I’m very new to competition cheerleading. My daughter loves it, and is hoping to do it in college. She’s a very gifted student (her brother is at MIT) and would like to know if there are any schools that combine sterling academics and a cheerleading team strong enough to go to the National Championships.
I know a kid going to Stanford for cheerleading.
For starters, it looks like MIT has a cheer team that competes at NCA:
https://mitcheersquad.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/
University of Michigan
ASU has a great dance/ cheer team and their honors college is the best in the country.
Also, don’t compare your daughter to your son.
What are her stats? What schools has she been looking at? Is money no object?
why not look to see who has gone to or won the “all girl” and “coed” national championships in recent years. I know who won both “all girl” and “co ed” this year…the first college to ever win both the same year!..Roll Tide!
http://www.rolltide.com/sports/c-cheer/spec-rel/011915aaa.html
- She should think carefully if she wants to pursue cheering at the college level – it may take way to much time from academics if she is taking a rigorous course of study. Academics should always be a top priority.
- Look at the schools that did well in NCAA competitive cheering last year.
- Look at some top schools with big sports programs (ex. Notre Dame, Stanford, Vandy, Duke etc.) because I’m guessing they have good cheer squads (not sure though).
- The fact that your S is at MIT is great, but it has nothing to do with your D’s intelligence level, academic interests etc.
Is she a base or a flyer? Is she good enough to be competitive on a top team? Like any other sport, in cheerleading, you need your coach to give you an idea of how competitive you are.
“why not look to see who has gone to or won the “all girl” and “coed” national championships in recent years. I know who won both “all girl” and “co ed” this year…the first college to ever win both the same year!..Roll Tide!”
Let’s reread the title of this thread:
“Strong Academic College with Competitive Cheerleading”
@rjkofnovi Alabama has strong academics. As strong as MIT? No, but still strong. Don’t be condescending.
OP: Your son’s intelligence has no implications on your daughter’s. I hope you don’t compare your daughter with your son this openly in real life. You don’t want her to feel like she lives in her brother’s shadow if she doesn’t get into MIT or an academic equivalent.
All OP said was that they have two intelligent children. Nothing to get up in arms about.
“Alabama has strong academics. As strong as MIT? No, but still strong. Don’t be condescending.”
Oh ok. Then I recommend the University of Central Florida:
Wow, some of you need to give the OP a break here. I think she included the info on the brother at MIT to give some context of the family environment. And she did say that her D was very gifted. I know that my D now definitely has a higher bar for herself because her brother is at a top school.
And wait until some of you kiddos are parents yourselves. You are going to compare whether it’s in your head, out loud or just confiding in others. But I agree you should try to be aware of it as much as possible.
I’ve noticed that some of the responders are brutal when giving advice but when they post and others give them advise, they become very sensitive and resent these efforts. Taking feedback positively is a learned skill that signals maturity I guess.
My thanks go to those whose composed constructive advice. I have looked at the list of competitors at Nationals but many were unfamiliar to me, so I do appreciate the recommendations. Otherwise all I have to go on is USNWR.
Certain people automatically assume that the one who is status conscious, competitive and ambitious is the parent and not the student. Our whole family acknowledges our daughter to be just as bright if not brighter than our son, and of course she is hoping to be accepted by a college of some academic distinction like her brother was. This post is about facilitating what SHE wants. If she or he was happy going to our good state university system, I would be happy for them and our pocketbooks even happier.
Hanna: She wanted to be a flyer but is already too tall (closing in on 5’ 7") and just started basing and back-spotting on an all-star team. She loves it. She’s unusually physically strong, having done Tae Kwan Do, Gymnastics, Synchro and then a year on her HS Cheer team, when they went to Nationals but weren’t competitive.
Hello- I’m a rising senior who is shooting for Stanford. I have cheered competitively for the past 10 years, top level, top team at my gym in Texas. My team has placed Top Five at Worlds, and I was filmed for ESPN. I am also a Varsity Cheerleader at school and Captain. I love cheer, but I hate how it doesn’t get the recognition it should. As I am also competitive academically, I was wondering if my accomplishments in cheer will amount to anything for elite universities, like HYPS?