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Realities of club soccer, would you do something different?

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    #16
    1st year doing club or what I call travel soccer. We have been mostly a baseball family up till now. Travel and expenses were definitely more than we expected. Parents should get more input into scheduling. I was really surprised to learn how much some families were spending on private lessons and camps. They could pay for college with what they are spending on soccer each year. Baseball was not cheap but certainly not at the same level as this. Our son had a great time and if he wants to continue we’ll support it. The thought that kept running through my head was how can a typical family afford this and wondering how many players drop out just due to the financials. Need to find a way to make it more affordable. Lost 3 players just due to the $$$. At times, it just seemed a little too elitist. Like to hear others thoughts on this.

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      #17
      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
      1st year doing club or what I call travel soccer. We have been mostly a baseball family up till now. Travel and expenses were definitely more than we expected. Parents should get more input into scheduling. I was really surprised to learn how much some families were spending on private lessons and camps. They could pay for college with what they are spending on soccer each year. Baseball was not cheap but certainly not at the same level as this. Our son had a great time and if he wants to continue we’ll support it. The thought that kept running through my head was how can a typical family afford this and wondering how many players drop out just due to the financials. Need to find a way to make it more affordable. Lost 3 players just due to the $$$. At times, it just seemed a little too elitist. Like to hear others thoughts on this.
      It is very expensive and families have to sacrifice especially when many siblings are doing the travel sports. Where did the college tips thread go? 100% Bright Futures awards need to stay around until our children are in college because he won't be playing in college by the looks of the competition.

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        #18
        irma

        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
        1st year doing club or what I call travel soccer. We have been mostly a baseball family up till now. Travel and expenses were definitely more than we expected. Parents should get more input into scheduling. I was really surprised to learn how much some families were spending on private lessons and camps. They could pay for college with what they are spending on soccer each year. Baseball was not cheap but certainly not at the same level as this. Our son had a great time and if he wants to continue we’ll support it. The thought that kept running through my head was how can a typical family afford this and wondering how many players drop out just due to the financials. Need to find a way to make it more affordable. Lost 3 players just due to the $$$. At times, it just seemed a little too elitist. Like to hear others thoughts on this.
        Soccer is very much a middle-upper class sport. The higher you go up in the ladder the more expensive it gets. If you're really good you might get to play for free, and some clubs have scholarships for families in need. But it's almost all pay-to-play and many talented kids just can't swing the fees and travel.

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          #19
          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
          I saw a earlier post on this page and thought I would put a twist on the question...

          Parents, who have kids who are all done playing club (or near done) now that you have the advantage of hind site, what would you do different?

          Asking for a friend.
          Realize your kid is not going to the olympics or pro. Stop letting clubs yank your chain with crappy training and sub par coaches. You pay too much money for that crap.

          You don't have to play more than 4 tournaments per season and they don't have to be out of state.

          If your team is not a top state team, the coach should be playing every kid. Otherwise you have a big coaching problem. Don't be silent. If your kid is sitting, ask the coach what he is doing. If you don't like his answer ask the coach to set up a meeting with the DOC.

          Don't play for a parent coach. Unless they are "highly" qualified. Having played 25 years ago is not highly qualified. They should be licensed. That shows they care enough for what they are charging you.

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            #20
            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
            Realize your kid is not going to the olympics or pro. Stop letting clubs yank your chain with crappy training and sub par coaches. You pay too much money for that crap.

            You don't have to play more than 4 tournaments per season and they don't have to be out of state.

            If your team is not a top state team, the coach should be playing every kid. Otherwise you have a big coaching problem. Don't be silent. If your kid is sitting, ask the coach what he is doing. If you don't like his answer ask the coach to set up a meeting with the DOC.

            Don't play for a parent coach. Unless they are "highly" qualified. Having played 25 years ago is not highly qualified. They should be licensed. That shows they care enough for what they are charging you.
            Realize not many will play in college either at the D1. UF, FSU, UCF, USF-- aren't taking many players onto their rosters each fall and only a handful are Florida players. Go focus on the grades and the 3.5 for a Bright Future award to pay for college.

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              #21
              College National Signing Day was May 1st. Our kid should have been focused on getting into a college more than looking a colleges where to play soccer. Getting into a top college these days means going to visit the college, talking to college recruiters who come to the high school or calling them at the college. Who knew there was so much needed to have an edge in getting into college? It used to be apply to a few and get answers. Now it's spend the summer doing volunteer work, not soccer, to save the world to prove to colleges they are the future leaders. When did UF become the Ivy league of the south and FSU, UCF and USF close behind? Kids are mass applying and getting mass rejected.

