Is it about bragging?

[JAD]

Oh....it's not just the pine-riders on partials. It's any kid that does not want to deal with the demands set forth by the coaches, trainers, and professors. As a matter of fact, it's the girls on partials that are trying to prove they are game worthy and are trying to get their scholarship increased. Walk-on's bust their tail just as hard or harder to prove they're team worthy.

All players who are not in the starting rotation should be busting their butts to get there....some are willing to put in the effort and some decide to hang up their cleats.

I mentioned the partial scholarships because I know a lot of players who are signing for very little to no money, and when you add up the hours spent on softball vs. working a job, even at minimum wage, most girls would be financially better off working a job. College softball can be a lot of fun, but it is also a lot of hard work and it take a special desire to do it for 4 years while a lot of your college classmates are in a sorority having fun.

 

[SoCal_Dad]

I mentioned the partial scholarships because I know a lot of players who are signing for very little to no money, and when you add up the hours spent on softball vs. working a job, even at minimum wage, most girls would be financially better off working a job. College softball can be a lot of fun, but it is also a lot of hard work and it take a special desire to do it for 4 years while a lot of your college classmates are in a sorority having fun.

I'm glad you clarified what you meant since most players - including starters - are on partial scholarships, which range from very little to large amounts that are more than full rides at other schools.

There are numerous reasons why players wash out - not prepared for the level of play/academics; already burned out; unaccustomed to having competition for playing time; et al. My DD talks about the importance of time management, which to me is being organized, recognizing priorities and having self-discipline.

FTR, major D1 athletes do join sororities - they just don't spend as much time with them as non-athletes. Off the top of my head, my niece at Duke and an All-American at Northwestern.

 

[riseball]

....That being said, DD seems to want to play at a bigger school in a larger city but is not adverse to playing at a JUCO to prove herself to a bigger school. So we will see...

My DD started at one of the smallest JUCO's in the country, half the size of her High School. She will finish at South Carolina. There is nothing on any diploma that shows where or how you started, only where you finished.

 

[#10]

There are always unique exceptions, in which case you take it down the road to something better. The smart money is going to be on someone who has more to offer. Who will have the better story when asked about performing under pressure? The one that talks about going to the plate with the game on the line or the one who talks about the really long line at the counter when her co-worker was home in bed with a hangover?

I'd pick the kid who's got OJT experience. To me, one who has worked their way through school with an outside job has demonstrated time management much more effectively than one who has had their itinerary set by an athletic department.

 

[PA SB Dad]

I'd pick the kid who's got OJT experience. To me, one who has worked their way through school with an outside job has demonstrated time management much more effectively than one who has had their itinerary set by an athletic department.

It's comments like this that make me shake my head regarding the ignorance of how hard D1 athletes work in school, and it goes to feeding the unrealistic expectation many TB parents have about what to takes to play college ball. Are you telling me a D1 athlete has poor time management skills because their athletic schedule is set for them? What about the time they put in keeping up with their classes when they are traveling with the team? The sacrifices they make to train in the off season? Top businesses hire former D1 athletes because they have demonstrated discipline and excellence. These athletes have a "job" that requires a great deal of commitment and time management skills in order to stay eligible for their sport.

 

[grcsftbll]

I paid my own way and worked through school. They're is no way I could have played a sport. I imagine student athletes, not working, have even less free time than I did. It seems extremely demanding.

 

[rdbass]

It's comments like this that make me shake my head regarding the ignorance of how hard D1 athletes work in school, and it goes to feeding the unrealistic expectation many TB parents have about what to takes to play college ball. Are you telling me a D1 athlete has poor time management skills because their athletic schedule is set for them? What about the time they put in keeping up with their classes when they are traveling with the team? The sacrifices they make to train in the off season? Top businesses hire former D1 athletes because they have demonstrated discipline and excellence. These athletes have a "job" that requires a great deal of commitment and time management skills in order to stay eligible for their sport.

I'll only add...Let's start at the HS level. How about the athletes that play in HS, practice, play games and return home at 8:00,9:00 or later and still have homework or a test to study for too remain eligible to play. The HS athlete the manages to remain in the National Honors Society or with honors in their classes. Having a job or playing softball ect requires commitment and is hard work for both students either way.

