limetime

I applied for the RD cycle, and I don't know what will come this March, but I had this questions anyways.

I read somewhere that approx. 60% of Williams students are athletes. Well, I'm planning to do an intramural sport, but would I feel left out if I wasn't a varsity-level player? Do athletes only hang with athletes, and non-athletes with non-athletes? I'm not planning to make sports a very big commitment at Williams, and wanted to see how non-athletes feel about it. :T

Thanks in advance,

lime

momrath

lime, about 30% of all Williams students are varsity athletes. This is true at ALL small LACs that have multiple teams and small populations.

What differentiates Williams is that a greater percentage (I don't know that it's actually 60% but it's significant) of the student body are active at some level either in an organized sport or in an outdoorsy activity like skiing or trekking. These same kids may also be artists or musicians or actors etc who are also athletically inclined.

My son was never involved in team sports but he had a great time in less informal activities like soccer and broomball and snowboarded and hiked a lot. Some of his friends were team athletes, some were not. I didn't get the impression that team affiliation was the determining factor in friendships.

interesteddad

36.4% overall play on at least one varsity team
34.5% of women
38.3% of men

That does not include JV teams. Williams states that 40% of students play intercollegiate athletics.

eph.m.era

From a less-than-athletic freshman: sports are a big part of the Williams experience for a large percentage of students, definitely. And non-athlete reactions to this culture vary: I have friends here/know people who visited who felt that the school consisted almost entirely of jocks, and were uncomfortable with the social delineations between athletes and non-athletes. I've found, however, that due to the entry system and acquaintances made in class, I have a fair number of friends who are athletes. It's true that teams tend to be very close - I don't hang out on a consistent basis with many varsity players. I don't think, however, that you'll feel left out by not playing a varsity sport - I'm happy with my social experience, and I'm not involved with sports at all! But IMs are supposed to be a lot of fun, and fairly low-key, or at least (as with the ultimate frisbee teams) offering different levels of play depending on your commitment and skill - and then there are the silly sports like entry broomball which compete in the winter. So there are plenty of options and opportunities.

DadofB&G

My son is a freshmen and is not involved at all in athletics. He did play on two varsity teams in high school, but is not good enough to play varsity in college.

I don't think he has a lot of athlete friends, but that's just because he hangs out with kids who are involved in his areas of interest. He loves it there and pays little or no attention to sports (so far).

ephswoman09

Our school is obviously really athletic. Although not the case for me, some that are not athletes find this marginalizing. It makes sense that they do...many teams eat/practice/party together and if yes, it would be slightly awkward to be the only non-team member eating with a big group at the dining hall. if you are comfortable with yourself though and find a good group of friends, I don't think it should be too much of a problem.