7Steps

Question: I'm going in as a baseball recruit and have written my long Common App essay on my experiences with the sport. I've been reading the posts that speak about not writing about overcoming adversity but that theme is the foundation of my essay. To be honest, I have kind of a unique situation and I was wondering if it would be okay for me to still do my essay about the challenges I faced while playing baseball. I've gotten cut from over 14 teams in my life, didn't make the high school team, but still kept the passion and drive alive in order to end up getting 6 college offers and a 85 mph fastball. Nothing else in my life has shaped my personality and outlook on life more than my tumultuous journey through baseball. I talk a lot about the troubles I faced over the past few years while continuing to play the sport and was hoping that the admissions office would look upon it positively. I'm sorry if I sound whiny, but is it okay in my particular situation to still write about baseball given my circumstances?

imafan

7 steps - Your essay is about perseverence, love, self confidence, passion, drive, independence, fortitude, and determination.

Oh yeah. It's also about baseball.

When you structure your essay about your values, it becomes more about you and less about your sport. Make sense?

7Steps

Thanks for the response. So basically as long as I use baseball to highlight my other personal qualities I should be fine, right? I'll try to make sure my essay reads that way. Thanks again.

stemit

Agree 100%.

intlprepmom

Not to stick a pin here.....
D is applying as a recruit for top LAC team. Before ED deadline, she received an email from coach which had been forwarded from the AO. Basically it said recruits are not to squander their essay by writing about sports--EVEN IF their pursuit of athletic activities proves tenacity, work ethic, yadda yadda. AO did not mince words. We heard the message loud and clear.

stemit

Which division, which sport?

7Steps

Let's analyze that a bit. I'd assume that the reason that many admissions offices don't want to see essays by recruited athletes about their respective sports is because the applicant is already coming in through a somewhat one-dimensional angle. This makes perfect sense given that institutions are already making an academic tradeoff when they lower admissions standards for recruited athletes. Forcing students to not write about sports is in a way validating their academic profile beyond the bottom-threshold objective numbers (SAT + GPA) by exposing any gaps.

Given that you agree to the above, allow me to justify my use of baseball as the topic for my essay when I'm already coming in as a recruited player. It's entirely possible that I'm completely off the mark with my analyses and just fabricated it to cover my butt since I've already submitted the application.

I am by no means a well-known athlete in my community. When I tell people around my school who aren't very close to me that I've been recruited for college baseball teams, they usually reply by saying they didn't know I played at all. I'm mostly known by my other EC activities which, quite honestly, consume much more time out of my day than baseball does. My application reflects this depth and commitment to other EC's and highlights the fact that baseball takes a backseat to many of them.

However, I can't say that there has been any stronger influences on my life than my experiences through baseball. I say this confidently without the facade that the typical high-school athlete wears when they talk about the trite and somewhat repetitive themes that you referenced earlier: tenacity, work ethic, etc. Baseball is not my life, nor will it ever be, but without it I really wouldn't be the same person right now. It's hard to articulate exactly what a game's relationship is to you when all most people do is play it, but I fell as if what I've done with baseball is beyond just having fun playing it. I'm not the typical recruited athlete in this regard, as I don't live and breathe for my sport but instead live and breathe because of it.

My coaches also mentioned nothing about not writing about sports for my application, so maybe this only happens on a by-school basis. Who really knows though? I may be entirely wrong. Tell me what you think.

imafan

7 - you are a great writer. If your essay was anything like your last post, you nailed it.

intlprepmom

stemit - D3. The cc: line on the email was sent out to ALL coaches... not just my D's sport.

beenthere2

Here's an interesting link that may shed some light on the issue:
The Deadly Crew Essay

fogfog

^^ haha
Did you catch the typos in that article?

7Steps

Thanks, imafan. I guess we'll see what the ramifications of my essay choice are on December 15th.

FauxNom

I just have to jump in. Stemit suggests that the essay isn't the key to admission, which may be true for those recruited to DI schools where things are locked in early. But for highly selective LACs, this is something you have to take really seriously - especially at schools that don't have slots or tips for athletes. My D was in that category. She wrote her common app essay on a topic that was a combo of politics/service/personal reflection. The second essay, specifically for the college, she wrote about her sport. She and I talked about the risks, but it was just a great essay that said a lot about her, and she decided to use it. Successfully, I am happy to report.

so the short answer: it depends on the situation.

stemit

I think fauxnom nailed it! The variables: D1/D3's, highly recruited/"love to have you when you're admitted," school's general emphasis/lack thereof on athletics, coach's input/lack of input on content of application. If the athlete's application is not going to be flagged (e.g., MIT) the essay will be read and compared to the entire applicant pool. At the other extreme are D1 schools where the NLI is signed and the complete application (including essays) is submitted months later (e.g., USD). At the D1 school the essays are invariably about the sport. I would suggest that the applying athlete ask the coach - the coach has the information and the incentive to provide good honest guidence.