Another "we have no scholarship money thread:)"

[CoogansBluff]

Sorry if this has been answered in this thread, but do walkons get the same benefits (non-financial) as players with athletic scholly money? Things like access to trainer, rehab injuries, equipment?

 

[marriard]

JUCO: The player may not be happy there, either athletically or academically.

You can say that about almost any program.

The coaches tend to be retired people with little experience in playing softball or coaching because no one else will take the pay. They also have issues attracting pitchers (someone posted in another thread that a D1 player quit her team due to poor pitching so you can imagine being JUCO.) If there is an automatic transfer into the D1, I hear some baseball players take the route, but the quality in JUCO baseball is way above softball.

Can you tell me where you live so I can advise our players to avoid your area at all costs? It sounds awful.

Again the above can be true for almost any program at some stage (with exceptions of the consistently solid programs in all divisions), but I can tell you that there are some fantastic JUCO programs in many places (Florida for example) that are stacked full of talent and have some excellent coaching. Not all of them of course, but certainly enough that they are a viable option.

At our JUCO, a loud mouth parent of a pitcher is now the coach--just from being the former (never coached a day in his life). Yikes, he is so annoying with his NY accent (I can say that now, with family there), the games are comedic.

Sample size of one can't be expanded into a generalization. This program bad, program elsewhere maybe great. Got to do your homework to give the best chance you can.

 

[iMlearning]

Was there any indication they were talking about specific HS grad years or was it in general? Were these schools D-I or D-II? D-II's only have 7.2 scholarships to work with - at most. Not all programs are fully funded, so they may be working with less than the NCAA max.

Out-of-state tuition waivers count against the athletic scholarship limit if it is awarded based in any degree on athletics ability. Waivers that are available to athletes and non-athletes alike would be exempt. If they really are giving waivers preferentially to athletes, they may not be fully funded and the school doesn't count those waivers against their scholarship budget.

One D2 School said they have very little money for softball but are extremely aggressive on academic. This school was so inexpensive I could put it on my credit card LOL. Another D1 school said it was mostly used on pitchers.

 

[iMlearning]

Keep looking and take your time. I know it is hard to see when you are deep into it, but there really is time. Rising Stars was just in my backyard last weekend and I was told there was a lot of interest and active recruiting of uncommitted upper class players.

Some teams are going to explore seeing if they can get your DD for nothing (which is great for them) but may come back with something better when it is clear there is a lot of interest elsewhere or even next year as their rosters turn over. And there is nothing wrong with you saying that is the case (i.e. "You say you can offer nothing, but we already have colleges that are showing they can cover a substantial amount. If you are really interested in having me play here, what can you really do to help me out.").

Consider the whole scholarship offer and what your DD is willing to do. Academic money is as good as athletic money. There are also many, many other programs/endowments/etc you can seek out and find. There are some weird ones out there (one girl I know is getting $5,000 per year for the sole reason she owns a foreign passport and there is some private endowment for that at the college she attends)

Different to OLIF's view, we have found good, non-committed Seniors who are willing to wait it out, are able to get better offers as college teams realize they need a XXX for next season. It can be stressful, but if she can play she will find a home. We had several players end up in colleges where they were recent coaching changes as well as many who ended up on teams on teams that had some major injury issues. Open up the divisions and what colleges to consider as well - the top half of NAIA colleges can be excellent places to land to play and offer some great educational programs. JUCO's are great options as well - it might not be as prestigious but you get a chance to play, improve and then transfer with 2 years eligibility left to a 4-year school.

Don't know where you are located, but we have had success with girls who attended this individual showcase with mid-level college recruiting for universities most Florida girls would never have considered (or heard of in some cases): USA Elite November Showcase If you have interest PM me and I can help as I know the people who run this event pretty well now.

