Hello, I’m not totally sure if this post is in the right place, but here’s my question: am I allowed to go to an Ivy League school to play a division 1 sport, and then quit? I’m talking seriously with a few Ivy coaches and while my scores are not exactly perfect, I know I could survive academically. Would it be immoral to quit the sport once arriving if I am always studying or practicing? I still want to have a decent social life and not be super busy all the time. I am currently only a junior so I know I still have awhile, but theoretically could I quit once I got to one of these colleges?
Theoretically you could. But planning to do it would be unethical. And you know it, or you wouldn’t be asking.
Yes you can quit. Many athletes recruited to Ivy’s play only one season in college (or even less than a season). Some quit very soon after arrival due to an injury, others quit due to heavy academic workload, and others quit due to a loss of interest in the sport, or lack of playing time.
Would it be immoral? Not in my view.
Here’s an interesting article specific about Brown a few years ago: http://www.browndailyherald.com/2016/04/28/30-percent-of-athletes-quit-respective-teams/
My gut reaction though to your post was that it doesn’t feel particularly ethical since you are committing to a coach/team to play.
Can I ask why you don’t want to play a sport you are obviously great at? I was friends with a few hockey players when I was at Cornell and they definitely had a decent balance. One was an engineering student, got great grades, and definitely hung with friends. Maybe worth not overthinking/worrying until you give it a chance?
I say use whatever hooks you have to get into a school. You are not obligated to play after you matriculate. Ivies do not offer scholarships for sports, so it is not like you would lose your scholarship if you should stop playing. On the other hand, you may really enjoy being on a team.
I personally knew few kids who were recruited to play Div 1 sports and stopped playing due to workload or injury. It happens.
The unethical part is that basically you will be lying to the coach and the school throughout the process. Quitting a sport is not unethical in and of itself but every time you say to the coach and the school that you want to be a part of the team and leveraging that to gain acceptance, you are not behaving ethically.
And Ivy coaches are aware of this trick and scrutinize potential recruits accordingly.
Not to mention the fact that you’re denying some other kid a spot on the team. Not because the workload turned out to be too much or because of an injury; this is a premeditated decision.
“Legal” may be one thing. But you’re asking “moral.”
As @intparent said, if you didn’t know it was unethical, you wouldn’t have asked.
How would they do that?
thx for the responses,
I’m not “planning” to by any means, as I was just wondering if it was extremely looked down upon or something. I do enjoy the sport and have the ability to compete at the division 1 level, I’m just worried about burning out as it’s pretty common for my sport. Wanted to ask about the theoretical to make sure that there are no actual punitive actions that could be taken
@oldfort So as not to give an admission bump to someone who will let him and his team mates down by quitting.
The coach could hold it against your high school coach, should you care. It may impact other players who apply in the years after you.
You should plan on playing for at least a year. Many athletes drop out after that.
My daughter ended up quitting after freshman year. She had every intention of continuing her sport (she loved it; after all, that’s why she participated in it for 12 years) but she didn’t get on well with the coach and found that the time commitment was a lot. She also had some other issues (ADHD, anxiety) that made continuing difficult. But that is different than going in with the intention to quit.
The article linked by @momofsenior1 reflects the reality that about a third of recruited Ivy athletes will drop off their teams before senior year. There are no repercussions at the school if you stop playing.
Give it a shot freshman year and if you decide to quit, then don’t look back.
@TomSrOfBoston - I am asking how would they scrutinize potential recruits.
OP - I said this to a friend’s son, “Make sure you still like the school without the sport.”
He had 2 very good options, both of them were top 20 schools. He liked one school better than the other, but it didn’t allow him to play his sport. He picked one where he could continue his Div 1 sport, and he did quite it after a year because he didn’t like the time commitment.
@oldfort Talking to the high school coach, attempting to determine his commitment to the sport. They have seen it all before.
If you receive an athletic scholarship to play at the school, you may lose the scholarship if you decide to quit. However, if your acceptance was not based on playing a particular sport then quitting should not be an issue.
There are no athletic scholarships at Ivies.