Athletics vs Academics? How to choose a school?

Athletic Recruits
1

<p>So I’ve been accepted to two very good academic schools. We’ll call them school 1 and school 2. School 1 is ranked in the top 30 on US news. I do believe that academically it is quite superior to the other school. School 1 I feel also has great research and study abroad and internship opportunities too. It is much more diverse than the other school which I also like. </p>

<p>School 2’s sports team is quite superior to school 1. At this school, I feel like I have such an amazing opportunity to get better athletically and to be a member of a successful team by going to school 2. School 2 would be a lot cheaper (by a couple of thousand), and being Division 1 would allow me the chance at receiving an athletic scholarship (even though it’s a slim chance). My parents told me not to worry about money because they can pay for either but it kind of scares me that I’ll have so much money to pay back in loans by going to school 1. I’m wondering if it’ll be really worth it. As I search the forums on this site I see some people always stress picking the cheapest school, but, in regards to athletics, some say pick the school where you can get the best education. </p>

<p>To be honest I never thought I would get into school 1 and so for the longest time kind of pictured myself going to school 2 and was perfectly content with the idea. I truly felt that school 2 was where I was meant to be. Now that I have been accepted to school 1, I feel as though I have this great opportunity that I shouldn’t pass up (it’s a hard school to get into acceptance rate wise). There’s something about school 2 that I’m drawn to even though my instincts tell me that I might only be pulled that way because of the athletics. </p>

<p>I can’t help but think I’m being stupid to pass up an amazing academic experience just for an athletic one but my sport is truly my passion and I’m so driven to become the best I can be (although I still can’t be positive that I won’t improve to the same extent regardless of where I go). I truly feel like I can get a good education at either school. It’s hard too because I don’t know what I want to major in. Does a degree at one school really outshine another in the long run? Should I go to the cheaper school, save some money, and get to compete on a team that has a lot of success in competition and developing their athletes? </p>

<p>How did you or your children decide between schools when athletics were put into the picture? How do you reconcile yourself with the idea that you won’t get to be on the team with the great Div.1 success and glory? Or how do you reconcile yourself with the idea that the academics at school 2 might not be as good as school 1? I feel like whatever decision I make I will always wonder “what if” and I don’t really want to be burdened with that question my whole life. Any advice?</p>

2

<p>QuestionableM,</p>

<p>Step back. You are close to 18 years old. What do you expect to be doing in 5-6 years? Will you be playing your sport or doing something related to your college major? </p>

<p>IMHO…The athletic experience in college can be a great one whether it is D1, D3 or whatever. It is fun to be on a team to win a conference championship and play in the NCAAs. Most high school athletes aspire to continue their sport into college but realize college is the end of the road for their competitive sport. They plan for the end of the road by finding a another skill that has value to society…a job. If you go into college with the expectation that sports is the single most important thing, and you can make a professional living at that sport that is much different conversation. But you did not mention becoming a professional athlete. A hiring employer is not going to care what level of sport you played in college, but they will care that you had the maturity to manage your academics and sport in college. So, I would select the school that offers you the most academic opportunity (through your major or alumni network) once that sports road ends. I hope that helps.</p>

3

<p>I concur with fenway - generally academics is a better bet in the long run than athletics. But then again, don’t underestimate the importance of being happy in your situation. If you’ve always pictured yourself attending school 2 with a big sports culture, maybe the academic culture at school 1 might not be a good fit. Decisions, decisions.</p>

4

<p>There is one truth I have seen over the last eight years in college athletics - every recruiting class gets faster and stronger. In some sports/conferences the increase is so rapid that it is stunning. I have heard fenwaysouth often advise “go where you can play”. I would advise you to factor that in also. </p>

<p>You mention that you have a slim chance of receiving an athletic scholarship which (I think) implies you are not at the top of this recruiting class. Can you improve enough next year to become stronger than most of the current class and be stronger than the next recruiting class? Also, will you travel to the conference championships with school 2 and do you have a chance of going to NCAAs with school 2? A lot of athletes get left home, if not the first year then in later years when the younger classes come in stronger. This isn’t a reason to not go to school 2, it is just another thing to consider. Who are you and will you be okay with your playing time/contribution either way? Where would you feel better about your impact on the team?</p>

<p>It is very mature of you to consider money and you are the only one who can decide what impact that has on your decision, it’s great your parents are supportive either way. If the true cost difference is a couple thousand dollars then that is not a lot in the world of tuition but if it is a couple thousand dollars PLUS a lot of loans for you that is a significant decision. </p>

