<p>hey guys-
I got a letter from the vassar swim coach today after i listed swimming as an interest when i requested info from vassar. I definitely want to swim in college, whether recreationally or competitively, but i dont really think im up to the standards. My hs swim program is pretty weak compared to others in my area, and we've never really had a competent coach or training program. By times, im the best swimmer on my team, and i'll be captain next year, but thats not saying much because ive never made districts and my best times are nowhere near college levels. What im wondering is whether this kind of sitiation is common in D3 college swimming, where kids arent really spectacular when they come in, or if you really have to be top-notch in high school to compete in college. I would absolutely love to swim for whatever college i end up going to, and Vassar is definitely on of my top choices academically.</p>
<p>"What im wondering is whether this kind of sitiation is common in D3 college swimming, where kids arent really spectacular when they come in, or if you really have to be top-notch in high school to compete in college."</p>
<p>the spectacular top-notch kids are D1. i doubt they would send you a letter as a complete joke.</p>
<p>cant you just compare your times with the vassar times, to see how competitive you will be?</p>
<p>yeah actually huskem thats what i did after posting this here...and my findings kinda surprised me. I guess im a little closer than i thought. Of course im nowhere near the record times, i did look at some meet results, and the times that im seeing really arent that much better than my best. I think with the proper training that college programs offer, I could definitely attain some similar times. As i said, my high school program is far from spectacular. We have a comparatively small team, and being in a rural area makes good coaches hard to come by. In fact, this is the first year in some time that we've had a coach that wasnt just one of the swimmers' parents. We also dont even have our own pool, we rent out a local community pool that isnt even regulation sized. Considering these obvious setbacks, I think i can probably see myself competing in college. I dont know if any of you are familiar with swimming, but to give you an idea of times, my 50 free time is at about 25 seconds even (this is my main event, ive really only ever been taught freestyle properly). Thanks for your help and encouraging words!</p>
<p>Go to some practices, see if you can keep up. There are a few very incredible swimmers (including one freshman in particular who broke a bunch of school records, etc). I don't know if the team as a whole is particularly good or not, but I'm pretty sure that most Varsity sports are open to recruits and non-recruits trying out.</p>
<p>For more infopotentially from people who are actually on the Vassar swim teamconsider posting to the livejournal community: <a href="http://community.livejournal.com/vassar/%5B/url%5D">http://community.livejournal.com/vassar/</a></p>
<p>Hardly anyone from Vassar reads these forums, if you didn't notice already.</p>