I am reading different things in regards to admissions and a letter of intent.
It is my understanding that a letter of intent always includes some atheletic financial aid, but does a letter of intent only get offered to an athelete who has been guaranteed admissions (barring dramatic grade drops, etc.)?
I am especially interested in relation to div. I sports at the UCs.
A NLI does not guarantee admission, only athletic aid. A NLI can be invalidated if an athlete is not admitted.
Swimkidsdad is correct, and that’s why some high academic schools that use NLIs (such as Stanford) also use Likely Letters from admissions to reassure recruits that they will be admitted.
Many sports have a November NLI singing date, and the student hasn’t been admitted yet (or sometimes even applied). One can sign the NLI and then apply, or be admitted in the spring. One can only sign an NLI if there is an athletic award.
Is it usual, then, that the school would do a pre-read, or some equivalent, prior to the NLI?
And does anyone know if the University of California system issues likely letters?
If not, couldn’t this put a recruit in a very vulnerable position - i.e. if not offered admission, then searching for another school in April, after most recruitment slots are filled?
Which programs do letters of intent? Just D1? All D1? Is the N in NLI something different?
Only D1 programs have NLIs, I believe. Someone else can chime in on D2. D3s do not have NLIs. NLI stands for National Letter of Intent and is the same as letter of intent. Likely letters are a whole different ballgame and are associated with Ivies for the most part.
That’s right about Likely Letters being something entirely different from NLIs and I hope I didn’t confuse the issue by bringing up LLs on this thread.
As noted LLs are common in the Ivies (which don’t have NLIs as they don’t have athletic scholarships). In the case of the Ivies, LLs, which come from admissions, are to reassure recruits that they will in fact be admitted to the school. And since many of these schools have single digit admission rates, it makes sense for recruits to want that reassurance.
I’m not sure how common LLs are at the scholarship D1 schools, other than Stanford. At Stanford, like the Ivies, the admission rate is very low and so recruits want official word from admissions (not just their coach). And the Stanford dean of admissions previously had the same job at Yale so is experienced with the Ivy League process and LLs.
Certainly there are other scholarship D1 schools with high academics/low admission rates (Duke, Northwestern, etc.) so I would assume they have something similar in place. I’m not sure of the specifics though.
Thanks @bluewater2015 and @mcr976 for clarifying. Do you know at what stage of the process colleges issue NLI and LL? Mainly before the application gets submitted or after? Early Decision period v.s. Regular? I imagine it might vary by sport because in football, for example, a lot of D1s continue to recruit after the fall season is over
Lots of factual questions can be answered with 100% certainty by referring to the NLI home page:
http://www.nationalletter.org/
(NLI signing dates are here. This is when the NLI is “issued” as you put it)
Here are the NLI schools:
http://web1.ncaa.org/onlineDir/exec2/nliListing
Lots of other helpful info too
Thanks @fenwaypark It sounds like NLI is the same thing as Signing Day? Likely Letter is something that Ivy League schools in particular do?
In general, when and how should we know if we are being recruited as a slot athlete? If we should expect to receive an acceptance (or at least coach’s support in admission), and even any money?
D1 and D2 schools issue nli but you have to receive athletic scholarship money to receive one. The actual letter is sent to the student a day or so effort the opening of the signing period for that sport and in the fall the students has one week to sign and return. Some do it in a high school signing ceremony but you don’t have to. You can receive more than one but can only sign one letter. There is also an award letter that comes with it.
most athletes are admitted, but some are not. Wisconsin did not admit a recruit for football this year even though he was ncaa eligible. My daughter’s coach had admissions look at the scores and grades of the recruits before she made offers. Not binding, but why waste anyone’s time if the recruit isn’t going to be admitted?
The NLI is a documentary agreement signed by the athlete and the school. Signing Day (or Period) is the time during which the NLI may be signed.
NLI schools do not have slots. They have athletic scholarships. Coaches at NLI schools should be advising recruits whether they are being recruited for athletic scholarships or are being invited as walk-ons .
Ivies have slots. Coach should tell you after Admissions has confirmed a positive academic pre-read, or you can ask, whether the coach is allocating a slot to you.
There is a divergence of opinion on the forum about the level of support attached to an Ivy slot.
My opinion is that there is either support or no support. Others say or suggest there are slots with support for a likely letter, which are more solid than slots without support for a likely letter, or no support.
In this regard, see this comment: “A second tier of “soft-support”, not included as part of the formal number of supported athletes would really undermine the whole process.”
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/athletic-recruits/1786857-ivy-league-school-or-mit-p4.html
And this: “My opinion is that a recruited athlete on the list is just as solid whether or not they get the letter in the mail.”
http://www.tier1athletics.org/category/ivy-league-academics/academic-index-ivy-league-academics/
@fenwaypark Thanks! That clarified a lot. Basically, if a D1 or D2 on the NLI list is recruiting me and telling me to apply, I should ask if it is as an NLI-scholarship applicant or as a walk on?
Actually to be precise, there are about 5 D3s on that list. Does that mean that those D3s award scholarships?
That is correct. You need to clarify if you are being recruited for athletic scholarship money or not. And depending on the sport, how much money you are being offered.
If there are D3s on the list, they must be awarding athletic scholarships. No NLI is signed without an accompanying 'grant-in-aid", agreement which is the document that specifies the athletic scholarship amount.
Thanks @fenwaypark ! When should that conversation happen? Before I submit the application? Or after I am accepted? Or sometime in between? A D2 coach on that list told me to apply. Do I have to do something different with my application for NLI? Also do I need to give the coach my NCAA number if I am NLI?
The conversation about the amount of aid should happen when the coach makes you the offer. The coach should be specific about this. If not, you need to ask.
The coach will tell you what documents are needed before an NLI is offered. Many schools require the application to be filed before the NLI is issued. NCAA eligibility center number is needed for official visits. If you do not have an OV before the NLI is issued the NCAA number will be requested.
Remember, if the coach is offering you an athletic scholarship it means he/she really wants you on the team. Coaches are usually very happy to provide all the information you need about these things. Coaches do not want the process to fail.
I know there are a lot of threads here about nightmare scenarios where (in the Ivy context) coach gets a positive pre-read from Admissions, offers a slot, and the recruit is rejected. These situations are rare exceptions.
In my experience, coaches are looking for every way possible to get you on board. They do not have time to play “gotcha”. If in fact there is a piece of information missing before the NLI can be issued, coaches (or the Compliance Dept) will usually just call you and ask you to submit it.
It is good that you are striving to get things right the first time. But don’t sweat things more than you need to.
There are no D3 athletic scholarships. If there are D3 schools on the list you are referring to, they are offering something besides an athletic scholarship. There is no NLI to sign, although I just read something that some D3 schools will now issue a letter which is basically a ‘congratulation’ letter for the student to sign at a signing ceremony.
I believe the D3 schools on the list are NLI member schools because one or more of their sports are D1. For example. Hopkins is D1 in lax.
http://www.hopkinssports.com/sports/jays-unlimited/spec-rel/endowed-scholarships.html
Clarkson, RPI, St Lawrence for hockey, I expect.
Correct that no athletic scholarships at D3 schools for D3 sports.
How would you handle the situation where the athlete has gone on an official visit to his first choice Ivy, has been asked to submit SCEA application tomorrow for admissions meeting re: likely letter that will take place in a week, but has another official scheduled at a different Ivy this week. The second school knows they are not first choice but have been in heavy contact for months. I’m inclined to say he should go to the visit because without a likely letter in hand, nothing is sure. Advice???