<p>They don’t. The recruited athlete letters are formal offers.</p>
<p>Thanks. To further clarify, if a recruited athlete receives such an offer and accepts, must they pull their applications from other schools? Is this mutually binding?</p>
<p>I think what Cheers is talking about is an NLI … National Letter of Intent … which is signed during a specific signing period and is a binding offer of an athletic scholarship.</p>
<p>The Ivies, some of them and for some sports, are the ones with the likely letters which read something like “we are very impressed, this is an unusual letter for our top candidates, and you are likely to be admitted”. My son’s likely letter arrived at Thanksgiving. It’s not binding on anyone, although he had applied ED and so when the acceptance came in mid December, that was binding.</p>
<p>Visits scheduled at H, P, Y and so far have seen 2 of them, seeing the last one soon. Visits were great, but preconceptions were busted somewhat and now earlier preferences are gone and child is struggling comparing various advantages of each. And, one still to go. Anyone else looking at these schools? During visits, both coaches said they would call in a few days, but so far haven’t which of course leads to anxiety. Trying to balance anxiety against the fact that so far none of the coaches have really followed up when they said they were going to. Maybe in the end not all will come through so that would help the decision process.</p>
<p>markcc- My d sent an email to the coach immediately following her official visit last weekend (Ivy, not HYP) thanking her for the visit and telling her how much she enjoyed her stay. She received and email back from the coach, acknowledging that my d has another official visit, asking her about her plans and what she was thinking at this point. My d is being recruited for a small non-revenue sport. There were only three other girls on her recruit weekend, therefore easy for the coach to follow up quickly.</p>
<p>HYP has their own recruiting dance which is made more strange by HP eliminating ED. HYP coaches are waiting for very top recruits to commit and then everyone else shakes out. Those not slotted in HYP will go into PCDC pool. </p>
<p>It is an anxious process for both parents and coaches. Parents should not read too much into not receiving a phone call. Through the first child, we learned to relax and let the process take its course.</p>
<p>I can echo Markccs sentiments/concerns. My D (xc and track) had her first visit to an Ivy last weekend and will have at least two more. Going in, this was one of two at top of her list. She liked the team, enjoyed her experience and says she could see herself there, but wasnt totally blown away. Expectations for this place may have been too high. Makes me think we should broaden the search and stop stiff-arming other coaches. Finding the right fit academically, athletically and socially is a tall order and overcoming preconceptions is difficult, especially for Ivies, which have reputations that could be different from reality. Why cant one just deliver on all fronts? Maybe it will still happen. In the meantime, at least for my D, its an emotional roller-coaster. On top of that, in some cases its difficult to gauge the level of interest from the coach, whereas for others its quite clear youre a priority. It may just be personal style. Reckon my D will figure it out.</p>
<p>Between school work, racing schedule and visits, however, seeing more schools will be taxing. One additional thought about these visits: It baffles me why serious student-athletes go to a frat party to show recruits a good time. I know this is prevalent and a part of the college experience, but it can give the wrong impression, especially if thats not what youre into and not what youre likely to do when you attend college.</p>
<p>Help! For some reason, I can’t form a clear understanding of how the academic recruitment process works. I’ve read a lot of CC posts, but there seem to be a lot of differences from one kid to the next, one sport to the next, and one school to the next. Could some of you please provide a timeline of how this process happened for your kid? For example, was your child the one to contact a coach to express interest in a school, and if so, when did s/he do that? If a coach made the first contact, when did that happen? Were there informal visits/talks first, and when? If the coach/es contacted him/her first, when did that happen? When were the official visits offered, and what does an official visit imply? Do most recruited athletes apply ED or EA? If your S/D did, do you think it negatively affected financial aid–which is apparently a risk for non-athletes applying ED?</p>
<p>First, it is really an athletic/academic recruitment but I will try a time line.</p>
<p>1.) Child contacted coaches via email through junior year and established a connection (very important).
2.) As various SAT scores came in, D would send them off to coaches. Also, race scores and other related information.
3.) All testing was completed by end of junior year.
4.) Summer after junior year, we informally visited schools/coaches that expressed interest on our dime.
5.) In August, interested coaches offered officials for Sept/Oct.
6.) D has finished (well! almost finished) all applications to schools where she is doing officials.
7.) She is in the process of making officials right now.
8.) Coaches at some point in the next few weeks will contact her and offer to support her at admissions if she commits.
9.) Process ends when D is happy and we receive a letter.
