priority list

My D just received an email from a top D3 school coach saying that if she is planning on apply ED to their school then they will put her in their priority list. How much effects does this list have?

She (not you) needs to call the coach and ask him/her. Probably you need a verbal answer, because in writing they will be non committal. Depending on the school and sport it may mean not much, and it may be as good as a likely letter. The coach will almost always give an honest answer to that question, and expects your daughter to ask.

I would ask how many prospects the coach has had get in and not get in that were on the list with similar stats. You do need to get specific. Also search for info on the school on this board. NESCAC probably good as gold, MIT a slight benefit, others somewhere in between.

Thanks Dadof4kids reply!
My D is a swimmer and coach is Uchicago head coach, but this email is a group email so not just for her only. This July coach called my D saying that my D is not fast enough to be invited on the official visit but still encourage her to apply Ed and she is still on their priority recruit list.
My D already has other 3 school OV invites and she likes WashU and Swarthmore very much. The reason i asked is because she can only apply one Ed and obviously other 2 school coach load more interests on her.
Here is My D’s stat
gpa 3.93/4
sat 1540
act 33
many service hrs and other EC like club officers, etc

Unless your daughter is totally in love with UChicago I would not use her ED there. The email was a group email not swimmer specific. He told your swimmer that he would not offer her an OV so he will not use his precious pull for a nonrecruit. She is better off applying there RD and seeing what happens. Use her ED at a school where she is a better swim fit and the coach really wants her for his/or her team. That help from coach is your prize for all of your swimmers hard work both in and out of the pool I am sure when she does her OVs she will be able to find her special place.
Good luck

Yikes. I don’t know swimming at Chicago personally, but Chicago has a reputation for the coaches having very minimal pull. And if she didn’t get an OV, she’s probably on the b list not the a-list. I would say it is probably adding a feather to the scale.

I agree with the above post. One of the reasons my son has worked as hard at his sport as he has is to get that push at College admissions. You only get one shot with that, unless she just loves Chicago and doesn’t have better choices, I wouldn’t use it at Chicago. Only she can know how she feels, but it sounds like she has other good options.

Thanks for you all. Your input is very helpful! Her club coach also told her to email Chicago back for more detail information like if she is real on the priority list if she apply ED. Uchicago is her dream school.

Recruited athletes only get one shot at using that ED “push” or “nudge” or whatever coach support may be in the admissions decision. Asking detailed questions, preferably by phone and not by email, will tell your daughter more about what coach means for her.

An athlete deferred or rejected for ED1 has to chase down other programs to see who might have still have recruiting needs and are willing to support for ED2. Typically, few spots are left because other coaches have generally filled their recruiting with ED1 commitments. Swarthmore and WUSTL cannot be counted on to be waiting with bated breath for your daughter to apply ED2 if she doesn’t get into Chicago.

Swarthmore and Chicago have a lot of overlap in terms of culture, intensity etc. If it were my kid, I’d encourage them to go with the “bird in the hand” but that may not be what is right for your daughter. Congrats on her success so far, and good luck with the rest of the process.

if your daughter is on the Swat’s official recruit list and passes the preread, she is pretty much in if she applies ED there. If she applied ED UC, most likely she cannot get any real support from the Swat coach in the RD round unless someone from his recruit list drops out or gets rejected. I am not familiar with WashU, but would assume it will be similar to Swat. If UC is her “dream school”, far ahead of the others, especially after the OV’s, her stat’s seem good enough that taking a shot at UC is worth it. But definitely talk to the UC coach about what “priority” means and how many of his athletes currently came off that list vs. the official recruit list.

If U Chicago is her preferred school and you think she would thrive there, it seems like an ED there would be the call. She has excellent stats. Applying anything other than ED to Chicago – at least based on last year’s results – seems be be futile for most everyone. As for Swat, I didn’t think the coaches had much pull – certainly not like a NESCAC or Ivy. Would she have regrets about ED-ing somewhere other than U Chicago? I agree on getting clarification from their coach. Could try Chicago ED1 and, if not admitted, try Swat ED2.

^^^ At least for baseball and softball, the Swat coaches represented to us that they had slots like the NESCAC.

Priority list without an OV likely means your DD will be applying like everyone else - a pre-read and an OV likely gets one at least a tip, and substantial contact with the coach that includes meetings, pre-read, OV and a ED commitment ask likely gets one a slot. That said for time’d sports, real support can happen all the way through RD.

Thanks for all your replies! My D just came back from WashU OV, she likes so much and I will let her decide which ED will she apply.

If at the top of their list and she is academically qualified, the preread at Uchicago and coaches support could generate a likely letter and ultimate admission.

RD at Uchicago last year was less than 2% acceptance rate.

Discuss with the coach, and apply EA to Uchicago and ED to another school and switch to EDII depending on outcome of the initial ED. Anytime your in the single digits it’s good to have a backup, supported or not.

EDII at Uchicago last year was by far the highest acceptance percentage, albeit very low numbers.

This info is really help, thanks fbsdreams!

I don’t see how applying EDll would help any athlete. Most of the team is picked during ED, no?

Unless the Chicago coach’s support is crystal clear, I think its irrelevant as to whether EA, ED1or ED2 is advisable at a school with a >5% acceptance rate.

Any coaches support must be confirmed before applying ED. My point is that the option of coaches support usually doesn’t exist in EDll.

I’ve heard mixed things about the amount of pull that coaches have at U of C. We’ll see…S1 will be going through the process with them this fall.

Many athletes use EDII. In fact, I think it was kind of invented for them because coaches didn’t want to wait for RD to complete the roster if enough players either didn’t apply ED or didn’t get in to the school. MOst of the team is recruited ED, but those still looking during EDII aren’t looking for MOST of the spots, just one.