emerica22

Hey all, I recently received a letter from the cross country coach at Bard college basically describing the cross country program. Now here is where I'm confused, In this letter he states "Our T and F program is in its second year and there is room for everybody as we grow in numbers and quality. I am enclosing our current brochure and look forward to hearing form you via e-mail should you have any questions or comments."

Ok, first of all I'm a pretty average runner, and up until this point I was planning on my cross country career being over after high school. I haven't contacted any coaches or anything, or expressed an interest to run on the cross country team at any of the schools I am looking at.

So I am basically wondering how serious this letter is. To me it sounds like they really need people to join the team, I suppose due to the lack of applicants who run cross country, and thus will take anyone they can. Does the coach want me to contact him?/join the team or is this just a letter they send out to all applicants who ran cross country in High school? If the coach really does want me to run, do you think that this will give me an advantage in admissions?

All responses will be greater appreciated, Thank you!

keylyme

I think the fact that the letter says "there is room for everybody" means you are being invited (encouraged) to join the track and field team. It probably wouldn't give you a huge leg-up in admissions as it sounds like anyone can sign up to be on the team.

MaineLonghorn

If you're interested, though, it couldn't hurt to call and talk to the coach. Cross country/track and field is such a great sport, it would be cool to get to do it in college!

riverrunner

Is Bard a college you're interested in attending?

emerica22

Thanks for the replys everyone! Bard was my first choice before receiving the letter and still is, which is why I want every admissions advantage i can get. The reason I think I may get an admissions advantage if I express an interest in the cross country team is that they only have like 8 kids on the team, and due to the type of school that Bard is very few kids apply with sports in mind, thus they may be trying to get anyone they can. This is the only explanation I can think of as to why they contacted me, again I'm an average runner and have not contacted any college coaches. So what do you guys think, will this possibly help me in admissions if I express an interest in the team?

zeinX

It might, but only express an interest if you truly are interested in the program and plan to follow through with it. Depending upon how much of a response he receives, the coach may only have a few kids lined up that want to compete for him, in which case he may go to admissions and say that he really, really wants kids X, Y, and Z.

However, this is something you should be able to discuss with the coach. Casually bring it up during a conversation and just ask if he has any power in admissions.

3xboys

Bard is a fantastic school - a total gem - and I bet if you express interest in running xcountry and helping to build their new team it might give you a little boost with admissions...

riverrunner

Hi emerica,
A good place to start this conversation with the coach is to know where you might fit on the team, and how you might contribute.

The Bard athletic website is very good, and has an excellent archive of past XC performance.

Bard Athletics and Recreation | Varsity Sports

Here is a link to the 2008 Skyline Conference Championships. This tells you who Bard's biggest competitors are, and who else runs in their league.

Cool Running


You can see where you would have finished this 5K race, if you ran your current PR. Take a look at the current meet results for Bard, and see who their top girls are, and how fast they're running. The Bard coach will be looking for someone who can run faster that the slowest returning runner who is currently in his top 7 or so. If you can't run that fast right now, but have a passion for the sport, and are willing to work, let him know that.

Are you running XC this season? You should meet with your current HS coach and talk this over with him/her. Your HS coach will be contacted by the Bard coach sooner or later, so it would be good to know what your HS coach would say about you, and to let him/her know that you are pursuing running at Bard.

Best wishes to you. Running XC at any level in college can be a wonderful experience, IMO! Distance runners are some of the coolest people around, as I'm sure you know!

hidingout

The best place to start in this situation is to pick up the phone and call the coach. Tell him you were thrilled to get his letter since Bard is your first choice school. If you live close by, stop in and meet him in person. Coaches are good at talking to high school athletes. It is their job to find something to talk about so give him a call and let the conversation flow. At the very least, you will have more information than when you began.