Hi Parents-my hs junior son has a 3.5w/2.9 uw gpa and ACT 28 at a competitive VA high school. He wants to pursue sport mgt/sport mktg --he has strong ECs and has leadership positions in various school organizations. We are open to public and private colleges. If any parents out there have suggestions as to possible college matches I would greatly appreciate your help!! Thank in advance!
A little bit of a reach based on the grades but U Dayton would be a good match.
Springfield College?
Old Dominion or VCU? Maybe Temple, Rider, or even American as a semi-reach.
Is there a distance you would like to stay within? Are finances an issue?
I think ODU would be a great option for sports management especially since they have (or at least had, last time I checked) an internship requirement during the final year of the college program which is pretty important for landing a job in this field. It’s in-state too which should save you some money.
Eastern Connecticut State University - public liberal arts small college. Those stats would likely qualify him for merit aid.
http://www1.easternct.edu/physicaleducation/sport-and-leisure-management-major/
Wow, everyone, thanks so much for all the information! My son is actually doing an internship in VCU’s athletic dept. they don’t have the undergrad sport mgt major anymore. Temple looks interesting–I hope they take a more holistic approach with admissions rather then just looking at gpa/scores!
Ithaca college
Mizzou as safety. He’s guaranteed (!) admission with the 28 and they have sports management program
Thanks for these 2 college suggestions. I will add them to the list!
Temple is now test optional, so maybe worth a second look.
What advice has his own guidance counselor given him? I’d encourage him to start with that. It is likely that his high school tracks college admissions very closely, so his counselor should be able to tell him which places have admitted students with his grades and test scores in recent years.
http://fairtest.org/university/optional
Great list of test-optional schools.
The problem with going test-optional for OP’s son is his GPA. Test-optional is a good option if you have a high GPA but low test scores. Unfortunately, that’s not the case here. I would work with the child to raise the ACT score. You have quite a bit of time before the May/June ACT exams.
Syracuse. They have a sports management program and is a great place to be for kids who love big-time sports, as I’m sure your son does. Holistic admissions; his scores are within range and they take into account level of interest so an interview is a big help as is ED, if finances are not an issue (it is not cheap.)
Thank you for the great advice and suggestions. My husband went to syracuse and bleeds orange. It’s on our list for our son–but I think syracuse’s sport mgt might be too competitive wrt admissions into the program.
UMass Amherst has a good sports management program.
@LBowie - But UMass Amherst’s average stats will likely be 3.8+ WGPA and a 28 ACT this year, and their sports management program’s average stats are likely higher than that. Additionally, I guess he could check out Temple University which also has a great Sports management program. (But the school is overall easier to get into than UMass) Lastly, Merrimack college could be a safety and they have a program as well.
List of colleges with Sports management programs by state:
https://www.nassm.com/InfoAbout/SportMgmtPrograms/United_States
More great suggestions! Thanks so much.