The key here is to not take it personally/read into things and keep communicating, expressing interest and sending relevant updates. (While moving forward with other options).
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We have had a positive, and long, recruiting process. Just want to say this first before posting the below criticism of how some coaches deal with communications.
What can be annoying is how one-sided recruitment communications can be at times. Coaches, at showcases and seminars, will say âcommunicate effectively and frequently, make sure your emails have no typos, show a lot of interest, text me anytime and Iâll respond,â and then do the exact opposite. Parents share their war stories and so often cite poor coach communications as the worst part of recruiting.
Ghosting is such a poor way of handling kids. Not just our experience, but so many families weâve spoken to have gone through this. If a kid has emailed you 2-4 times and you canât respond, you are simply bad at your job. Recruiting is a big part of a coachâs job, so do it, and be as honest as you can with kids (I donât have any info right now, Iâll be in touch in a month, your prospects are unlikely with us, whatever).
More than a few will not respond in even a remotely, timely fashion and then make up some excuse like âIâve been traveling a lotâ or âIâve been super busyâ. Some are disorganized, and some overshoot their recruiting âwant to havesâ before they come back to reality, but there are no excuses for ghosting. In the real world, there are repercussions to ghosting, at work or in our personal lives.
When we consider the coaches that tend to ghost until itâs convenient for them, and then we ask families and kids their experience with that team/coach, we sometimes receive poor feedback. Buyer beware when it comes to those coaches.
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Do coaches specifically say they are submitting your studentâs info for a pre-read? Weâve been asked for transcripts, etc but havenât been informed by coaches that âIâm going to submit this for a pre-readâ.
Also, our student plays a sport that uses a platform with online profiles where transcripts could be posted and accessed only by coaches. Is it better to post it there so coaches can more easily have access or not post it so that they have to ask our student for it (so that we know they have some level of interest)?
I donât think this statement serves anyone well. Many NESCAC coaches have full time jobs in addition to their (sometimes part-time) coaching job.
Fine. Edited post to soften the tone. But the ones I referred to do not have other full time jobs. Mostly disorganized/poor at communications, while demanding great communications from kids.
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We were asked for transcripts and schedules very early on (first call usually). When it was pre-read time these same coaches asked for it again, more often than not including final Junior year grades and expected Senior year schedule, test score reports, sometimes school profiles, occasionally a short personal statement. It was generally clear to us that they would be submitting the materials to Admissions.
ETA - One coach told us he was âunable to offer a pre-read at this time.â This was unexpected given where other conversations were moving along and just goes to show you never know what going through a coaches head, but this is not relevant. I believe we emailed the coach and asked politely but clearly what was the next step.
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Iâm going through this for the first time but my daughter has had official pre reads at schools. So those schools itâs almost like an application and there was an essay or writing sample that was part of it.
Itâs a great question, Iâm wondering if all the pre-reads are like this because many more coaches have requested her transcript, future classes and is it possible they will submit for a pre-read without her even knowing?
Yes, totally possible. Itâs still a minority of schools asking for essays/writing samples.
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Youâll only know for sure if your kid asks if the coach has not affirmatively said he/she is submitting your kidâs info for a pe-read. I think some families set themselves up for disappointment by assuming the best through wishful thinking.
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Good point. I think asking directly is best. Can students typically ask coaches for pre-reads? Or is this frowned upon?
Itâs not up to the kid to ask for a pre-read. The question to the coach is âwill you be submitting my info for a pre-read?â For my kids, the coaches told them that they wanted to get pre-reads for them and specified what exactly they needed (transcript, test scores, senior year classes) and what date they needed to get the package to the coach. Where there may be ambiguity is if the coach has asked for this info or if the recruit voluntarily gave this info without affirmation that the materials were being submitted.
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Got it. Thank you!
A good general question is âCan you tell me where you are in your recruiting process?â (To coaches)
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D was told by Coach that her pre-read was submitted about two weeks ago, which seemed encouraging. However, itâs now end of day 2 and she still hasnât heard anything. So, she is understandably discouraged.
Anyone else in the same boat?
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We are on that boat too.
Not everyone hears immediately! Sometimes, yes, the athlete isnât #1 or #2 on the coachâs list. But sometimes the Admissions Office is swamped and does take more time to get back to the coach. If the athlete hasnât heard after a week or so, I think itâs fine for them to reach out to the coach and ask whatâs going on (not using those words!).
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Yeah that is good to hear. Hoping this is the case!
Coach told my kid they got âpositive feedbackâ on the pre read and that my kid is âIn our top 10â right now. This seems positive but my child is now worried that being in top 10 isnât so great. There are 5 slots for support and about 20 got prereads
Generally with D3 does the coach only give âoffersâ of support to the number of athletes for whom s/he has spots? Like if the coach can put support behind 4 athletes she will only give offers to 4 right?
Also, how often do d3 recruits at places like Williams and bates and tufts etc also get positive feedback from D2 or D1.
Trying to gauge how likely it is that my kid moves up the list of kids who got positive preread feedback. Do people often turn down offers from schools like Williams, for example?
This time of year it is like musical chairs. I donât know if coaches only make, for example, four offers if they have four spots. But it seems logical. And then they wait for the athlete to decide. When my son went through recruiting, the offers didnât have deadlines at this point. If one of the athletes turns the coach down, then they go to #5 on the list.
How often do d3 athletes get interest from d1 or d2? They do. Some kids are hoping for a d1 offer, so they keep the d3 school waiting. (And the coach is willing to wait because the athlete is high on the list, maybe the coachâs #1 choice).
Do people âoftenâ turn down Williams and the like? I would guess not often. But absolutely it does happen!
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