 

[marriard]

OK.... I have been involved in the hiring for a few thousand jobs over my time and seen WAY too many resumes and done WAY too many interviews.

When you are looking long term, College is all about getting the opportunities for the FIRST big job out of college.

When you have the extras on your resume out of college and entering a profession for the first time, then you have the opportunity to start at a higher point than those that do not. Certain schools and programs and experiences are big for the entry profession job. That starting point can be a big deal in kick starting and fast tracking your career. For example it is why some Harvard Business grads have the chance to be a CEO faster - they got to skip 8-10 levels of employment many other business graduates have to work their way through, get into fast track programs early, and so on. It doesn't have to be an Ivy level school like Harvard - for example we hire (and intern) a large number of grads from a particular business program at FSU. We also hire a disproportionate number of engineers from Georgia Tech where the program there matches very well with what we do (we don't have a formal relationship with GT).

This is a big deal - as others have said, the successful, driven people are more likely be successful no matter what, but if someone with equal drive and talent is starting 4 levels above you, they are going to have a long term advantage and earlier opportunities. College sports can help you in getting some of those levels - college sports is a tangible resume item that says that the person is more likely to have the ability of working in a team, performing under pressure, leadership, time management, etc, etc that just having a degree cannot convey (even if you have these attributes).

If I have an entry level position and get 50-100 resumes of recent college graduates I am only going to interview 5-10 probably and I need to filter this pile to those we will talk to (in this order: throw out badly written resumes, NETWORK recommendations, degrees from programs we take a lot of people from, make sure the degree matches the position, internship experience (which often is related to programs we like), college sports or similar experience (ROTC, tutoring, etc,etc), unrelated work experience). All this narrows down to those who will get a phone call... Once you are on the phone call list, it is then up to you whether you get an in person interview (so people skills, talking, relating to people, answering questions, etc, etc). Things like the degree and college sports don't get you the job, but they get you the opportunity which it is up to you to take advantage of, and when things are really close in who gets an offer and who doesn't, it is normally one of the things that sways a decision to a person.

In most careers, once you are are past about the third year of experience, the college degree matters less and less and your experience and your network matters more and more. When I am looking for experienced people, I will look to see if they have a degree, but where the degree is from starts to matter less and less. Often what the degree is in matters little if you have the work experience we are looking for or have made progression in your career that lines up with the role we are looking to fill. NETWORK matters a lot - many resumes get to the top of the pile because of internal recommendations - and this gets you a call or a lot closer look than others. Playing college sports or getting a graduate degree is still looked on very favorably and again can lead to getting a call or an interview - again the opportunity, not the job.

I view college sports extremely highly in the hiring process and I have found it directly relates to a better chance the person we are hiring is successful. I will also admit I am probably biased because I played college sports as well, so I tend to relate well to those who had a similar experience and value the experience more highly than someone who hasn't played. I will also say that the last three jobs I have held have all come through my network getting me the opportunity of an interview and me taking it from there.

 

[crankermo]

Let's put to rest the notion that your schedule is set for D1 athletes and all they have to do is follow that schedule. If you want to start you better be working on your game on your own time more than what's scheduled. Until your DD goes through it you will NEVER understand the time management and commitment it takes.

I prepared my DD for it at a young age but it still surprised her. These young adults EARN "free" shirt,bat,glove and scholarship dime that comes their way.

 

[#10]

It's comments like this that make me shake my head regarding the ignorance of how hard D1 athletes work in school, and it goes to feeding the unrealistic expectation many TB parents have about what to takes to play college ball. Are you telling me a D1 athlete has poor time management skills because their athletic schedule is set for them? What about the time they put in keeping up with their classes when they are traveling with the team? The sacrifices they make to train in the off season? Top businesses hire former D1 athletes because they have demonstrated discipline and excellence. These athletes have a "job" that requires a great deal of commitment and time management skills in order to stay eligible for their sport.

LOL, I'm shaking my head at the conclusions you've drawn. I know a current D1 All-American and how hard she works, so there's no "ignorance" in my statement. I'm just saying being a D1 athlete is a different sort of pressure than juggling a job while in school to earn enough money to not get evicted on a month-to-month basis. Top businesses hire many more non-athletes, because many of them demonstrate real world experience with time management and budgeting.