<p>What the heck does "we'd like to continue with the rectuiting process" mean?</p>
<p>Our daughter has toured campuses, met with coaches, they've watched her play in tournaments, scheduled her overnight visits, and was pulled aside at camps to be told the exact same thing by all three colleges. (D3 schools) </p>
<p>Our best guess is that they mean they mean the next step will be transcript reviews? Or they want to watch her play yet again? Or perhaps they want to ensure she fits in with the team once she does her overnights? </p>
<p>After quite a few months of courting, she's so ready for a firm commitment. She is our oldest child so this entire process is new to us. Any insight based on experience would be greatly appreciated!</p>
<p>DIVISION THREE: I’m more familiar with Division I recruiting, but I’m pretty sure D3 can only offer a “push” to so many student athletes in the admissions process, similar to an Ivy school. The coaches right now have a very long list of student-athletes who are interested, but that interest will change for each student-athlete pending visits to that school and others. It is most likely that the coaches are waiting until the visits have taken place, and further discussions with all athletes have occurred, before they decide who to give their “pushes” to- and they will only give a push to those athletes who A) are of greatest benefit to the team, B) can succeed at the school- which is usually a given or they would not be recruited initially, and C) return the school’s interest, usually with a verbal commitment prior to the coach going to admissions for a push.</p>
<p>I would not be worried at all! It’s a bit too early in the process for most athletes to truly know where they want to spend the next four years, and coaches realize this. They want a well-rounded class, and, honestly, there may be athletes higher than your daughter on the list to receive a “push” in admissions. There is a bit of a trickle down effect; as the coaches can remove athletes from the list who are no longer interested in the school, those a bit lower down move up. However, it’s too early for them to remove people from this list of sorts. Even if your daughter is at the very top, I still think it’s too early for them to start promising a push and such, as she may change her mind, and they have to consider how many other spots they have.</p>
<p>I hope this was a bit of a help and not too filled with blathering… Below is a little thing about similar situations in DI athletics.</p>
<p>DIVISION ONE (just in case somebody else stumbles in and would like to know): They probably are just hedging bets- i.e. she may not be their top recruit, but they don’t want to lose her. However, even with top recruits, they will still try to get a student-athlete for the “cheapest price” in terms of scholarship money. This enables the coaches to spread the money around, so to speak- if they can talk one student into a 25% scholarship, another into 30%, and a third into 45%, they’re getting a better deal than one student for 100%, unless that student-athlete is at the very tip-top of the sport.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input. While I know you said you’re more familiar with D1, I now have more questions. </p>
<p>These are private schools with inflated tuitions but good matches where she’d likely receive some academic scholarships. If the coach is willing to tag her as a “push,” does that mean they it may help to raise her academic scholarship package? If you’re one of the athletes they’re willing to “push” are you typically guaranteed a roster spot? What dictates the number of “pushes” a coach has? The size of the school? The budget for their program? The admissions department?</p>
<p>I’m honestly not sure about the academic scholarship package. It probably depends on which school. I lean towards thinking that a push in admissions would not affect the academic scholarship- only academic merit would affect it, but hopefully somebody will come along and help you out there who knows a bit more.</p>
<p>By roster spot do you mean getting to compete in all the meets/competitions? If so, it again depends on how talented the athlete is and how well he/she performs at practice, etc. It also depends what areas the coach needs to fill due to graduating seniors, etc. If the athlete is the only one who is a distance runner/swimmer/insert sport and position here, he/she has a much higher chance of competing every time than an overly filled position. It’s about depth. But generally, the coach would not spend time recruiting an athlete if he/she could not have an immediate impact on scoring.</p>
<p>By roster spot I simply meant you were guaranteed to make the team, not a guarantee of playing time. I’d assume a “push” recruit would make the team if coaches can only push a limited number of athletes but, I’ve heard about several D3 schools who over-recruit. Assuming they’re being honest, these coaches have made it very clear as to when they anticipate my daughter contributing during games.</p>
<p>Just an observation or suggestion. I sense a little bit of impatience in your original post. If you are looking at exclusively D3 schools, you have a while to go before things firm up. It is late July and a lot of the D1 recruiting is not complete (depends on the sport). The D3 schools are closely watching the D1 recruiting to see if they can get someone for Early Decison (late Fall 2010).</p>
<p>Recruiting coaches can be the masters of ambiguity and vagueness. If you don’t understand what is the next important step(s) with these three coaches, you need to ask “what are the next steps” or request clarification for anything they say that you don’t understand. They’ve done this a thousand times and you are doing this for the first time. Be polite, but request the information you need to understand where you are in the process. I would also ask for time frames. </p>
<p>Also, it is not out of bounds to ask them where your son or daughter is in the pecking order. This is especially important for you if you are being considered in Ivys or D3 slots. ZeinX did a good job of covering everything else.</p>
<p>Good luck. This process is stressful and can drive you crazy. Relax, enjoy the ride, and don’t hold back on your questions to better manage expectations.</p>
<p>My daughter is in the exact same positition as yours. With regard to the academic scholarships (I started another thread about this earlier this week), my biggest concern is the coaches’ desire to have athletes apply ED so they can have their recruiting class set. The coaches claim that they have the greatest influence with admission during this period, although most of the schools my daughter is considering she should be fine on her own. I do have concern that an academic award might be smaller if you apply ED because they know they’ve got you.</p>
