<p>This was in the Des Moines Register today, and I found a lot of it to be true. Academic achievements are more easily overlooked than athletic ones, at least from what I can see in this area.</p>
<p>Interesting to read the viewpoints. </p>
<p>This issue was always one that erked my (non-athletic) kids: it <em>seemed</em> easier to get into a top college as an athlete than on strong academics. Well, it’s true that athletes have to “start” early with their sports, just like top students have to start early. The difference is that there are more top students, than top athletes. It’s also a big business: top football/basketball stars bring in a whole lot more $$$ than a top scholar.</p>
<p>I can understand why the colleges recruit the top athletes while the top students have to recruit the colleges. It is a numbers game.</p>
<p>What has been very disappointing for me is the way the local school district gives so much more attention to the athletic accomplishments than they do for academics. Most of the top students here get little to no recognition while the athletes are glorified. I have spoken with the administration on several occasions about this, but it’s a losing battle.</p>
<p>After our current hs principal took over, we noticed a change. He started announcing students with special non-athletic achievements at the quarterly pep rally. I think that’s a super idea.</p>
<p>To some extent non-athletic achievements (arts/leadership, etc.) seem to get some acknowledgment in our HS, it’s academics that get the short shrift. It seems as if it is somehow politically incorrect to announce the honor roll or any other academic accomplishment.</p>
<p>Well, our experience was that colleges might not bang on the doors of the academic superstars, but they DO send direct mail by the ton and emails by the thousands. By the end of junior year, we had email and letters from many of the very elites (H&Y) earnestly encouraging applications, as well as summer interviews. (I think this must only happen for a very unusually accomplished student, though). Not to mention, loads of scholarship offers from lower ranked schools too. Even though TV cameras weren’t rolling for my kid’s decision, we experienced lots of recruiting and over $800K in total scholarships offered by the colleges applied to. In my mind, far preferable to a short-lived college athletic career.</p>
<p>And, yes, the HS was indifferent…</p>
<p>Well. we’ve lived the academic vs athletic life at our house, and I find it VERY annoying.
I have 2 sons, both fine students 1 year apart in HS. Both have taken the same courses, with a few variations. Son A is a genius, and a gifted writer. He turned our school paper around, won all kinds of awards from NY State including best editorial, best editorial page, and best school paper when he was editor-in-chief.He got a perfect on his verbal SAT, all others including SAT2s above 760, 4.0 in IB, ran track and X-C varsity, and was student gvt president… His essays were INCREDIBLE.
He was wait-listed at Harvard, Midd, Dartmouth, Amherst, and Tufts, and rejected by Princeton and Williams. The Princeton and Harvard interviewers told him he’d likely have his choice of top schools. The Harvard interviewer sent me a note congratulating me on the great child I’d raised…
Son 2 has the same GPA as his brother, but works twice as hard. He blew his SATs, so we switched to the ACT, where he got a respectible 31 on his second try. He has been recruited for his athletic ability by all the D3 schools that rejected his brother, and is applying ED to Midd.
So basically, colleges feel they need athletes more than geniuses…
I do tell myself that if son A had spent the extra time on his academics that son B spent on his sport, he would have had a 100 average in HS, but I still find it very ironic.</p>
<p>It’s an interesting article about an age old argument, I did chuckle at the comment about the coach, the warmup clothes and filling 14,000 seats at $15 bucks a pop.</p>
<p>Public U’s in general do a poor job of academic recruiting. Most don’t have the staff or $$$$$. Teams have their own budgets than can run a $1,000,000 to get 25 players.</p>
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<p>OldBatesie, there is a certain ironic truth to your comment. I’m guessing that S3 will have a far easier road to travel for college search than S1 and S2 because of his athletic prowess. His GPA is also a tad higher because he has to be more efficient/effective with his studies to fit in the athletic requirements. I often comment to the older sons that if they used the time their younger brother was at practices, lifting weights, at games etc. to study they would be even stronger students in general. I was a pretty anti-athletics, intellectual snob until #3 came along and now I see it and live it and “get it.” Another irony occured when S1 joined a club sport at his college and his grades shot up, I think because he has to have more focus and manage his time better and the fresh air every day makes his brain function better LOL. Sporting events are as old as time and they are spectator sports so “everyone” feels part of it. Intellectual prowess also “has” it’s group of followers, but there are basic differences. I’ve learned to appreciate both finally, I’ll never be a “sports mom” but I have a much deeper appreciatation for the high caliber student athlete.</p>
<p>The Greeks invented the tutorial. Of course, they also invented the Olympics. :)</p>
<p>^^I almost used that (the Greeks) as an example…</p>
<p>There is certainly more value attached to a top athletes than top academic stars but there is still some wooing for the top academic kids either as part of the application process or after acceptances.
Take for example Columbia, DD opened the online application way back in September but didn’t apply after receiving the EA acceptance from MIT/CalTech. But Columbia kept her application open even in late February and she received personalized letter from EECS Department head to consider completing her application to Columbia.
