Marching band or programming team

Both the programming team and the marching band meet every Saturday. This means that I have to choose one right (assuming I get on the programming team: I know not many freshman do but in the later years this would eventually be a problem)? Does anybody have any experience with the programming team and/or the marching band? If it came down to it I would quit marching band but I really don’t want to. Thank you for the help!

Tryouts for the programming team are in very early September, and yes, there are mandatory Saturday practices. Most recent years have admitted 1 or 2 freshmen to varsity, and quite a few to their JV teams. Even those that don’t make JV are welcome to come to the open part of practices, and many who do so all freshman year tend to increase their odds of making the team in later years. (I don’t know anything about the band.) IF you don’t make the team freshman year and go the band route, it’s probably unlikely that you would make the team in future years due to not attending the Saturday practices (and thus improving your skills). Good luck making the decision that’s best for you.

My son recently decided on attending UCF in the fall and is interested in the programming team. Would anyone happen to know about how long the practices typically are on Saturdays? Is it all day Saturday or a half day typically? I do know from a recent visit that the team members are expected to put in a lot of hours all week practicing on their own just like band or a sports team member but he forgot to ask about how long the Saturday sessions last. Thanks

Saturdays are typically an all day event for team members, roughly 9-5. Here is a Q&A that may answer other questions. There is a specific question that deals with the expected time commitment.

http://www.ucfprogrammingteam.org/index.php/ucfteam/faqs

Very helpful. Thanks