<p>Nothing to do with application or E/C. I just want to be knowledgable in this area. During conversations with other parents who have HS kids, this topic constantly came up and I don’t have a clue as what it is. I know about DI vs DIII etc catagories based on the size of the student body. </p>
<p>If a kid got involved in a sport, all I know is that he/she is on the team. But then others talk about “JV”, “Varsity letter” etc. Is there a different level of HS sport?</p>
<p>JV stands for junior varsity. Most schools have 2 teams, with the better players on varsity. So yes, there usually are at least two levels of sports in high school.</p>
<p>DadII…</p>
<p>In many high schools, there are three possible levels of a sport. Some high schools (though not ours) have intramurals or club teams that play other teams within their own high school and anyone can join. </p>
<p>Then, there are Junior Varsity (JV) and Varsity (V) squads that at most high schools (unless small ones), require tryouts to make the team. At many high schools, there is a JV and a V level. The JV level is the lower tier and often freshmen and sophomores are on such a team but it is not limited by grade. At some point, players will advance (not all will) to play at the higher level, Varsity. It is like first string and second string. Varsity is first string. At our high school, even freshmen can make the Varsity team in their sport. But in a very very very general sense, often a JV team has many 9th/10th graders on it and many varsity teams have 11th and 12th graders on it but any grade student could be put on either team. The JV and V teams compete against teams from other schools. The JV level team plays a JV level team at another school. The Varsity level team is pitted against the V level at the other school. At some schools, they ONLY have a varsity team. </p>
<p>Example…at our HS, there is a JV and V level for soccer and basketball, but only V level for tennis, gymnastics and ski teams. </p>
<p>By having both a JV and V team, it allows more to participate and to start at one level and move onto a higher level during their four years of HS play.</p>
<p>Our school even has Freshman teams for sports like football, basketball and baseball. Even on teams where there is only one level, like swimming, students can earn either a JV or Varsity letter based on number of points scored throughout the season.</p>
<p>A “varsity letter” is an award or recognition that a student has participated in a varsity sports team. In most (all?) schools, it is an actual physical cloth LETTER (usually the first letter of the school’s name), which can be sewn onto a sweater or other article of clothing. There are official jackets called “lettermen jackets” which are meant to be a visual cue that the wearer is an athlete, and to host the varsity letter, and sometimes other pins or sports awards. These are often awarded at sports banquets or school assemblies.</p>
<p>i forgot to mention that some schools also field a strictly freshmen team. I think our HS added that for soccer which allows more to particpate as it is a very popular sport here.</p>
<p>And “varsity letter” refers to the practice of receiving an actual letter at the end of a sports season (W for Wahshington HS, for example) that can be applied to a letter sweater or letter jacket. Some schools go in for this more than others. Subsequent years of participation or participation in other sports are often marked by pins that can be attached to the letter.</p>
<p>(cross posted with mootmom)</p>
<p>As with so many things, it depends on the particular high school. The ones I have known tend to have 3 seasons of sports. Usually football, soccer, cross country in the fall, swimming, wrestling, indoor track, hockey, basketball (indoor sports) in the winter, and baseball/softball, track, lacrosse, tennis, golf in the spring. Sometimes the male/female teams have separate seasons; in our area this is true for tennis, soccer, swimming. Also the fall and spring seasons sports can be interchangeable depending on the area. There are also many other sports such as fencing, gymnastics, crew, etc depending on the school and not all name sports are played everywhere. </p>
<p>As others have said, there are often Junior Varsity and Varsity teams in sports, though sometimes there is only one team. Sometimes schools have a third team, the freshman team or the JV “B” team. Interestingly, in my experience the private schools where my kids have gone have a more inclusive policy for sports than the publics where competition can be keen for team spots. A pet peeve of mine that the hundreds of little leaguers, soccer players, etc are cut from teams by the time they are in middle school and such outside recreational leagues are difficult to find, and those kids often end up with time on their hands. All of my boys with varying degrees of athletic prowess have played on school teams, and in some cases this would not have been possible in a public school framework. I have a problem that there is a cut system in sports in the public schools.</p>
