<ol>
<li>Do parents come with you?</li>
<li>What do you wear (girls)?</li>
<li>What do you bring (by way of transcript, SAT scores, PR printouts, etc.)?</li>
<li>How long does it usually last?</li>
<li>Does it help you get recruited, or is it more useful in that you learn about the sports program?</li>
<li>Does it mean anything that the coach is willing to take time out of his/her day just to speak with you, or do they meet with almost anyone who asks, as long as they are mildly qualified?</li>
</ol>
<p>Just my opinion
First==go to NCAA and learn the rules that apply to you–your age and your sport</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Do parents come with you?
Depends–on a regional trip --our student went alone for a weekend–And on a trip far away–its a parent and student trip to include looking at the schools</p></li>
<li><p>What do you wear (girls)?
Clothes would be good–dress for the season–you are not permitted to wrokout so casual clothes…</p></li>
<li><p>What do you bring (by way of transcript, SAT scores, PR printouts, etc.)?
If you are invited–they shoudl already have whatever they asked for–this may depend ont he coaches–Our student has been asked for transcripts, SATs, PR info, competition results, and will probably be asked for video. </p></li>
<li><p>How long does it usually last?
Its your dime–and your time–maybe only an hour or two or maybe longer–will depend on coach, school, team and YOU and your stats</p></li>
<li><p>Does it help you get recruited, or is it more useful in that you learn about the sports program?
I’ts about You learning about them …in our case we said we’d be around–and they extended an invite to check them out…Unless you are a sr–they are limited because of NCAA</p></li>
<li><p>Does it mean anything that the coach is willing to take time out of his/her day just to speak with you, or do they meet with almost anyone who asks, as long as they are mildly qualified?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>In mine opinion–there is no indication of qualifications/interest here…nor advantage because its your dime and your time–
–as long as the coach isn’t making an NCAA infraction–the coach can answer questions and look you over…and this is not costing the school—its an advantage for the coach to see/eliminate athletes…</p>
<p>Hope a parent with more experience can help out.</p>
<p>Sure parents can come with you. I think most coaches like to get a feel for the family dynamic. Make sure you do the talking, though. Be prepared with a list of questions you want to ask.</p>
<p>Bringing a transcript, scores and PR’s is a good idea. Visit might last half an hour to a couple of hours if the coach has time to show you around the facilities.</p>
<p>As for helping you get recruited - it puts you on the radar and let’s coach know you’re serious enough to visit.</p>
<p>Agree with all of the above. Read the other posts on this subject, OP. There is a lot on this forum on this topic.</p>
<p>About clothes: wear comfortable shoes and a warm coat, if needed, since you will be walking around the campus, and possibly traveling to fields, the track, or what have you. Coaches tend to wear warm ups, so there’s no need for you to wear a tie/dress, but try and look like you care, and no cleavage, front or back :)</p>
<p>As far as “how long it takes”, this may depend on how you plan your day. Coaches suggested we take the standard campus tour and sit in on the info sessions of our choice, and planned our meeting around those. If you can get those done in the morning, then you might get a longer block of time with the coach right after lunch. Ask the coach what is most convenient for him: if he has early afternoon practices, it might be best for you to see him first thing in the morning, and do the tour and info in the afternoon. Much depends on what the schools offers for tours and when the coach can fit you in. </p>
<p>Also, if you are visiting during the competition season, the coach might not be in town on Fridays, so give them plenty of notice that you’d like to visit. Pull up the school’s academic calendar (don’t visit during their spring break), and the team’s competition schedule. That way you’ll know which dates are completely not possible.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Do parents come with you?
I went with my D2. Parents hear things differently than students. Parents have other questions that the student wouldn’t have. Parents should be in on the discussion with the student afterwards debriefing about the visit. Two heads are always better than 1. But the parent should be in the background and the student should take the lead when talking to the coach.</p></li>
<li><p>What do you wear (girls)?
Comfortable but neat. You only have 1 opportunity to make a first impression.</p></li>
<li><p>What do you bring (by way of transcript, SAT scores, PR printouts, etc.)?
Bring everything. Be prepared. You might be asked for it, might not. It shows organization, committment and seriousness to have all the documents. Also, bring a CD/DVD of your athletics.</p></li>
<li><p>How long does it usually last?
We generally arrived for the admissions talk (9am), did a tour (10am), met with the coach (11:30am), D2 had lunch with the team (if on an unofficial/official visit) (12:30pm), D2 sat through a class (2pm) and we were done about 4pm.</p></li>
<li><p>Does it help you get recruited, or is it more useful in that you learn about the sports program?
It doesn’t hurt.</p></li>
<li><p>Does it mean anything that the coach is willing to take time out of his/her day just to speak with you, or do they meet with almost anyone who asks, as long as they are mildly qualified?
They will generally speak with anyone who wants to talk to them. Email the coach and let them know you’ll be on campus and you’d like to meet. Ask if they are available and when it is convenient for them to meet.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Either myself or my husband were with my son on all unofficial visits. I think it is a good idea for a parent to be there.</p>
<ol>
<li>What do you wear (girls)?</li>
</ol>
<p>Something casual.</p>
<ol>
<li>What do you bring (by way of transcript, SAT scores, PR printouts, etc.)?</li>
</ol>
<p>The coach will usually ask you to bring along anything they don’t already have or anything they would like to have.</p>
<ol>
<li>How long does it usually last?</li>
</ol>
<p>Our visits usually lasted about 3 hours or roughly 1/2 day.</p>
<ol>
<li>Does it help you get recruited, or is it more useful in that you learn about the sports program?</li>
</ol>
<p>I think it is a VERY important step in the recruiting process. In our case 99% of the visits were initiated by the coach, which would inidicate they are interested. However, if you initiate the visit, I guess you would have to guage the interest level of the school/coach. I’m not sure how much their mind would change during your visit, but it would be your job to MAKE them interested in you.</p>
<ol>
<li>Does it mean anything that the coach is willing to take time out of his/her day just to speak with you, or do they meet with almost anyone who asks, as long as they are mildly qualified?</li>
</ol>
<p>Not sure how much it means that the coach will meet with you, I would think that would vary from coach to coach and program to program. Are you talking D1 sports? Some coaches will not waste their time on people they are not actively interested in, others will.</p>