10.) Parents are happy because process is over!</p>
<p>Hope that helps.</p>
<p>Ninos- if your daughter is a track/xc recruit for some Ivys, I hope she is looking at Williams. I am so impressed with their program. My son was an Ivy running recruit, but hasn’t been able to run yet due to some knee surgery, but I can identify with your anxiety over this process.</p>
<p>I have following the posts in this thread as our twins, S/D make their visits. The more we see, at least for my son (being recruited by handful of D1 and D2 schools), the more both kids are leaning to D3 schools. ( BTW they are tennis players- effective 08- NCAA scholarship positions for men at D1 in tennis drops to 2.5 scholarships. </p>
<p>After talking with D1 coaches, son is concerned that juggling academics and D1 sports will be DIFFICULT. They both have been contacted by D2 and D3 schools, and will be going back to 2 of them in October for “unofficial weekends”. As probably most everyone on this board knows- D3 schools do not sign LOI- cannot technically cut players- but do decide which athletes are strong enough to make traveling teams and keep grades up. After visiting Rhodes, both twins are leaning there- superb academics and the chance to really play. Daughter, is still looking at some Ivies and Trinity- the real dilemma for both of them is how much do they want tennis to be part of the college experience.</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback. It seems coaches can say all the right things, but then disappear so you don’t know what’s going on. Reminds me of prom. Each visit was part of a group of 3-4 recruits. We did send thank yous and will probably send an email to the top choice/s after the next visit. Hopfully there will be a top choice, each school offers pros and cons. We guess serious conversations could start at any moment or not happen for another 2-3 weeks. </p>
<p>The timeline is very similar to ours although it will vary by sport and school. We were contacted by 6 schools for visits, 2 late August, 1 early Sept, 2 early-mid Sept we are trying to put off and 1 just recently. One coach hinted they would be looking for commitments starting 10/1 while another coach said they wouldnt be having these discussions until late Oct. Maybe school 1 just loves us more, but tricky if you want school 2 but are afraid of losing school 1. I dont think likely letters are a given, getting one depends on where you are on their list, your academics and having your application done. It seems they might offer likely’s to just the top recruits and push others to ED (but still with support).</p>
<p>One other suggestion for the timeline is to make up a resume with 1) academic highlights such as curriculum and grades, SAT scores, etc. 2) accomplishments in your sport, 3) other items, sports, etc.</p>
<p>for the timeline and other suggestions.</p>
<p>Could those of you whose children are being recruited by Ivies please give me an idea of how much of a boost athletic ability can give to admissions at elite schools? I know that a lot of Ivy League athletes could have gotten in on their other merits without being sports stars. Yet anecdotally, I’ve heard that being a top recruitable athlete can “add” 100-200 SAT points (old scale) and a few GPA points to boot.</p>
<p>My sophomore D is on course to be a D1 recruit, provided God allows and she stays healthy. Academically, she’s bright–A’s and B’s in honors classes and AP’s at good suburban public; qualified in middle school for J. Hopkins G&T–but not brilliant. She’s studious, but not academically-driven or Type A-ambitious like many Ivy candidates. So while she may not be Ivy League or elite school material on the basis of intellect alone, I wonder if she may be qualified when athletic ability is factored in. The problem is, we have no idea what level of school would constitute a match for her. Without sports, as of now I’d peg her for a Lafayette or Bucknell type of kid. So should we look in that same range or can she shoot higher if she finds any elite schools which seem like they may suit her socially?</p>
<p>It sounds like she should have some idea of a few schools she’d be interested in by the beginning of junior year so she can start contacting coaches and they can follow her career. I don’t want her to waste her time visiting lots of top schools when she has no realistic chance of getting in, sports or not.</p>
<p>The juggling of academics and D1 training is hitting my recruited athlete pretty hard-and my kiddo is loving every minute of it to date! And the “love” that recruiting coach was showing last year? Ah, well, it’s not exactly called “love” THIS year!! But again, it’s all good, my kiddo is a happy (albeit tired, sore and extremely busy) camper and fully engaged so far (knock on wood). Unsure at one point during the search process whether to pursue a sport in college; knew D1 was a stretch for the sport of choice (multi sport athlete) at most schools. Did it help getting in to what ultimately became the number 1 (not an Ivy) school on the list? Sure took the guess work out of it, though a solid candidate even without the sport. But with the numbers today - there just aren’t many guarantees. </p>
<p>Every case is so individual with funny little nuances, there is no set path (with the Ivies, I’d say some sports carry more weight than others, and it can vary year to year, coach to coach, admissions dean to admissions dean). Be a smart “consumer” and keep all options open. There are a lot of great schools out there where an athlete can get a first class education AND compete in sports. A sophomore in high school is probably still figuring out a few things (or a lot of things if it’s like my soph). A few college visits will help her get a feel for what kind of school she sees herself attending, so don’t look at that as wasted time; there is always something to be learned, even if it’s that this school is just not right. You want to find that right “fit”.</p>
<p>Unless your D is an absolute star, don’t expect the coaches to make the effort to follow her career. You will have to provide them with all that information. Depending on the sport, you may need lots of film. Start compiling it now. Again, depending on the sport, will she be competing in “viewing” tournaments, competitions or races? Sorry if I’m stating the obvious but watched a late deciding athlete’s parents frantically taping many a game fall of senior year in an attempt to make something happen.</p>
<p>Patriot League-there’s a whole 'nother discussion.</p>
<p>There are other timelines:</p>
<ol>
<li> Student (or her coach?) approached at International meet in August.</li>
<li> In late September, family receives 2 written formal acceptances with financial details and an expense paid invitation to visit.</li>
<li> Student commits to visit and is told to sit the Oct SAT.</li>
<li> Student is asked to commit by Nov 15th–and did so.</li>
</ol>
<p>Even if the student is not a ‘recruited’ athlete, all athletes should send in video tape.</p>
<p>except runners :)</p>
<p>Cheers,
If you wouldn’t mind answering, how did the athlete get two formal acceptances so early? Were these public universities with rolling admissions? Did s/he send in full applications in August or early Sept. or were the acceptances based on an informal gathering of info. combined with athletic talent?</p>
<p>Many athletic websites have prospective student athlete questionaires on their sites. This is a good way to get information about the program and get her on their radar. The more highly regarded an athlete, the more highly her chances. I love Title IX!
Good luck!
Not intended to draw the ire of those adversely affected by it.</p>
<p>There are recruited athletes and then there are recruited athletes. The top recruited athletes get formal offers in October. They must make a committment by mid-November. I know three of these athletes (all girls). One of the offers was from a top UC school. A fourth athlete was invited to an Ivy but dropped out after her visit. </p>
<p>Top athletes do not apply under the same rules. They are heavily recruited and accepted before ED apps are due! (Like many, I had no idea this was the case until S’s former gf was accepted to H… in October!)</p>
<p>So, do they submit the same application as non-recruited athletes, only earlier, or is there some other more stream-lined process?</p>