Princeton offered interest free 4 years expenses with a personalized letter from department head. Cornell sent her a likely in early February with many more letters afterwards. Rice offered $20,000 with a research grant of $4000 and a mentor, Full tuition at USC, even UCB/UCLA gave Regents/Alumni scholarships.
Most colleges after acceptances made multiple calls to engage DD in getting motivated to accept the offers.
Many universities after the Jan 1 deadlines sent letters stating extensions till Jan 31st, Feb 28th etc. Just fill the short application meant specially for you without essays or recommendations.
Some OOS public universities sent letters stating guaranteed acceptances with a $100,000 scholarship.</p>
<p>So I’m sure a lots of other children must have received letters, phone calls to consider one or other college.</p>
<p>Interesting article. I have put some thought into this subject and it seems to me that the schools that offer athletic scholarships, with the exception of some of the top 25 schools (like Georgetown), also offer academic merit scholarships. My daughter also received letters from most of the Ivy League schools, if not all of them, but we knew she would not get any merit money, nor would she get any of the nice 10 percent of income tuition programs offered by Harvard and Yale. I am not sure what ParentOfIvy above is talking about with money from Princeton; it sounds like interest-free loans? </p>
<p>DD also received many, many phone calls. And she was received beautifully at any college she visited and met with professors. </p>
<p>There are fewer NM Scholars with dollars (my term) than recruited college athletes. And Iowa State, which was mentioned in the article, offered DD a very nice scholarship and the letters she received from the departments there were very flattering. DD had several full tuition offers to choose from last year and they were all merit. </p>
<p>Oh, the Air Force Academy representative showed up at our door one morning without calling first. He just wanted to drop off the viewbook and answer any questions she might have. She had completed the initial application.</p>
<p>^^^:Yes Princeton OFFER was an interest free loan without any income restriction which will amount to a saving of around $15000 over 4 years. We would have loved such an offer from MIT.</p>
<p>Ah, yes, MIT, another without merit money…</p>
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<p>Did USC bump up the dollar amount after you posted here?</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1062811104-post413.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1062811104-post413.html</a></p>
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<p>Fallgirl wrote:</p>
<p>“What has been very disappointing for me is the way the local school district gives so much more attention to the athletic accomplishments than they do for academics. Most of the top students here get little to no recognition while the athletes are glorified. I have spoken with the administration on several occasions about this, but it’s a losing battle.”</p>
<p>Poetic justice this article came from the Midwest. Lived all over the US and by far the Midwest is the worst for this athletes first mentality. I truly believe that if 100 people in the Midwest ‘burgh I live in were asked how do you get a scholarship, 85+ would say “Athletics.” DS (a two sport varsity athlete, mind you) received an academic scholarship from a top 50 U, plus full-ride ROTC scholys from USAF and Navy, but that didn’t mean much until the end of the school year. The moron school superintendent always pushed his athletes, but when your sports program is predicated on who somebody’s parents are…well, the chosen “star” athletes pretty much bombed out in the D1 recruiting sweepstakes. Then it was ask everybody how much $$$ their children received (in most cases, without much help at all from the HS) in academic scholy’s and put on a presentation at the end of the year. The great irony was the academic awards were scheduled at the same time as my DS’ and the school’s val had a spring sport playoff match. They couldn’t get the match re-scheduled?!? Val ended going to match, DS was persuaded to go to academic awards where he was at least recognized for his academic achievements, not just athletic as years prior.</p>
<p>P.S. Team lost the match and Val missed out. Sports awards every quarter, but one match couldn’t be re-scheduled for academic awards? Priorities, especially in Midwest, are really out of whack</p>
<p>“Academic achievements are more easily overlooked than athletic ones”</p>
<p>truly an old discussion.</p>
<p>but aren’t athletes sought after because the discipline and leadership qualities required to be a young successful athlete are valuable? And history proves that leaders in industry, science, and government are more often athletes, so that’s why top schools pursue them.</p>
<p>Also, many athletes are also excellent students. I can think of one women’s sport were the girls are 4.0 with mega AP classes and 2200+ SAT’s while “working” 40 hours a week at their sport and achieving national and international success. Many athletes are rather amazing!</p>
<p>What might be a more interesting discussion: are some of these scholar athletes burning out?</p>
<p>disclaimer: I have a D who is a recruited (and now signed) athlete</p>
<p>Parent of Ivy Hope - Your daughter might have been confused - it was probably a grant - definitely not a loan. Princeton has been “no-loan” since 2001 for all [undergraduate] students. No student who is admitted, regardless of their family income, is given a financial aid package with a loan. Just FYI.</p>
<p>See: [Princeton</a> University | Costs & Financial Aid](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/admission/financialaid/]Princeton”>http://www.princeton.edu/admission/financialaid/)</p>
<p>Original 2001 Press Release: [Princeton</a> - News - Grants to replace loans for all students on financial aid](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/pr/news/01/q1/0127-aid.htm]Princeton”>Princeton - News - Grants to replace loans for all students on financial aid)</p>