<p>Do any of you have any info about the Smith cheerleading program? I'm wondering how selective it is and what exactly they do - is it like serious competitive cheerleading or more based on just cheering at games? Do most of the girls have cheer experience before trying out, or is it beginner-friendly? Any info would be great! Thanks!</p>
<p>I believe it’s very beginner friendly. The cheer team itself began only a few years ago and it’s primarily to cheer on fellow women athletes at games. There might be a more competitive dance team or something I’m not aware of. My info is about a year old, so I could be out-of-date.</p>
<p>My friend was on the cheerleading team the first year it began (whcih was her senior year). I think it is very beginner friendly, she was a cheerleader in high school, but not on a very competitive team (no flying jumps, etc). It’s a club sport, so it’s not part of the official Smith Athletics Department, and as I recall, at least the first year, it was mostly just for fun and open to anyone that was interested in joining. </p>
<p>They cheered at rugby and basketball games, I remember the rugby players not being that enthused about the whole thing, but they’ve probably either gotten used to it or made some accomodations by now. I don’t know if outside of that, the team was aiming to compete in any cheering competitions, probably because to be competitive at the college-level in cheerleading, it helps a lot to have men teammembers for the flying parts. But it’s a club sport, like I said, so a lot of what they do and don’t do is driven by what the individual team members in any given year are capable of and interested in, and how much they can fundraise.</p>