Since I’ve been looking into D3 recruitment a bit lately, I want to learn more about how life is as a student athlete (especially at academically selective schools). If anyone has personal or anecdotal experiences as a D3 runner that they could share that would be much appreciated! I’m just wondering how much time people have outside of running and studying; especially compared to normal students at that school. Is it really constricting, or are people usually able to find some time to have fun and explore the locations around their college? The Claremont Colleges are some of my top choices, so if anyone has specific information on that, I’d love to hear. Thanks everyone!
It may depend upon the school and whether you are running cross country or track or both (in which case your season runs basically through the whole school year). My son runs D3 track at a school where a high percentage of the student body is on one varsity team or another, and it is my sense that having a sport does not cut into his time to do other things but does add some useful structure. I recommend you speak with the coaches at the schools you are interested in and also ask to speak with team members to get a sense of the demands involved. My son found it helpful to ask specifically about the practice regimen and the demands on time. I am not sure which of the Claremont schools you are interested in, but we spoke with the coach for Pomona/Pitzer and he could not have been more helpful and forthcoming.
There will be trade-offs, but for my kid, he always knew they were worth it. He spends probably 25-30 hours a week in season on his sport, including film, lifting, team meetings, travel etc. While classes don’t actually conflict with his official practice time, there are plenty of other campus events which do conflict – academic talks, career services events with visiting employers, panels discussions. He has had a job all 4 years and is active in several campus groups, but he is constantly juggling and often letting people know he has practice and will have to miss a meeting here and there. For him, the pay-off in terms of the bond with his teammates, the growth as a person and an athlete, and the discipline and time management, is worth it.
@tkoparent thank you so much! yes actually I am very interested in Pomona Pitzer could you possibly share what the coach said ?
@goldentrees100 The Pomona/ Pitzer head coach is very nice. He always responded to my daughter’s inquiries quickly and thoughtfully. D ended up accepting another offer before the scheduled Pomona visit. When she emailed to cancel he was gracious and congratulatory. I encourage you to look at the website to learn more about the academic offerings and student life. Then check out the top performances at TFRRS to see where you stand. Next, create a one page pdf with your T&F accomplishments, brief academic profile, photo and contact information. Attach this to your email. The coach will respond with all the answers you’re looking for! Good luck!
@goldentrees100, the Pomona/Pitzer coach spent well more than an hour with us, showing us all the facilities and answering our questions. My son was not a recruited athlete, so I think the coach would have done this for any potential applicant with some credible record in track. As I recall, the schedule he described was pretty much what we heard from other schools and also consistent with my son’s current experience at another D3 school - practice and conditioning 5 days a week from mid-late afternoon until early evening. Under NCAA rules, the coach can’t participate until late Autumn, but the captains run the practices until then. Once the season starts, most Saturdays are devoted to meets. I also recall that the conference Pomona competes in is geographically compact, so maybe not as many overnight trips as at some other schools? Also, I don’t think Pomona/Pitzer participate in the indoor season, or at least not in many meets. In that case the season begins a little later. It’s a big commitment, but it doesn’t seem to be too much for someone with self-discipline and decent time management skills. Most of the D3 schools we spoke with put a lot of emphasis on academic success and work to keep the balance tilted in that direction. Good luck!
Being a D3 athlete T&F and/or cross country just means that you are living a healthy lifestyle.
Being a member of the XC and track teams was a huge plus for my D3 runner. The womens and the mens teams had a healthy and friendly rivalry, and there was a strong spirit of intense but good-natured competition among the competing schools.
As others have pointed out, a lot of it depends on the coach. And keep in mind that the athletes take their sport very seriously, and expect their teammates to do so, too.
All in all a big plus in the overall college experience, which I should note was limited to east coast D3 schools. Many fine schools run D3 XC/track.
S runs XC and track at a high academics DIII. All the distance runners run both XC and track; running XC only just isn’t an option. The team runs every day, before class. They typically get up at 6am and the run begins at 6:30. I should mention he goes to a southern school so they run early to beat the heat. He makes his 8:30am class when he has one. Twice a week they lift/cross train. That is done in the afternoon. If you have a class when the team meets to cross train you can arrange an alternate time with the trainer/coach. On Saturdays they run on their own (not a team run so can sleep in if you want). Sunday is a team run, generally off site at a local park, the team piles into a bus. That run is also early, typically 6 or 7 am. In other words, if you’re on the XC team you better be ok getting up early!
Because practices are in early mornings, they don’t interfere with many other activities. However, the athletes typically have lights out between 10 and 11 which is early for most college students. No late night studying!
He is not too involved in much else besides running but that is mostly his choice. There are a few clubs he goes to on occasion, but Friday night and Saturday activities can be difficult when there are meets. He does have a part time job this semester.
His social life really does revolve around the team. Teammates live together, eat together, etc. That is their choice. When you have to get up at 6am it’s much easier when your roommate/suite mate is getting up too.
My D3 XCTF and engineering student is in the northeast and has her practices starting at 4pm. The problem that she encounters is that she is just getting started on her school work when everyone else is ready to socialize.
But to answer your question, expect to spend 20 hours per week in scheduled practices plus meetings and some of your own training on the off days. So you have that much less time than everyone else…plus you will need more sleep. Weeks with travel are another story. You will get to go out and do things socially but they may be with teammates or team events. You will also probably host recruits in the dorms on their OVs…typically 2 or 3 in the fall. Good time management skills are critical.
I’d be surprised if not competing in indoor was much of a time benefit…no travel but I have to believe the training will continue all three seasons for a distance athlete. I know it does for the track athletes at my daughter’s school.
A 10 pm bedtime would have been a little late for my D! She was up around 5:30 3-4 days a week for lifting, then usually had classes until about 2, sometimes took a nap, practice, and then in the fall study tables from 7-9 most nights. During the season (spring), more practices 4-7ish pm (meetings, film, other stuff) dinner and then studying (she no longer had to go to study tables because she ‘made grades’ first semester).
There are also other things like team building where her coach made them compete in other sports like swim races and basketball. D complained but I think she liked it. The also did quite a bit of community service as a team, usually on Saturdays, and again lots of complaining but she liked it. Lots of time with teammates.
She had plenty of time for other things. She was in a sorority, she had a boyfriend, went to concerts, babysat for the coaches, went to the beach. She also did a lot more conditioning than others on the team - running, weight room, stick work. Working out is just part of her day and she would have done it if she weren’t on a team.
The athletics gave her a lot of structure.
My son did an overnight this year at Pomona and also was recruited by Claremont. He said the athletes and coaches at both programs were great. And values academics first. Only two athletes at Pomona get full support and the rest it’s less certain though all had to pass pre read. He did choose to go elsewhere but he would have been really happy at either program. Pomona’s track team (mens) is very highly ranked.