<p>Arabrab, that makes me feel so much better about my son’s decision. That’s what we were thinking. That Club Tennis would be fun and a physical outlet. We noticed the level of players on the club team at Cal and many were ex junior players my son has competed with/against for years in So Cal. I’m glad to hear a happy story about someone deciding to go this direction. Thanks for sharing.</p>
<p>The best advice my son received was from a DIII coach. He said “You need to pick the school as if you were not playing tennis.”</p>
<p>This is excellent advice.</p>
<p>Yes, it was. It actually cost the coach my son as a player. This was at a very highly competitive DIII tennis program but my son wanted the whole large school vibe for his undergraduate education. The coach was a class act. When my son told him of his decision, he did nothing but wish him well and told him he knew he would be very happy at Berkeley.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for your input! I think the club vb route at a better academic school is the route she should take. I think about all of the dances, football games, student council, school plays, etc that she missed out on for her sport and hope she gets how much she would miss out on the whole college experience if she did play. It is difficult for her when all her teammates and their parents have been gunning for the athletic scholarship since day one. I’m sure she feels that pressure, too. Fortunately for her , her academics are strong enough that she should get merit based aid either way. We are trying to (gently) tell that at as hard as she worked on her athletics, she is equally as accomplished in her academics, which will have a far greater impact on her future than vb will. I guess we just don’t want to see her settle for a school that is maybe not as strong in academics just to play volleyball. I know there are many options as far as d2 and d3 schools with good academics, but for various reasons, location, majors, lack of recruiting interest, etc, she has many more options academically than athletically. I hope when it comes down to it, the school she picks will be picked, like Gtalum said, as if she wasn’t playing vb, and chosen for the total fit! Is that too much to ask ;)? Thanks again for your valuable input and personal stories. it’s nice to know others have gone through this and survived with happy children!</p>
<p>Oh my, your daughter sounds so much like my son. I can’t tell you how many times my son had to say “I can’t. I have a tournament.” Too many to count. He didn’t even go to a football game or dance until this year! While I admired his dedication, I am so happy that he will get to have somewhat of a life in college. He also dealt with tons of peer pressure surrounding his decision because he was such an accomplished athlete with tons and tons of awards. However, he was strong and took to heart the advice of that wise coach. He has no regrets. I hope your daughter finds her way and that all of you are happy with her decision.</p>
<p>One student I know was a state champion swimmer. Because he was strong academically, he was able to “retire” from swimming. He picked the school that was a better fit academically and socially. My D is a strong runner but, injured 10 months ago and has yet to recover. Fortunately, she has the academic merit to go to an elite Div III. Hopefully she’ll heal and be able to run, but, as a non-recruited athlete, there is no pressure. It’s best to rely on the brain if you can.</p>
<p>Yeah, that’s what my son decided. His brain did allow him to “retire” from tennis at the ripe old age of 17! haha He had an extraordinary amount of merit aid everywhere he applied. This was wonderful because he got to pick the school that he thought would be the best overall fit for him without worrying about the money. What a process though… He had so many options but with options come decisions. I think he made the right one and am looking forward to what he does with that wonderful brain of his. 
Hope your daughter heals quickly…</p>
<p>My bro’s oldest D was recruited by DII colleges for vball . She wanted a big u. so walked on at big D1 directional state u. She was offered a scholarship after soph. yr. Her whole life revolved around vball. She missed lots of classes during the season because the conference schools were so far flung. She went through a lot of ups and downs. </p>
<p>When her younger sis, a talented libero on a state championship team, began the process, she did some visiting and had some good offers from DII schools but decided she wasn’t ready to be as dedicated as her big sis. She’s at the same univ. her sis attended and plays club vball. She also has time to be in a sorority, have a p/t job, a boyfriend and makes great grades. She’s happy with her decison. She too is aiming for PT or PA.</p>
<p>S2’s good friend went to a small college specifially for his sport. He was really a big sch. kind of guy. He was very unhappy there, made poor grades and did not return after freshman yr. One yr. later, he is soured on college and has no plans to enroll at any school, not even the local CC. He is unemployed and living with Mom and Dad.
He’s a living testimony to the “don’t go just for the sport” advice. S2 feels certain his friend would still be in college if he had attended big state u. as a non-athlete. His parents sort of pushed him to play in college, a decision they sorely regret now.</p>
<p>Make school pick based on the best fit academically. DS was a NMF and a state placer for running. He was a finalist for top academic scholarships at the DIII schools but DIII had no athletic money. We don’t qualify for FA either. He visited all of the schools and visited four top tier schools a 2nd time. Surprisingly, non of the DIII/top tier schools were the right fit.<br>
I’m happy to report DS chose an OOS DI school for the academic opportunities and elite academic scholarship. He walked on to the XC and Track teams and has had great success. He maintains a 4.0 GPA and holds a leadership position on the Student Athlete Advisiory Committee (represents his Univ at the Conference level).
Any athlete is one injury away from a career ending injury. Your athlete must love the school first.</p>
<p>mwm, if we substituted my D’s sport for your D’s, we’d have almost an identical situation. You are getting some great advice on this board, especially about LAC’s and choosing the school as if you couldn’t play. Also you absolutely can get to a doctoral PT program from an LAC. There are definitely excellent DIII LAC options in the Midwest. With your D’s stats and the vb EC there would very likely be merit money from schools slightly below the very top of “Tier 1” LAC’s. My D decided the DIII LAC route rather than DI, DII because of the better balance of time commitment to the sport and the full college experience. She wanted to continue in her sport because she has a passion for it. Feel free to PM me if you would like some specifics.</p>
<p>The daughter of a very good friend is a PT student at Quinnipiac…a very strong 6-year program. She works very hard but has not found the program overwhelming because she does not face the added stress of having to worry about getting in to graduate school. She is carrying roughly a 3.7 gpa in her third year of the program, and she played a sport as well–she has given that up now because she is more involved in volunteer work.</p>
<p>Has your daughter considered this route?</p>