout goes, all of the clout happens and the teams are filled in the Early Decision process. D3 coaches have very little pull in regular admissions, because they can’t assure admissions that you actually are going to come to the school if you get admitted. You might be playing them and waiting on an admit from a different school.
Good advice from @ThankYouforHelp. Less pull in regular round than ED which makes sense from the college’s perspective as they won’t have a lock on you.
I’ve only heard very positive things from both the men’s and women’s T&F coaches and teams.
Good luck!
Does Tom Donnelly also coach the girls or nah?
I am actually planning a visit to campus in March, and I am hoping to meet some team members and get some more information from the coach about my potential then! That is a good suggestion about asking around in terms of how many recruits actually get accepted. Is there anything you would suggest at this point to strengthen my application? I do have a number of backups, but I would be so happy if Haverford was an option for me!!
No, the women’s coach is Fran Rizzo.
Thank you! And yes, regardless of the result, the coach has been really supportive and I feel lucky to have had his advice in terms of my application.
Tom is just the guys’ coach. Fran Rizzo (male) coaches the women. Good camaraderie between both teams.
The problem with being recruited for regular decision versus ED has come up at a number of the schools I applied to. The coach has been straightforward with me, as you said, and I am hoping that my application as a whole will enable me to get in. When I visit campus, I am hoping to ask him more specifically how much of a shot he thinks I have!
Honestly, at this point with 6 weeks to go, what can the coach really tell you that he hasn’t already? At this stage of the game, I think the answer is to be patient and hope for the best.
What other schools did you apply to?
Some of the schools I applied to were University of Rochester, Vassar, Bowdoin, Hamilton, Tufts. (And a number of others, including safeties… I am hoping to at least have some options if some of the reaches don’t work out haha)
Nice group of schools. Best wishes to you in the coming months.
Hi! Just wanted to let everyone know that I did get into Haverford, as well as a number of other schools (Swarthmore, Colgate, Hamilton, U of R, Kenyon)!! Thank you so much for all the advice. 
Only 5 more decisions to go!
Congrats! So many great options for you with more to come hopefully!