<p>Thanks for helping to manage our expectations. My daughter sent follow-up emails this morning and already heard back re-confirming interst, overnights and requests for fall tournament schedules. I didn’t mean to come across as impatient but was certainly trying to express her anxiety. :)</p>
<p>minoafrau: Our schools don’t have an Early Decision option, just Early Action. I am grateful we can’t be pushed towards ED since overall cost is paramount. I certainly wish you luck with that process… I’d find it concerning (to say the least) too.</p>
<p>“These are private schools with inflated tuitions but good matches where she’d likely receive some academic scholarships. If the coach is willing to tag her as a “push,” does that mean they it may help to raise her academic scholarship package?”</p>
<p>If a DIII school considers athletic ability in any way determining the amount of a merit award for a recruited athlete, the school is cheating. Period.</p>
<p>Really, Emm1? How come some DIII merit scholarships state in the criteria that academic achievement, leadership, and ec’s are considered? Can they only consider EC’s and leadership positions unrelated to your sport? In any case, maybe they are cheating, but of course I would imagine most do. In my daughter’s sport (gymnastics), the majority of her club teammates went to DIII schools (and some strong academic LAC’s). Without exception, they were all told by the coaches that additional monies would be coming their way. And it did. These are all girls whose parents I know. Even the DIII schools want to win.</p>
<p>Absolutely. Keep in mind I would not ask the question directly, but through a series of questions that you can figure out where you stand. This is a two way street. I’m sure they’re going to ask you…“so what other schools are you considering”. Of course they want to know this, because they want to know where they may stand in your mind as well as how much time they are going to have to invest in you. Coaches have to look at hundreds maybe thousands of kids. It is a very effective question designed to size you up quickly. You need to ask a similiar question of them.</p>
<p>This process has to be give and take. Remember, you are sizing them up as well, and you need to know where to spend your time. If you are a pitcher and they’ve already offered/accepted all of their 2011 pitchers then you are wasting your time. Essentially, you’ve become their Plan B. Plan B is fine as long as everyone understands that. You need to find the school that has openings.</p>
<p>I suggest the following questions or something like this, in this order:</p>
<p>-Coach, I noticed you had 8 pitchers graduate this year. How many pitchers do you expect to recruit this year from HS and JUCO?</p>
<p>-Coach, it is early in the recruiting process (August) and I know you have been busy with camps and showcases. Have you made many offers yet? How many have verbally committed so far?</p>
<p>-Where do you see me fitting into your recruiting plans? What is your timetable for moving this process forward?</p>
<p>Based upon these answers, I think you can get a clear picture of where you stand and next steps. I think it is so important to prioritize where you spend your time. The old saying about “knowing where to fish” comes to mind.</p>
<p>I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have questions.</p>
<p>Our experience has been much like fenwaysouth describes. Each coach has asked which other schools she’s considering and each offered information about when they actually see our daughter contributing in games… some say she’ll have field time freshman year, others let her know it likely wouldn’t be until sophomore year. </p>
<p>As far as the merit money discussion is concerned, my niece’s experience was similar to keylyme’s story. Once she verbally accepted a position on a D3 team, the coach recommended her for another scholarship. She was invited to interviewed with the scholarship committee (the coach was not a part) and ultimately did receive the merit money. Had it not been for the coach, they likely would not have been aware of this award but still, I don’t see this as “cheating.” She earned the scholarship for her leadership roles and volunteer work. She was a strong candidate with or without her athlete status.</p>
<p>I think the student athlete has to feel their way through these interactions with the coach. There is a right time to ask these type questions. Also, I think if you are not hearing answers to at least #3 below, then it is time to move on to the next school. There could be other explanations to not hearing answers to questions 1 and 2 especially if it is a D3 school given that it is early August right now. The D3 picture is going to be cloudier at this time because their timetable is different. If it is a D1/Ivy school, then I think you have to ask these type of questions to better understand your position in their eyes. </p>
<p>1) Coach, I noticed you had 8 pitchers graduate this year. How many pitchers do you expect to recruit this year from HS and JUCO?</p>
<p>2) Coach, it is early in the recruiting process (August) and I know you have been busy with camps and showcases. Have you made many offers yet? How many have verbally committed so far?</p>
<p>3) Where do you see me fitting into your recruiting plans? What is your timetable for moving this process forward?</p>
<p>Some coaches will keep it real close to the vest, but you have to try IMO for a couple reasons. First, you have to be taken seriously and secondly, you have to know where to put your time and effort. If I’m not getting any information, feedback or updates from a coach…I think it is time to look at the next school on the list. If the previous school comes back to me fine, but I’m not waiting for them.</p>
<p>“Once she verbally accepted a position on a D3 team, the coach recommended her for another scholarship.”</p>
<p>If the coach played any role in her receiving the merit scholarship, including “recommending” her to the committee for the scholarship, that is cheating, plain and simple. Being a recruited athlete is not supposed to play ANY role in the determination of financial aid at DIII schools.</p>
<p>If the coach simply informed her of the existence of the scholarship, that would be fine.</p>
<p>He recognized that she qualified. I’m not suggested he wrote a letter of recommendation or was part of the decision making process. To the best of our knowledge, she truly EARNED the scholarship based on her own merits.</p>