True statements, or myths?

[justwannaplay]

I have heard the following statements from various sources, in regards to what some colleges tell players who are going to accept a scholarship. Are these at all true for any schools, or are they just complete myths?

"...you can't declare THAT major, because you won't have time for it and softball."

"...you can't schedule classes on Fridays, because that's travel day for tournaments."

"...you can't schedule classes after 1pm, because you'll have practice every afternoon."

[jonriv]

"...you can't declare THAT major, because you won't have time for it and softball."

"...you can't schedule classes on Fridays, because that's travel day for tournaments."

"...you can't schedule classes after 1pm, because you'll have practice every afternoon."

The middle one is the only thing that we heard from a coach(not for tourneys, but travel games) Most teams have an advisor that works with class scheduling- most schools give athletes priority. Generally classes are scheduled so that there is little conflict as possible. Some majors(ie hard sciences) are tough because of the lab requirements- Most teams have mandatory study hours and some teams have tutors. Most coaches I have spoken to say that team GPAs are higher in season than in the off season. I guess the bottom are true, the top one may be more so in Div I schools- hope this helps

[Sftbll4ever]

My DD's school doesn't have the option not to have classes on Friday's. Just works out the no matter what you will have them.

She was given the practice schedule before they were to choose their classes so they knew not to take classes after a certain time. Some seniors decided not to follow that and still did. The athletes get priority for their classes so they could have chosen differently. Oh well.

Her school has girls on the team that are engineering majors, pre-law, and pre-med. I guess they are not told they can't go for certain majors.

[DirtyRaceGirl]

We were given information that schools don't like the players to miss any more than 10% of class time when the sport is in season. The academic advisors DO work with the players to try to avoid Friday classes in season because of travel, but when the player is a Jr or Sr and taking degree specific classes that are only offered in the Spring and maybe only one class of it, sometimes it can't be avoided. We've been told academics will always come before athletics, and in that case, the player would need to attend the class instead of the game.

If the class falls during a regular team practice time, an alternate practice time (or strength and conditioning time) is set up with coaching staff for that player so they can still get their time/reps in.

No school ever discouraged us from any specific majors. By and large, what I have found, is that good GPA's and college grads help feed funding for the school for future athletics, and they need sports other than football, baseball and basketball to have high grad rates, since those players often go pro before actually graduating.

We also found that the majority of schools we talked to offered to cover tuition at the scholarship rate for a 5th year if the athlete needed an extra semester or two to graduate.

[ECSB]

My DD was told it would be tough to play softball and do nursing (at D3) but no one said she could not do it.

A friend whose son plays Football went for a recruiting visit at a D1 and was told that he could not do Biology as a major. So in Football, it does happen.

[90066DAD]

My DD, (whatever DD is) is going to a smartie school that requires a 3.5 and 1700 SAT.

What is a "smartie school"?

Is 3.5 / 1700 the school's average entering freshman, or a general guideline for most of the recruited athletes?

[jonriv]

My DD, (whatever DD is) is going to a smartie school that requires a 3.5 and 1700 SAT.

Smartie school? Sounds more like a safety school!!!

[fasterpitch92701]

To answer the OP, based on my DD's experience and the experience of several close friends over the past 3 months....

"...you can't declare THAT major, because you won't have time for it and softball."

- Depends on the school. One friend of DD’s went to a certain UC and was told by the coach that they don't really want engineering students because they have conflicting labs and classes. They want players who prioritize softball. In an entirely different spectrum, DD's college coach said "you will make every lab, every class, you are here to get an education and that comes first, and then we play hard". Net/net: depends on the coach and program. For the person who was visiting the UC the candor was good as it is much better to find out the lay of the land up front (she rejected the school). For my DD, the candor was great as it confirmed DD's priorities.

"...you can't schedule classes on Fridays, because that's travel day for tournaments."

- Yes, it is reality depending... on the school, whether D1, D2 or D3, whether the game schedule typically involves teams that are near-local or if there is a lot of travel... read: many variables. As with the first item noted above, it really depends on your priorities and it pays to ask questions up front so that your priorities align with the school and coaches priorities. Look at the previous years schedule and figure out the travel. Compare that to what the coach states. They should coincide. Hawaii was on the road for about 13 weeks straight last year. Making labs is a bit tenuous.

"...you can't schedule classes after 1pm, because you'll have practice every afternoon."

- Argh. Same answer: “it depends on the school”. One player was told that she couldn’t schedule classes before 1PM on Mondays and Wednesdays, between 10AM and 2PM on Tuesdays and Thursdays and not after 11AM on Fridays. Ahhhh…. well…. That should be interesting.

A question not asked in the OP: “How do professors respond and/or support student athletes?” Ask up front. Ask the coach and then… ask some professors in your area of academic interest. Find out up front, not after the fact.

Enjoy in good health,

[90066DAD]

My DD, (whatever DD is) is going to a smartie school that requires a 3.5 and 1700 SAT.

What is a "smartie school"?

Is 3.5 / 1700 the school's average entering freshman, or a general guideline for most of the recruited athletes?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=angi1vwUkQc

[90066DAD]

Thank you for responding to Judge Smails' request.

Your DD's college definitely has above average requirements. That cannot be disputed. But what constitutes a "smartie school" becomes a highly subjective call.

I would prefer calling certain colleges "selective", or "highly selective".

In my mind, a "selective" college will have an entering freshman class whose 25th percentile to 75th percentile test scores are:

SAT (3 parts): 1750 - 2050
ACT : 26-31

Average weighted GPA around 3.8