<p>Honestly…my opinion is it is okay to choose a school for the amazing athletic experience (as long as they are both sound academically). Everyone has to choose a school for some reason and it is natural to choose a school based on your interests and passions. Yes, be sure you will be happy there if you can’t play but beyond that realize your priorities and give yourself permission to choose based on those. Most of the student athletes I know can’t go abroad or take advantage of research opportunities anyway because they have such an huge commitment to their sport. Being a college athlete is a very intense experience and will be different than the non-athletic experience in so many ways. Choose where you think you will be most satisfied and challenged across the board and then don’t look back. It sounds like you will be happy at either school - so win-win!</p>

5

<p>QuestionableM, only you will be able to make an informed decision after weighing all the important factors relating to both schools. Because you clearly are torn between the two at this point, I recommend that you try to quantify your “feelings” about the schools. I’m sure there are many ways to do this, but my sons would list the things they felt were important, place a percentage to weight each factor, then rank each factor to arrive at an overall “final number.”</p>

<p>For example, you seem to be looking at sports team, academic reputation, costs and overall fit/comfort/intangibles. You could decide how important each factor is (for example, 30% academic, 30% sports, 25% costs, 15% overall fit/intangibles – just examples, I’m sure your percentages will vary). Then rate each factor from 1-10 (10 being the best, 1 the worst), and finally multiply each rated factor by the percentage and add to get an overall score. You need to be totally honest with yourself when going through this exercise (doesn’t matter what the “experts” say), and you need to take the time to make your percentages and ratings as precise as possible.</p>

<p>If the two schools are still close based on your numerical rating, you’ll have to go with your intuition. But by going through this exercise, you may learn which school is your best fit based on what’s important to you. Good luck!</p>

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<p>^everton, we actually made a spreadsheet exactly like that. Here it is in google doc form…
<a href=“Tier1Athletics College Decision Making Machine - Google Sheets”>Tier1Athletics College Decision Making Machine - Google Sheets;

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<p>the old spreadsheet format,that makes my accountant eyes light up.</p>

<p>I did this for rating the schools, the sport(fencing), level of competition etc… money award, academic strength etc…</p>

8

<p>You didn’t really tell us where School 2 is academically. Are you looking at the difference between an Oberlin/Trinity College/Bates-level school and a 3rd- or 4th-tier university, or is School 2 more the caliber of, let’s say, Michigan State?</p>

<p>Would you choose School 2 if you were not an athlete? If you really like the school and would prefer going there over School 1, then by all means you should go there.</p>

<p>If the answer is no, you wouldn’t go to School 2 if you were not an athlete, you probably shouldn’t go there. </p>

<p>You may find that after you get there, you will not be an athlete. The coach may lead you to believe you are an athletic god, but after you get there, you may find yourself ignored by the coach and that you aren’t that great compared to their other athletes (high school sports really are far, far, far worse than Division 1, and far worse than Division 3). You may get hurt right away. You may find that schoolwork is too demanding to give you the time to play and practice.</p>

<p>The $2,000 a year difference is chump change. That much can easily be earned during college, and $8,000 in debt can easily be paid off after college if you get any decent job. Financially, they’re essentially equal. That is such a small amount that the difference in reputation between a great school and a mediocre school (let alone the difference in the caliber of the education and the alumni network) could permit you to pay that much off in your first year out of school. No guarantees, of course.</p>

<p>I’ll risk the anger of this board again by saying this, but athletic scholarships can actually be a negative. At a lot of division 1 schools, and particularly in revenue sports, that’s when school goes out the window and you become a professional athlete. See my post on this thread: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/athletic-recruits/1492133-football-iu-harvard.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/athletic-recruits/1492133-football-iu-harvard.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Here are my suggestions:</p>

<p>1) Consider this: If you had a career-ending injury on Day 1, would you still choose the same school?</p>

<p>2) Consider going to the best academic school where you are good enough to play.</p>

<p>3) Pick the school beyond athletics that you feel is the best fit for you.</p>

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<p>I think it is important that you follow your gut and where your heart is leading you. If you always saw yourself at school 2 then it sounds like it is a good fit. If your reason for going to school 1 is only because it is more respected academically are you sure you would be happy there? I would suggest you go to each campus while its still in session and attend a couple classes, check out the student population. I have 2 kids, 1 is at a big D1 university that is very academic and he is playing a sport… great fit for him… The other is at a small NAIA private school with smaller classes and a tight knit student body, she is also playing a sport. Extreme opposite types of schools but each chose based on where they saw themselves. It is not easy but you sound like a very level headed kid and I am sure you will figure it out. Best of luck.</p>