Being patient is the hard part for sure. DD's former teammate got a D1 Scholarship the spring of her senior year and she really could only hit.
That showcase would work if DD wasn't getting her long awaited kidney surgery the beginning of November. She can start back up in December though medicine free This weekend she is visiting her 1st choice D1 school (not mine) but I know they told a friend of hers that they've already spent their money (this girl is a senior though)

 

[Indiana]

There's a great website: Home | Tier One Athletics which goes into the nuts and bolts of playing your sport at an Ivy League school. Minimum requirements are a 3.5 unweighted GPA and a 30 on the ACT (2000 SAT? I'm not sure, but the website will say). The Ivy's won't make decisions until the end of Junior year. They need the GPA and the test scores before they can send out a "likely letter" confirming your "very likely" spot at the school and with the team. It is true that tuition is 100% need based. There are no merit based or athletic scholarships. I am suspicious of the "need based" scale, as the Ivys seem to be becoming more competitive in basketball and hockey (and sometimes football, but they're not quite there yet). There is wiggle room, the coach just needs to be able to sell you to the admissions department. This will depend on your grades, the sport's pull at the school, and how high you are on the coach's wishlist of players.

 

[SoCal_Dad]

... It is true that tuition is 100% need based. There are no merit based or athletic scholarships. I am suspicious of the "need based" scale, as the Ivys seem to be becoming more competitive in basketball and hockey (and sometimes football, but they're not quite there yet). ...

According to Harvard's Fact Sheet (click here):

- Ninety percent of American families would pay the same or less to send their children to Harvard as they would a state school.

- 20% of our parents have total incomes less than $65,000 and are not expected to contribute.

- Families with incomes between $65,000 and $150,000 will contribute from 0-10% of their income, and those with incomes above $150,000 will be asked to pay proportionately more than 10%, based on their individual circumstances. Families at all income levels who have significant assets will continue to pay more than those in less fortunate circumstances.

- Two-thirds of students work during the academic year.

It is interesting how Harvard expects their students to contribute by working while at school and the summer.

 

[Indiana]

I was being snarky with that comment; suggesting that the definition of need might vary depending on how good a basketball player you are. It stems from my perpetual jealousy and irritation with Harvard, having graduated from a rival school

 

[SoCal_Dad]

No problem Indiana, I like to post how affordable the Ivies are because many/most people aren't aware and write them off when they hear there are no athletic scholarships.

I subscribe to the philosophy of using softball to get a better education than you'd get without it. Softball can do it by providing the financial means (i.e. athletic scholarship) and/or getting accepted into the school (e.g. Ivy).

 

[Greenmonsters]

No problem Indiana, I like to post how affordable the Ivies are because many/most people aren't aware and write them off when they hear there are no athletic scholarships.

I subscribe to the philosophy of using softball to get a better education than you'd get without it. Softball can do it by providing the financial means (i.e. athletic scholarship) and/or getting accepted into the school (e.g. Ivy).

Ditto with the NESCAC schools, which are a good fit for the scholars who aren't quite scholarly enough for the Ivies and are looking for a D3 student/athlete experience.

 

[wichita]

There's a great website: Home | Tier One Athletics which goes into the nuts and bolts of playing your sport at an Ivy League school. Minimum requirements are a 3.5 unweighted GPA and a 30 on the ACT (2000 SAT? I'm not sure, but the website will say). The Ivy's won't make decisions until the end of Junior year. They need the GPA and the test scores before they can send out a "likely letter" confirming your "very likely" spot at the school and with the team. It is true that tuition is 100% need based. There are no merit based or athletic scholarships. I am suspicious of the "need based" scale, as the Ivys seem to be becoming more competitive in basketball and hockey (and sometimes football, but they're not quite there yet). There is wiggle room, the coach just needs to be able to sell you to the admissions department. This will depend on your grades, the sport's pull at the school, and how high you are on the coach's wishlist of players.

My DD was being recruited pretty heavy to Dartmouth (until the coach took the job at Stanford)and she had a 4.3 GPA and all the coach wanted was 1800 on the sat which might be a 30 on the sat I'm not sure. Also there is time in the recruiting process ...not to wait to do anything in recruiting but you have time to choose the best fit for you.... my DD had several offers from Mid D1 to D3 and she waited to verball until just a couple weeks ago and really truly found the school she wanted to go to. It's a lower mid level D1 that will let her take nursing while she plays and is usually in the top half of the conference so it's competitive and she got athletics monies along with a ton of academic money and best thing of all is I have to pay very little out of my pocket for a college education. Now if you want to play top 50 D1 softball and take communications as your major while playing (which there's nothing wrong with that) go for it and may you have the best of luck. But there is plenty of time to choose a school just make sure you start the recruiting process in time