<p>Yep. As amykins says serious academics, sports, research, mostly urban locations...</p>
<p>Forgive my ignorance (I seem to be wallowing in it these days), but is there any point in registering with the NCAA Clearinghouse if a student is 99+% sure he's only interested in playing DIII? I had thought it was only for DI or possibly DII. If there'd be any point in doing it at all, we surely will, but I wasn't sure whether it would make any difference with DIII schools.</p>
<p>nceph
Since Div III schools do not offer athletic scholarships, registering with the clearinghouse is not required. Thus, I would assume Div III coaches do not utilize it as well.</p>
<p>Well, yes they do. Why? for the same reason you come here.. a single spot for a lot of information. </p>
<p>The NCAA also deals with more than scholarshiped atheletes. There are different rules. YOU CAN RECIEVE NCAA PENALTIES AT D3. It is good to read the rules and understand them.</p>
<p>Actual example.. two d3 freshman soccer players playing d3 ball, joined a u-19 for state tournament for nationals. The team they went on won state and went to hawaii and played. Evidently this was an NCAA violation and they had to sit out 3 games each sophomore year as a penalty for the infraction. </p>
<p>I'm not here to shill for the NCAA, you can certainly do what ever you want and possibly be successful.. the possibility always exists the good fairy will come down and tap you on the head. </p>
<p>Next I will ask you which 5% of an advertising budget actually works? ;)</p>
<p>There are many ways to do this and the reader should figure out if the $27 is worth it to go into the national coaches database. I mean I've also dropped $1000 for a weekend tournament to showcase for a dozen coaches. In your prespective does $27 bucks really hurt the cause? </p>
<p>We received letters from coaches at schools that weren't on our radar, but we considered after we were contacted. We even got some play from some D1 schools. A good coach is looking everywhere for players these days. The clearinghouse is free to them to use. Free fits most college coaches budget plans nicely.</p>
<p>Thanks, Opieofmaybery2. I knew it wasn't required for D3. I was just wondering if there was any reason for a prospective D3 player to join, like if there would be any possible benefit. Sounds like there's no reason not to sign up, so that's going on our ever growing list of things to do.</p>
<p>One benefit of not registering w/ the clearinghouse (aside from saving the $27, but what's 27 if you drop 1,000 at the drop of a hat) is that you will maintain more control of the process. After we developed out list of schools, we were able to be very specific and focused in any communication with the various coaches. It's a long process with many moving parts and limiting the number of schools you were involved with, from a recruiting perspective, helped keep the stress levels at reasonable levels. That was our priority. Not getting our ego stroked by coaches calling/writing out of the blue.<br>
And believe it or not, that fairy did tap us on the head.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice about camps and showcases.</p>
<p>So what do ya'll know about women's soccer at Davidson? I know it's a terrific college, and that they get outstanding ODP players there. Does a very strong player who chose not to go the ODP route have a chance of being recruited there? Outside Ivies, Davidson is the only Division I school that seems to be even a remote possibility for my D. She doesn't want soccer in college to be a full-time year-round job! She played a year for a very intense club team that roams the country for showcases, and decided she didn't want to spend all of high school doing that. So she's not going to be seen by lots of coaches at showcases, and the team she's happily returned too is unlikely to win state, let alone regionals. Being from the west complicates things when you want to go to college in the east. Based on all these factors, she'll have to do a very strategic college search to find schools that will notice her.</p>
<p>"She doesn't want soccer in college to be a full-time year-round job! "</p>
<p>You should probably consider just playing intermural. College soccer is a commitment at any level. No offense intended, but alot of kids around that age start to get tired of the life and death of youth soccer. We only have so many high stress games in us at any level. Your D sounds like she may have reached that point. For some (mine and myslef) the game just stops being fun. </p>
<p>I would suggest just concentrating on schools she likes for the school and reduce soccer to a lower tier of concern. She may actually find other college sports that will float her boat. Mine found water polo, lacrosse and had they had it my favorite, rugby at college. </p>
<p>Good luck</p>