<p>It depends on the sport, the school, the kid, the area as to how much time goes into a sport. The very top kids tend to belong to independent clubs as well as the school team to get year round instruction and practice in their sports, in my experience. Particularly in such sports as tennis, swimming, etc. There are often many sports camps throughout the year for those who want to hone their talents in the sports. </p>
<p>Colleges like to see sports on the resumes as it gives an all around picture of a person. Sort of like the old Greek concept. It also gives kids the opportunities for leadership roles. On the other hand, for any sport to be a “hook” for college admissions, the student has to be at the level where he can play for the college, and have the college coach interested in him. Or else be at a level so way up there that there is a celebrity status involved in such achievement. </p>
<p>A varsity letter has specific criteria that has to be met for a kid to get one and is considered an achievement.</p>
<p>HIgh school sports are centered around the varsity teams which represent the school in official competitions against other schools. Only varsity sports results are reported on by local newspapers. </p>
<p>JV sports are developmental opportunities for those who simply enjoy the sport but are not accomplished enough to play on the varsity team, and for those younger players whose physical maturity or skills have not yet advanced to the level where you can put them in the varsity contests. </p>
<p>Freshman teams exist in certain sports to provide freshmen with an opportunity to develop and mature while competing against their own grade group.</p>
<p>Letter awards vary greatly from program to program. Years ago to earn a varsity letter you had to be a regular player on the varsity who played a material role in the games. This was measured in various ways. (In football, you had to be in the games for maybe 1/4 or 1/3 of the total time played, for example.) Today, more and more programs award letters to all players who participate in the sport, regardless of whether their skills allow them to play in the varsity games. This varies from school to school, but in general devalues the status that used to attach to earning a letter in a sport. At such schools, the students seldom wear their letters, (this is my observation). (In college, this is not the case and letters are only awarded to major contributors to the team, although some teams will award letters to those seniors who have been on the team for all four years and who have not played significantly).</p>
<p>While these things are interesting locally, and can create small celebrities and confer some social status, none of it matters a lot in college admissions unless the person is good enough to play at that college. This is extremely rare, so mostly sports don’t count any more than any other extracurricular activity.</p>
<p>cptofthehouse and dadx…while I would agree that the varsity sport participation may not be a “hook” unless one is at the level of being a college recruited athlete, being on a varsity sport in HS will be looked upon favorably in college admissions (just not a “hook”). My own kid was on three varsity teams throughout HS and exceled at each one, with various achievements, etc. She was not a recruited athlete. These were not her only ECs or achievements, but I am SURE that her committments and achievements as a three varsity sport athlete were looked upon as positives on her application. Colleges look favorably upon committed EC endeavors (need NOT be a sport but a sport is an example) where the student is engaged in a significant capacity over time and has leadership or achievements of note. In this regard, being a varsity athlete is a very worthwhile EC on a college application, if not a recruited athlete. I feel that my own kid’s EC “resume” which had one full page just on her varsity sport endeavors, were a plus on her overall profile, even if not recruited. She went on to do a varsity sport all four years of college and played a club sport for part of her time at college too.</p>
<p>And if you go to a very large high school there can be even more teams. At our school there are 9A, 9B, Sophomore or “B” team, junior varsity and Varsity teams! Varsity is the best team. If you are young and very talented you can shoot straight to Varsity and bypass the other teams. However, some coaches in certain sports will not allow young players on the team and only place jrs. and srs. on Varsity. At our school to receive a letter you not only have to make the Varsity team but you also have to earn it by playing in a predetermined amount of quarters or playing for a certain amount of minutes. Making the team and not getting playing time results in no letter…unless the team makes it to State and then everyone letters. I’m sure each school has its own rules. </p>
<p>You can also letter in other ECs besides sports at our school. Examples are band,speech, debate, academics, theater, vocal music, leadership, etc.</p>
