My oldest daughter was home this weekend along with two of her still close club teammates. My oldest is in her 3rd year playing D1 out of state at a great engineering school with middling competitive soccer program.
Out of the 18 girls from her club team, 12 committed which is not bad. A couple of the other girls could have played at some college somewhere but not at their college of choice so they are playing college club etc. They were recruited by various D1/D2 schools schools in and out of state. My daughter got into her school in large in part because it is an academically challenging school so that her major, grades and scores enabled her to qualify for some nice academic scholarships that offset a uninspiring athletic offer (Title 9 sucks).
Out of her 12 teammates who committed, 6 are still playing, 2 have transferred schools to play elsewhere with 1 is no longer in school at all. Of the 5 still in school but no longer playing a few of them transferred back to Florida schools to finish/change their degrees. This is pertinent because my oldest has also expressed a desire to forego playing her senior year because the rigor of engineering classes/internship and athletics have become too burdensome with her sights set on grad or perhaps med school "if" she qualifies. Though her coach asked her to take to the summer while at her internship to think it over, we have no idea which way she is leaning.
All her club teammates were/are great kids, good students with supporting if not crazy parents with a number of her teammates being superior athletes to my daughter. We pushed picking the school over the soccer program in case something like this happened (admittedly we were more concerned about injury than burn out).
I think in the end my daughter is very lucky because she is going earn her Chem Engineering degree whether she plays her sr. year or not. There were times we were worried and once drove 12 hrs straight to spend the weekend with her because she was stressed out and didn't want her coaches or teammates to know.
With our youngest heading up north to play softball, we are better prepared and better informed going through the recruitment process, again picking an academic program over an athletic program. While title 9 money sucks a 1500/4.3 will can get your kid a nice package to many good schools so if in the end; playing four years is not the cards, your kid will not have to uproot their life in college.
It is not a joke when you hear D1 athletics is a job, especially when playing far from home. Your kid will get into arguments with their coaches over classes. Sometimes its missing classes, sometimes it going to class instead of going to a therapy/rehab session. If your kid asks to miss a practice for more time to study for an upcoming test, they won't say no....but your kids may sit the bench for 80 mins next game too.
Overall I think my daughter will tell you it has been a great experience and I don't think our family would have done things much differently but be realistic in your goals while sitting on the sideline crabbing about the coach, playtime, refs.....whatever.
Out of the 18 girls from her club team, 12 committed which is not bad. A couple of the other girls could have played at some college somewhere but not at their college of choice so they are playing college club etc. They were recruited by various D1/D2 schools schools in and out of state. My daughter got into her school in large in part because it is an academically challenging school so that her major, grades and scores enabled her to qualify for some nice academic scholarships that offset a uninspiring athletic offer (Title 9 sucks).
Out of her 12 teammates who committed, 6 are still playing, 2 have transferred schools to play elsewhere with 1 is no longer in school at all. Of the 5 still in school but no longer playing a few of them transferred back to Florida schools to finish/change their degrees. This is pertinent because my oldest has also expressed a desire to forego playing her senior year because the rigor of engineering classes/internship and athletics have become too burdensome with her sights set on grad or perhaps med school "if" she qualifies. Though her coach asked her to take to the summer while at her internship to think it over, we have no idea which way she is leaning.
All her club teammates were/are great kids, good students with supporting if not crazy parents with a number of her teammates being superior athletes to my daughter. We pushed picking the school over the soccer program in case something like this happened (admittedly we were more concerned about injury than burn out).
I think in the end my daughter is very lucky because she is going earn her Chem Engineering degree whether she plays her sr. year or not. There were times we were worried and once drove 12 hrs straight to spend the weekend with her because she was stressed out and didn't want her coaches or teammates to know.
With our youngest heading up north to play softball, we are better prepared and better informed going through the recruitment process, again picking an academic program over an athletic program. While title 9 money sucks a 1500/4.3 will can get your kid a nice package to many good schools so if in the end; playing four years is not the cards, your kid will not have to uproot their life in college.
It is not a joke when you hear D1 athletics is a job, especially when playing far from home. Your kid will get into arguments with their coaches over classes. Sometimes its missing classes, sometimes it going to class instead of going to a therapy/rehab session. If your kid asks to miss a practice for more time to study for an upcoming test, they won't say no....but your kids may sit the bench for 80 mins next game too.
Overall I think my daughter will tell you it has been a great experience and I don't think our family would have done things much differently but be realistic in your goals while sitting on the sideline crabbing about the coach, playtime, refs.....whatever.
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