<p>Opie - no offense taken; those are good observations. Stopping is always a real possibility, and it's definitely got to be her choice. Having chosen to play at the A or A- club level instead of the A++ level, she's already opted out of a lot of potential college soccer programs. That's good, IMO! She wants a life, and she wants to go to a college with very strong academics - it's tough to do it all. Would you say there is no D1 program (even Ivies or Davidson) that would allow that possibility? I think there are still a few D3 schools that allow kids to take part of the year off of heavy training and practice schedules, though - am I wrong about that? (Lacrosse is her "other" sport, and she may want to continue with that as well, which is part of what makes me ask these questions.)</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Having recently been through this process, I agree that Division I soccer (even at the Ivies) is a year round job. My D was turned off by the response to her question to several Div I players (at an Ivy school) about what they did other than soccer....their response was that soccer essentially was their life at school year round. </p>
<p>There are many excellent DIII programs that incorporate soccer as part of an overall academic experience without being all-consuming. NESCAC prohibits formal spring season training and games. Student athletes at these schools regularly use the spring to study abroad. The quality of soccer at top Div III programs is quite good (many players are cross recruited by Ivy and other Div I programs). Students play at these schools because they love the sprt and want to compete, but have largely shed their illusions of being the next Landon Donovan or Mia Hamm.</p>
<p>OP, my vote, since you flagged "DIV-III soccer" and "diversity" is to look at Amherst College, see if the academic statistics seem to match, and then go for it. Williams and Amherst are sports rivals, along with Wesleyan in Connecticut, but I think Amherst is more diverse.
Of those 3, Amherst has the biggest milieu for students. There's no big city, but in that there is the Five College Consortium of these 5 colleges: Amherst College, Smith, Mt. Holyoke, Hampshire and University of Massachusetts at Amherst, all linked by shuttle busses. So in all, while Amherst has around 1800 students, the 5-College region has 25,000. You get the best of both worlds: a small family-friendly school where everybody knows your name, within a larger community of college resources. ONe of the colleges, Smith, is in the City of Northampton, Mass which is a charmer, population around 30,000, exceptionally progressive.
There was an express Amtrak train from Washington D.C. to either Amherst or Northampton, I believe. </p>
<p>The list of the Div-III schools is interesting, but I'd never think of Damien College here in Buffalo in the same breath as Amherst or Williams, academically! There are some on the list that are in-between; Amh and Wms. are tops academically.</p>
<p>To OP: I hope you'll excuse me for bringing girls' soccer and the Ivies into the discussion, as I know you were asking about boys and D3. I got carried away, as I find this a very interesting topic. </p>
<p>As for Amherst, what a fantastic school! We just did the big spring break tour of New England colleges, and my son's favorite school was Amherst. The students seemed incredibly happy, and its academic reputation is terrific.</p>
<p>Many schools have strong club programs that are a considerable step down from varsity (2-3 practices/week) but are much more competitive than intramural. These may have tryouts, travel on a club circuit and also play tournaments. IMO its ideal for the student who was a serious HS player but is not interested or able to play varsity.</p>
<p>"Would you say there is no D1 program (even Ivies or Davidson) that would allow that possibility?"</p>
<p>I wouldn't think so, remember the coach gets paid and he/she won't be there long if they don't make the program "go". My pretend D (close familyfriend) played D1 soccer on full scholarship and will be going into a fifth year (paid) to get her degree and this is after the last 3 summers of summer school. She's no dummy either, she was named an Addias Acedemic All American. So much travel, training and hours commitment leave less for the classroom stuff. Anybody considering D1 really should find out what they do for student atheletes that can't get all their hours in four years, does the school pay for a fifth year? </p>
<p>Maybe there's a D1 somewhere where the coach never has to worry about being fired, but I doubt it.</p>
<p>" I think there are still a few D3 schools that allow kids to take part of the year off of heavy training and practice schedules, though - am I wrong about that?"</p>
<p>No, I don't think so. It going to be getting to "talk" to that coach and honesty. You need to background check the coach as well. I found that if the coach had a regular job (security) within the college, they were more flexible about alot of things. If they are just coaching that could be a deal breaker if they are worried about being fired or want to move on to a bigger program. </p>
<p>"(Lacrosse is her "other" sport, and she may want to continue with that as well, which is part of what makes me ask these questions.)"</p>
