swimom

My hs jr d is an excellent student, sectional level swimmer, thinks she wants to swim in college. She's looked @ the times of current swimmers at DI most selective colleges, & hers are 2nd thru 5th. Could she get in? Would the swimming be more of a time commitment than the 4 hrs/ day she's now swimming? Is D3 less of a commitment? I really am clueless.

EMM1

In any sport, including swimming, DI is going to require a greater time commitment than DIII. You should speak to the coaches and swimmers at the schools your D is interested in and ask them about what is expected.

keylyme

DI usually involves training the entire school year, pretty much. NCAA rules are 24 hours/wk of training, and teams generally do at least that. She would probably be doing other training she doesn't do now as well...i.e. weights and running. There is also an expectation of DI athletes to be very involved in team activities which demonstrate community service and leadership.

IMHopeful

D1 college swimming programs vary tremendously so your question about whether your daughter would get in will depend upon what level of program she is considering, as well as whether she is seeking scholarship money.

My D swam for USC -- a program that typically finishes in the top 10-ish at NCAAs. Full scholarship swimmers were those who were National Champions/Olympic qualifier types who would make it into finals/score points at the NCAA championship. Partial scholarship swimmers would be those who could qualify for NCAAs, but may not score a lot of points. Pretty much everyone on the team were Senior National qualified in their events. However, she does have friends who attended "second tier" D1 swimming schools (not mean to be disparaging here . . .), were sectional level finalists and got scholarships. Also, many female swimming programs will allow quite a few non-scholarship "walk-ons" to provide Title IX balance for the school.

Re: time commitment. For high level D1 -- it is significant. While NCAA rules are 24 hours/wk of formal training, in reality they often do much more than that when you add in "captain's practices" or their own supplemental works outs (running, etc.) D3, as well as lower level D1 is generally less intense. And for most higher level programs, it is a year round commitment. My D often envied other athletes whose sports were more truly seasonal.

When you look on the college websites and see the seasonal times, it is often pretty meaningless when it comes to scholarship money. Look at the "A" and "B" cuts for NCAAs, and for top level schools, those will be in the ballpark of what they will look for in a recruited athlete.

So, questions to consider:
Are you looking for scholarship money? And at what level? If money is your objective, seek a school where your times will be at the top of their level (measured by point scoring performance at their most significant meet). Also, if money if your objective, remember that D3 does not provide athletic scholarships. On the other hand, you may be able to parlay your swimming into acceptance to a school that might otherwise be a significant reach.

LGadow

My daughter is now a sophomore at a mid level D1 school. When she was recruited, she had 8-10 sectional cuts and I think 2 Jr. National cuts. What she was told, and seems to be true, is for any kind of scholarship, they need to be able to score at the school's conference meet as a freshman.
It was not a huge difference for her, since she had a very demanding club coach who also happened to be her high school coach. She now swims 3 mornings/week, plus afternoons and Saturday mornings; also weights 3 times/week.
What does seem to differ among schools is the academic courseload they are expected to take. She knows swimmers at other D1 schools who only take 12 credit hours/semester; at her school they are expected to take 15-16. At least this way, she will graduate in 4 years, but the amount of work is a lot at times.
Good luck!

glido

Look at Kenyon College, D III powerhouse.