Hey guys,
I am currently applying to a Blair Academy. I have played both Crew and Lacrosse in the past. At Blair, they are both in the same season. Which should I focus on in my application? My decision is mainly based on two points:
Which is a better program overall? (How to each of their teams compare to others In their respective leagues?)
Which would they be more likely to accept? (I love BOTH sports. So I am not compromising myself to base my decision off of what they need/have a buggee hold on) id assume it’s best to apply for the one that is not as big, since they are probably looking to expand.
Feel free to correct me if I am wrong anywhere. Thanks guys!
P.S. I quickly typed this up from my phone whilst waiting for my bus home from school. So please excuse any errors as I couldn’t really proof read it.
I honestly don’t know anything about either sport at Blair.
But I do know this…unless you are a true impact player (or some athletic freak of nature), it doesn’t really matter. For crew, which not many people have done before HS, I think what will matter is body type and overall athletic potential.
So I don’t know that I’d focus on either in your application, unless, for example, you can legitimately claim to be an impact player — meaning you could start (and be a game changer) as a freshman or with a little development. With stats (and video and club coach recommendations) to prove it.
To give you some perspective…my younger daughter was a nationally ranked fencer in 8th grade. She applied to three high schools with fencing programs — was admitted to two and rejected from one. At the school she attended for her first two years of high school, she anchored her squad to an undefeated season her freshman year and won the individual league title twice. My point is that she was a bona fide impact player in her sport and even then it wasn’t enough for her to be a shoo-in at every school.
I’m not trying to rain on your parade. But I do want to share our experience. For the most part, it’s not like college athletic recruiting…where coaches are actively scouting, recruiting, and have real leverage with admissions.
My advice is to focus on other parts of your application and choose the sport to pursue once you are in.
Just to let you know, sports is NOT a major piece of my application. It’s just gonna be mentioned because I will want to play a sport there.
Less people do crew, so I always did that figuring that it would help because at least I have SOME experience. But, the last school I interviewed and toured at, they kept on saying “WOW! Your from NY and don’t play lax??” I have played lax and crew before — but at both of these schools, the seasons overlap. And it seemed as if they wanted me to play lacrosse for them. So, I didn’t know if it was something enough to sway them— even if they just needed bodies on the field.
Also, do you have any general info about Blair that I should know? (for example, something happened with their head of school?) thanks in advance!
My point to you is that it is probably not going to make a difference. IMO, it will only make a difference if you are an impact player…and then maybe not even (as evidenced by my daughter’s experience going 2 for 1 when applying to schools with scholastic fencing programs…and she was a nationally ranked fencer).
Sorry, I don’t know much about Blair. Some kids from our area of NJ have attended, and I think the parents have been happy with their experience overall.
I know of one friends child who attends Blair. He loves it. I don’t know much about Crew or Lax there. I also don’t know if the coach has any pull with admissions.
The easiest way to find out is to talk to the coach. Go visit campus. Have a chat. Be sure to ask how much influence they have with admissions. Most coaches unfortunately have little influence.
The boys lacrosse coach at Blair is also the director of financial aid. In our experience, having met him several times in group settings (secondary school fairs, student lunches he hosted at my kids’ school) it is a regular thing for him to talk about lacrosse and encourage kids to play. I would not read into it in any way. Given Blair’s relatively low endowment, their financial aid budget is slimmer than other schools of similar academic caliber. His job as financial aid director is much more important than his job as a lacrosse coach. In fact, we know someone who is definitely an impact lacrosse player who has impressive academic stats who was wait listed at Blair. Financial aid was cited as the reason.
@dramakid2@SevenDad@sgopal2 Well, from what I understand, Blair also has an excellent theater program, no? I have done theater for many years and my mother is also a professional actress. If anything will pull me in, I would hope its that.
I know Blair is even of a similar caliber to some schools like Exeter, Taft, Etc. Which is why it is surprising to me that their endowment is so small. Nevertheless, I did apply as a full pay student to Blair Academy.
The only thing that gives me pause in regards to Blair is their religious founding. I am Jewish, so you could understand that going to a school with a Catholic base could ring some bells. However, they have assured me that they are very reformed and that actual church services are optional.
Also, I am not an impact player. But, out of both, does anybody know if one program far surpasses the other? Thanks!
Many schools were originally founded around a religious base, Blair is not unique in this regard. These schools attract kids from all over the world, from many different faiths. Diversity is the name of the game, so I think most if not all schools are sensitive and open to different religious beliefs. Not to mention that Presbyterian is one of the more liberal Christian faiths, so I would expect it to be non-issue.
Being into theater may help differentiate you as a candidate, but I would not consider it a hook. Are you applying for 10th grade for Fall of 2018 or are you just preparing way in advance for 2019?
@AppleNotFar As I said, I am Jewish – and even reformed at that. Yes, you are correct – my bad!
@dramakid2 I am applying for the 10th grade in the 2018-2019 school year. I am a late applicant. Here is not the place for me to go through all of the mistakes that led to me being rejected from all 6 top-tier schools I applied to, but I cannot change any of that now. Thanks for clarifying the religious aspect.
@sgopal2 Yeah, Blair has a smaller endowment when compared to some schools with a similar academic prowess. So I think FP will help. I also think that theater should help – I have way more ECs than that. I’m pretty well-rounded.
Boarding schools like Blair typically like to have students who can fill multiple roles. The well rounded strategy is a good one. In particular they need students who are athletes, musicians, playwrights, actors, etc. If you can clearly demonstrate in the application that you can fill at least 2-3 roles, then this will certainly help. However don’t get carried away and put every activity under the sun down, as this makes you look like a resume stuffer.
Definitely highlight the theater and sports. If you play more than one sport (esp in different seasons), this will only help more. Good luck
I’ll be putting up a post about my thoughts soon.
Thank you for that advice, though. That’s the path I ended up taking. They seemed very front and not too concerned with semantics. I appreciate that from a school, and so reciprocity was abound. @sgopal2