<p>Oh, I agree, Soozie, absolutely. In fact, I said outright that colleges like to see kids who are into athletics and that it gives them leadership opportunities. The colleges build athletic facilities to be used by all of the students, not just the athletes, and they do tend to like kids who are active this way.</p>
<p>I just wanted to emphasize, that it is NOT a hook unless the kid is at the level where he can be on the college team. Even then it depends on the college, the team, the coach, the league, the kid. There are sports at given D-1 schools that are not considered important by the school, and are not going to give a kid a bump in admissions, much less a hook. I hear talk each year from parents that their kid’s participation in sports, the fact he is captain and a great player may be the route into college. Ummm, not necessarily. The level of competence for sports to be a big factor is quite high and varies from school to school. </p>
<p>My oldest was at a level where he was a recruited athlete, but where he was recruited was rarely where he wanted to go. Despite his high performance level, he only got one athletic scholarship from a school that would have given him merit money anyways. What he got for his recruited status was a bit of a bump in selectivity of colleges. Even then it was not a foregone conclusion, and there were a lot of issues involved. To be at the level where the student can take is pick of colleges, is a high one indeed, and very rare.</p>
<p>cptofthehouse, I agree with all that. I was just pointing out (and I think you also agree) that one need not have a hook to get into a very selective college. If one has very strong committed ECs with achievements in those ECs, that is a strong profile for going to an elite college, even without a hook or being a recruited athlete. So, sports themselves are still very strong on an application, like any other highly committed EC where one is not recruited. It doesn’t get you in, nope. But very selective schools care about a stong EC profile and having students who will contribute to their campus life and so even if not recruited or having a “hook”, strong ECs, such as sports, are good to have. My own kid, who attended an Ivy, did not have a “hook” and was not an athletic recruit. I have to think that her EC profile was strong and the fact is, that one big chunk (not the only chunk, however) was her athletic particpation and achievements. She also was heavily involved in the arts.</p>
<p>I will add to the above that I recently worked with a student who was waitlisted to Duke, helping him with his waitlist status. This student’s main EC achievement (not his only thing but his biggest thing) was in basketball but he was not an athletic recruit (and this at a university where bball is huge). He got in off the waitlist and just matriculated.</p>
<p>Oh Dad II… for future reference size is not necessarily the only determining factor between DI, DII and DIII athletic programs.</p>
<p>Yeah…being a three sport athlete definitely has helped both D1 and D2 in getting in to schools and recieving $$$.</p>
<p>Soozie:</p>
<p>I agree with you about the importance of sports. If you are a demonstrated leader and acheiver in three sports, its very good. Not necessariliy better than being a lead in the play, 1st fiddle, or President of Key Club, but still very respected. Athletic activities with demonstrated acheivemnet will always earn respect from knowledgeable reviewers because of the competitive environment in which the achievement occurs. </p>
<p>And the note that you don’t have a “hook” unless you can play at the college level is also correct.</p>
<p>dadx…just to be clear, I think HS sports are NO better than any other EC endeavor. Colleges look positively at very committed ECs over a significant period of time and where one has made a significant contribution, and/or played a significant role in the endeavor, or has a significant achievement in the endeavor. Sports are no different as several other types of EC activities that require this sort of committment.</p>
<p>So do any of your schools “letter” nonsport ECs?</p>
<p>DadII, you may sometimes here of dissatisfaction about how kids are placed on jv vs. varsity. My kids go to a fairly non-competitive high school and every September I have friends venting to me about how unfair the process was. It’s definitely more desirable to be on the varsity team. Some parents would rather have their child sit on the bench on the varsity team than be a starter on a jv team for example. I think that’s more about social status than college admissions.</p>
<p>Just a thought on the value of sports as an EC. I think that the teamwork aspect of a team, and the physical culture of a sport that you could perhaps participate in for life are extremely valuable for personal growth, regardless of athletic ability. I would encourage all students, unless physically unable, or really unable by temperment, to join a team or intramural sport for fun and health. Varsity, JV, freshman,etc. etc.</p>
<p>We even had a women’s basketball intramural team in law school, as well as co-ed softball. It was fun…</p>