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<p>Thanks everyone so much for the awesome advice. I wasn’t expecting so many great replies. In answer to some of the questions, the school (I prefer not to say the names of them) would be between lets say an Oberlin/Trinity like college (school number 1) and school number 2 being more of a say Providence College/Ithaca/Quinnipiac. The difference between the 2 schools is about 8,000 dollars but the loans I’d have to take out for school number 1 are pretty huge. School 2 gave me a lot in academic money. I’ve visited both schools recently and I can honestly say I still feel that wanting for school 2. I really feel like I could be happy anywhere though. I just feel so much anxiety at choosing a school because I feel like they’re both great options.</p>

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<p>My son was in the same exact situation. He ended up going with the academics…but that’s him. I think your “gut” is already giving you your answer. And if school “2” is at the Providence/Ithaca/Quinnipiac level as far as academics, you are going to get a great edcuation. Good luck!</p>

12

<p>Is the difference $8,000 over four years, or $8,000 a year? That could make a difference in what we tell you. What is the net cost per year for each school, not counting loans and work study? If there is a cost difference, remember that financial aid offices will often match the offers from other schools. Get the coach to push them if you want extra push. Division 3 schools aren’t supposed to give athletic scholarships, but at some, the president’s scholarships seem to wind up going to athletes.</p>

<p>I like hearing that you could be happy anywhere. Some people are so fussy and perfectionistic that they get upset because Harvard says no and they have to go to Dartmouth and are miserable there (those people would have been miserable at Harvard, too). That means that you’ll probably be able to get a good education at either school.</p>

<p>If you really feel yourself fitting in better at School 2, then my recommendation would be to go there.</p>

<p>However, I’d like to give you one more thing to think about before saying that absolutely. Think hard about where you are more likely to get playing time. You are much more likely to see playing time at a Division 3 school. This complicates and perhaps conflicts with everything I just said in my post above, but one more question to ask yourself is, “Would I be happier at School 2 and not playing, or happier at School 1 and playing?”</p>

<p>Take a couple of walks around the block and think about this. You have until April 30 to make up your mind.</p>

13

<p>First, Congratulations! It is awesome that you have this very difficult choice (even though it may not seem so awesome at this time because you actually have to make the decision, lol). </p>

<p>When I first read the title to your thread I thought to myself “Is this poster kidding?“ Your thread title made it seem like one school was NOT very good academically, but your post clarified that both schools are very good academic schools, and that makes a big difference. </p>

<p>As a general matter, I am one of those posters you referred to who believes it’s never a good idea to choose a school solely based on athletics unless the student-athlete’s primary goal is to go pro (aka, this is your future career) and there is a pretty good indication that he actually has the talent to get there, and that the school is a high exposure school at which he will actually get to play and get exposure. But with that said, I also don’t believe it’s that “cut and dried.” </p>

<p>I trust you have visited both schools and like them equally? The most important thing to consider is where you think you will be the happiest. This will be your home for 4 years. You need to be happy there or everything else will suffer. </p>

<p>The second thing you need to consider is how important the opportunity to play college sports is to you. You have indicated that your sport is very important to you and you really want to play it, but you have not indicated that either school has even expressed an interest in you becoming a part of the team. Re: school 1: has the coach been in contact with you, offered you a spot on the team even though athletic scholarship $ may not be available (you don’t state division or if it’s Ivy conference but I’ll assume it’s a school w no athletic $)? Will you actually get to play? If playing at the collegiate level (not club) is very important to you, and you will actually have the opportunity to do it while at the same time graduating with some exceptional “paper” (a degree from a prestigious institution), then I’d lean toward school 1.</p>

<p>Re: school 2: I have to assume you are a senior since you have been accepted and must make the decision. If this DI coach hasn’t actively recruited you by now then it’s not happening at this point. That money was allocated a long time ago, despite the fact that NLI didn’t happen until this winter. You will still have the opportunity to try-out for a walk-on and if you make it (and they keep you the following year), $ “may” be offered, but this is so rare (on both accounts). Many of these schools will have that money committed to the next crop of new recruits already. And, if you are lucky enough to make the team, will you even play? Would you really be happy putting in all of this extra effort just to be a practice player who never sees any time, (and this is even assuming you can make the team)? Or, would you be content going to this great sports school as a fan, for it’s incredible school spirit and perhaps try out for the club team? If playing club (and some great athletes don’t even make the club teams at DI schools), but if playing club, being in this great atmosphere, getting a very good education and walking out with prestigious paper at the end will make you just as happy, then I’d lean toward school 2 with the academic aid.</p>

<p>The bottom line, you need to do a personal “wish list” to decide: write out the pros and cons for both schools. I think doing this will detract you from the problem you stated you have been facing of not thinking clearly because the DI sports program keeps creeping into your thoughts. Pen to paper will force you to focus on more than that and will hopefully guide you to what is really the most important to you. </p>

<p>Congratulations and good luck. Please come back and let us know what you decide.</p>