<p>What I found at d3 about a 50/50 mix of personalities coaching wise. The best advice I can give is talk to the coaches AND players when ever possible and the informal grapevine can give you information that while a coach or school might not admit to, they do anyway. Like pulling scholarships for nonstarters or non star players. Some giveth and some taketh away pretty quickly. </p>
<p>I'm about four years out of the loop but the thing I remember is the interaction with some coaches is like dating. All attentive and such, then after they sleep with you, they never call.... Be aware that half of what a coach tells you is fluff. Always look around and see how happy the current players are. If they hate it, chances are your kid will too.</p>
<p>Speaking as someone involved in the process now. In D3 it all depends on the school. If the school has a top of the line sports program - you kid will spend serious time (year round) with the sport. In our case it is 25 hours a week off season and quite a bit more time in season. The practices may not be official - but they do take place on a daily basis. It does not matter if you call them captains workouts or voluntary - they take place all the same. If you don't participate - you are not "part of the team". Our kid enjoys this part of college life - so it works out great. But at the same time you should be prepared for the comitment if you will be attending a "competetive" athletic school. Yes that also includes schools with a heavy academic focus.</p>
<p>I'm curious how the 25 hours a week in the off season works and if that's typical for all D3 sports. That averages more than 3 hours a day, which sounds like a lot. Would that be for a captains practice and individual workout every day? A 3+ hour practice every day? Or 4+ hours a day, if you're looking at 6 days a week. Just trying to get a picture of what's involved.</p>
<p>To the OP. Lots of great advice given so far. I am going to reiterate a piece of advice given earlier. I would suggest starting the search ignoring soccer. Find the types of schools your son is interested in and then check out the soccer programs. </p>
<p>Why do I suggest this order? There are only a couple hundred DI & DII soccer programs out there and a lot of them are obvious (Indiana, Penn State, etc) and there are tons of DIII schools. Most likely the schools that interest your son are DIII schools. You may want to check out this site ... <a href="http://www.d3soccer.net/%5B/url%5D">http://www.d3soccer.net/</a>.</p>
<p>The last thing I would mention is a lot of DIII schools do not have big bucks for recruiting so they may not proactively find your son ... but they may respond vary well to him contacting them. Most schools have a contact point on their team web-sites ... it takes 5 minutes and it might lead to a great match.</p>
<p>nceph - sorry a little high on the hours - should be about 15 to 20 hours a week off season - yes about 2 to 3 hours (closer to 3) a day between captains practices, "informal scrimages", strength training and individual workouts. Officially none of these are mandatory - but if you want to part of the team ...... This is not the case in all D3 programs - but it is the case at D3 schools that are highly rated in athletics.</p>
<p>nceph,</p>
<p>What a player decides to do offseason is up to them individually outside of scholarhsip situations. But keep in mind, if you're not working somebody else is. Every year new people come in wanting to take your spot. Remember the coach gets paid and his/her job security depends on the team they have. Making the team as a freshman doesn't mean you'll be there all four years. Every year is a new one, somebody else is working to get your spot, actually far more than one person. You might have 5 guys working to take that roster spot.</p>
<p>At my S's D3 college they average 180 kids trying out for football every year...without Scholarships! 180 kids for around 70 spots of which only about 40 will see the field for even one play. For some, it takes about 3 years to figure out even though they work hard and make the 70, come Saturday, they will be watching somebody else play. Meanwhile they missed out on a club sport where they could have played for these last 3 years and enjoyed themselves. </p>
<p>You know, "Rudy" while inspirational.. sucks. That whole time, Rudy could have been playing rugby and having the time of his life. I know there's something inspiring about hearing how for 4 years Rudy worked so hard to play a couple plays in his last possible game in college... but's there's also something really stupid about it too. </p>
<p>I don't care what sport it is, the idea is to play, not watch others do it and enjoy yourself in the process. When it stops being fun, find something else.</p>
<p>All participation outside of NCAA sanctioned practice periods is "voluntary". And be prepared to volunteer! Three to four hours a day between conditioning and training, depending on the school. Again, it is voluntary out of season. Great experience though! And yes, register with the NCAA.</p>