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                #22
                Our kid and most friends with high GPA and test scores did not get into UF and or FSU. Ours will graduate with a 4.5 GPA and Academic Scholars Bright Futures but did not get accepted. So be realistic, and let them play soccer and have fun while keeping the grades up. They will get into college but not UF unless they are top in their class and in the nation like National Merit Finalists. Warning those parents of sophmores and juniors coming along.

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                  #23
                  On college signing day people were posting where their son or daughter was attending. Some friends said their kids couldn't get into UF to use their Bright Futures so accepted to Georgia, Georgia Tech, Virginia, UNC, and other colleges out of state. Thought Bright Futures was to help keep our brightest in state. It's like soccer, bring in the outside teams to the tournament to make more money.

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                    #24
                    Very damming segment on HBO Real Sports (season 24, episode 4) about college sports and the NCAA - abusive coaches, athletes spending 50 hours a week on team related travel and activity (despite NCAA rules against it, that are always violated). Be careful what you wish for. There's a lot to be said for D3 - still a big commitment but with more balance and no read of losing your scholarship - or simply playing club and having a more rounded college experience.

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                      #25
                      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                      On college signing day people were posting where their son or daughter was attending. Some friends said their kids couldn't get into UF to use their Bright Futures so accepted to Georgia, Georgia Tech, Virginia, UNC, and other colleges out of state. Thought Bright Futures was to help keep our brightest in state. It's like soccer, bring in the outside teams to the tournament to make more money.
                      All great schools. Many of those kids will come back to FL with great educations. That benefits the state in the long term

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                        #26
                        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                        All great schools. Many of those kids will come back to FL with great educations. That benefits the state in the long term
                        Everyone wants to come to Florida like California. The Common App helped bring in over 40,000 applications to UF and FSU uses it too, at the same time Florida implemented the 100% tuition paid Bright Futures. Unless these colleges grow, Florida's bright students won't be able to use their bright futures scholarships in Florida. Florida will become like California where their best students can't get admitted to CA's top colleges.

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                          #27
                          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                          Everyone wants to come to Florida like California. The Common App helped bring in over 40,000 applications to UF and FSU uses it too, at the same time Florida implemented the 100% tuition paid Bright Futures. Unless these colleges grow, Florida's bright students won't be able to use their bright futures scholarships in Florida. Florida will become like California where their best students can't get admitted to CA's top colleges.
                          UF is what, 25% out of state? I looked and UCLA is 12% overall (16% frosh), Berkley 23%.
                          USC is highest at 40% but despite it's name is a private school, not state. UVA=30% frosh; UNC 18% (state law 82% must be NC residents). UF is pretty in range with other top state schools.

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                            #28
                            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                            Our kid and most friends with high GPA and test scores did not get into UF and or FSU. Ours will graduate with a 4.5 GPA and Academic Scholars Bright Futures but did not get accepted. So be realistic, and let them play soccer and have fun while keeping the grades up. They will get into college but not UF unless they are top in their class and in the nation like National Merit Finalists. Warning those parents of sophmores and juniors coming along.
                            You are too white.

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                              #29
                              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                              You are too white.
                              If you live in a high economic area because more of the single family home owners attended college and have a better school district and public schools, the students will have a more difficult time being ranked in the graduating class. A 4.5 weighted GPA at graduation will have our kid at like 50th in her class. UF is taking about 6 students from her class and four were national merit finalists. UF does not have room for Florida's Bright Futures students, yet will turn around and take more transfer and students from community colleges two years down the road, many out of state too. Over 50% of the masters and doctorate degree seeking students are from out of state, even though the freshmen % was around 23.39% for 2017. The 2018 statistics are not published until Feb 2019 and then the admittance rate for out of state freshmen could be as high as 30% (predicting because of the Common app and receiving 7,000 more applications this year).

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                                #30
                                Tricks to the system
                                First, take those AP and DE classes before the senior year because UF only looks up to junior year. That is the only way to get the GPA weighted high enough. Our daughter will have 12 DE and AP courses taken when she graduates but the senior courses never were factored into her GPA for consideration for admittance. Second, UF keeps increasing its standards so when they take the SAT or ACT and think they are at or above the mean then take a course or get it higher than the mean (because UF ups its mean scores each year due to the common app worldly pool) if live in-state or are a white female.
                                Have a tutor for writing the perfect essay so they don't look like a normal student but one who is eccentric with arts passion and unique community leadership that will change the world. Make up a story, they'll never know if it is true. Put down whatever on the application for community service hours or activities. They'll never know. UF does not even ask for a transcript that would show if the student submitted the correct GPA or the correct volunteer hours. Who knows, listing those AP and Dual Enrollment courses may get them rejected because coming into college with too many credit hours is less money for the university because the students graduate early. Make an edge for them with a fancy embellished application, but don't lie.

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