Managing the process

Athletic Recruits
1

<p>My daughter has taken two of three planned official visits for her sport at D3 liberal arts colleges. All three coaches have seen her play at summer camps and have told her she is one of their top recruits who they will support through admissions, and have responded that they will support her even if she applies regular decision (which would be for comparative financial aid reasons). She likes and can see herself at all three schools, so so far, so good it seems.</p>

<p>My concern is how to help her read the coaches and probe with additional questions to make sure she has full (or at least the best possible) transparency into the overall process, admissions specifics and her as a recruiting priority.</p>

<p>How typical are pre-reads and when do they take place? Are they typical only where an athlete is ready to commit to an ED application?</p>

<p>How to best understand the NESCAC slot/tip distinctions and their interplay with early vs. regular decision? The NESCAC coach was not clear on this when descibing s/he would support my daughter even in RD (she visited alone), though expressing the support would be more valuable in ED.</p>

<p>My daughter is starting to favor the NESCAC and one of the other schools and I don't want her to miss an opportunity or misunderstand where she stands based on an inability to identify the right followup questions.</p>

<p>Thanks in advance.</p>

2

<p>Illinoisdad…
Going through the same process also. Have gotten sage advice from many of the veteran posters. See the Discussion Headline post below…but head straight to the last few pages of discussion. Good advice…</p>

<p>Ivy/Nescac Athletic Recruiting…recent changes?</p>

3

<p>I think your daughter must clarify her position with regard to support of admission at the NESCAC school. In my experience, it is almost unheard of for a NESCAC coach to “support” an admission unless the student applies ED. She needs to ask this coach directly, will you use a tip with me through the admissions process? If the coach cannot commit to this then her admission is not truly being supported and she may not get in
I have seen it happen too many times
BTW my son was tipped at his NESCAC school, but when he asked the coach directly, “will you tip my admission”, the coach said yes, so then he applied ED</p>

4

<p>There are many threads and posts about this-see post 30 on the NESCAC thread.</p>

<p>You have to apply ED to get the full support/athlete advantage.</p>

5

<p>D. went through recruiting process last year. We also chose to go RD route as her academics were stronger than athletics (NMF) and she was a candidate for serious merit aid. She focused on selective liberal arts colleges, mostly DIII, but a few patriot league schools as well. Almost across the board, the coaches wanted her and offered their support. We specifically asked if that support diminished if she applied RD and were told no. Interestingly, two of the most competitive schools she visited, both NESCACS, were both lukewarm on her until AFTER the ED deadline had passed (when they saw faster prospects commit elsewhere I suspect). One of those coaches ultimately told her he would not support her application and she did not apply. The other coach did, and she is happily an athlete at that school. She was accepted everywhere she applied and I have no doubt that coach’s “pull” with admissions–at whatever level–played a role.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the responses.</p>

<p>We will look to follow with the coach via conference call on where and when the support is offered with the specific “tip” terminology. This is a first year coach so s/he may be getting up to speed as well. I just don’t know if our D can get comfortable with making a choice by the ED deadline, but it is best for her to understand the choices and deadline implications.</p>

<p>Interestingly, she and her coach started getting emails/calls from another NESCAC school that had asked for her transcripts and scores in August but that has only seen her via Youtube clips. We hadn’t heard back from him/her since then, so I can only assume s/he is moving down her list.</p>

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<p>We took the coaches advice and went regular admissions for two highly selective D1’s and while boith coaches seemed to support the applications, they are now somewhat evasive about the process. My D does want to go to either of these schools and compete in her sport, but ol’ state U is making a serious play with $$$$$ that would financially make it easy to finance grad school for one/private school for another. So, should I just press these other two schools and get a decision so we can get on with it?</p>

8

<p>If a coach offers your daughter a slot or tip, it means she is one his/her most valuable recruits …a likely immediate impact player…someone s/he ‘must have’ for the benefit of the team. </p>

<p>Slots are generally offered to highly rated athletic/on-the-cusp academic candidates OR to equally highly rated academic and athletic candidates, ONLY after a prep- read is completed with Admissions… Make no doubt about it, however, the emphasis is on athleticism, first. Those top athletic candidates are offered slots with the understanding that their app should be submitted EDI, so the coach can button down his or her roster of FY recruits. </p>

<p>Other quality recruits who will round out the recruiting class may be encouraged to apply ED II, or regular decision - depending on how likely the recruit’s chances for admission might be, based on his or her own merits. Once you are confident your daughter has put forth her best effort with the SAT/ACT, she really should ask a NESCAC coach dirctly, whether or not s/he is willing and able to use a slot on her. If the coach hesitates, have her ask straight up, if the coach needs to see development or improvement in any particular area, to earn that designation. If the hesitation or non-committal answers persists… I’d encourage my child to think about exploring other options - especially if you are unsure whether her merits alone, would result in a likely acceptance.</p>

<p>As far as FA goes… if you haven’t done so already, take each school’s FA calculator for a spin. Most have them linked through the school’s Admissions page. Use the most current and accurate data you have available, and you will yield pretty credible results for the need-based institutional aid they can offer. If the need-based calculator suggests a bottom line number your family can support, you should feel comfortable having your child apply EDI. The FA award usually arrives fairly close to the ED admissions decision, so there is time to rehash with the FA department and withdraw her admittance decision is necessary, should there be any unforeseen surprises that would make the COA prohibitive. That should also allow time for her to apply ED II to other schools on her list.</p>

<p>Depending on your family’s demonstrated financial need, it may well turn out that she is eligible for more merit/leadership aid at other highly respected DIII schools. You really need to understand your EFC before your child commits to any school/program. It’s also important to understand each school’s policy for “fully meeting need,” as well as their likelihood for filling at least some of that need with loans.</p>

<p>Each school publishes admissions statistics, that should state what percentage of FY undergrad ED applicants is accepted - to give you a better idea of her chances. I believe most NESCAC schools accept an average 70% -75% of ED applicants. Just google the name of the school, followed by something along these lines: " _____ Fall Admissions Statistics, Traditional First-Time Full-Time Undergraduate Students"</p>

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<p>^This^ was intended to address the OP’s question specifically regarding NESCAC slots/stips… and the need for every family to understand its EFC, with regard to FA.</p>