College Decision / Process
This past year, our family was blessed to have Tori commit to the University of Tennessee after a well thought out process. We felt the process went more smoothly than expected and resulted in a great fit for her. Coach Dave suggested that I reflect upon the process and share my thoughts to help our student athletes and their families enjoy the process rather than stress about it.
The timeline we used may be adjusted based on many factors, but the general thought is relatively similar. Colleges can make direct contact with student athletes on June 15 prior to their junior year of high school. The more information you can gather prior to this date the less stressful the contact period will become. I will provide the timeline we used and highlight some of the things we did to make the process go smoothly.
Campus Visits
Whenever you are in a college town, take an unofficial visit on campus. Items like the geography of the campus, weather, architecture, history, and sports programs may help indicate what is wanted in a college.
List of 20
Before the end of the sophomore year, compile a list of 20 or so schools of potential interest. This list is essentially just getting the process started and should be treated as such.
SwimCloud and Social Media
Set up a SwimCloud account and upload race or practice video. Be aware of Social Media, more than one recruiting coordinator told me that they watch potential recruit’s social media activity. You can also follow colleges on SwimCloud and social media platforms.
Questionnaires and Emails
Start filling out questionnaires for some schools of interest during sophomore year. You can also send an email to some schools displaying your level of interest, giving a brief intro of yourself, displaying times and steady improvement, and why you’d be a good fit for their program. The schools (coaches) will send a generic email stating that they cannot have contact with you until June 15 but showing interest in their program matters.
Get ready for June 15
Coaches can contact you on June 15 before your junior year of high school. Relax and enjoy the attention, soak it in, you’ve put in the work and deserve it! Did I mention, R E L A X as Aaron Rodgers has stated before. By now you should have some idea of what schools interest you. Enjoy the interest these schools are showing in you!
Listen and Communicate
Anyone that knows me knows that “Communication is the key to success!” Communication also is listening. Make your calls with the coaches and get to know them initially with the first call or two, by the subsequent calls you will feel at ease with them and be able to ask some difficult questions and begin to get an idea on what schools will be a good fit. Coaches love the difficult questions; no question is off limits if it may impact your decision. Parents feel free to sit in on some calls, but don’t drive the conversation.
Enough is Enough
After a couple weeks of calls, you may have a good idea on what you want in a program/school. Don’t feel the need to continue talks with a school that you have no interest in attending. Honesty is the best policy, and it will benefit you and the coach if you are honest with them. The talks can become overwhelming so be ready to end talks. Hopefully by the end of July, you will have a list of 8-12 schools
Thirds
We tried to focus from the beginning a 33/33/33 split between swim program/academics/campus feel. You are only in high school and, while education, is of utmost importance, you may not know for certain what your field of study will be. A good team environment and campus experience will impact the mental well-being of the student-athlete. As the process goes along, the thirds’ ratio may be weighted differently, but I believe it is a great starting point.
More Unofficials
As the list of potential schools dwindles, it may be beneficial to take some more unofficial visits in June and July to help narrow the list more in August.
Money Matters
In late July or early August, the parents should join in conversations about financial packages. Some coaches will not discuss financials, but you can say it matters to you and it will be part of the equation on which schools you take an official visit to. Most of the schools we spoke with eventually gave us a good indication of financials before our visits, but not all of them.
Officials
Sometime in mid to late August, coaches will ask you to sign up for an official visit. Be prepared to have all the info you need to make decisions for your visits. You can take up to 5 official visits. I recommend parents go on the visit, it’s informative and a lot of fun!
Trips
Official visits usually begin on Thursday and return on Sunday. Enjoy your visit! Get a feel for the environment on the team and a better idea on what campus life will be like. Remember the campus will always be there, a coach may or may not always be there, but a good culture is often the sign of a stable program. There is a lot that can be gathered on the visit. Can you see yourself on this team/campus? Sometimes a visit will just feel right, but …
Separate
At the end of the visit to Virginia Tech, Coach Sergio told Tori to go home on Sunday, write what she liked and didn’t like about the trip, then wait a day or two to let the emotions of the trip cool a little. I really liked this idea, because some trips will be so much fun but after further considerations, those likes and dislikes will help paint a clearer picture of the visit.
Final Questions
After your visit you will have some more questions for the coaches. Again, don’t be afraid to ask a difficult question, this decision will have a huge impact in your life. Parents should also be asking any questions they have after the visit.
Pressure
Some coaches were very understanding of the enormity of the collegiate decision, and they want to make sure their school is where you want to be. Unfortunately, other coaches may pressure you for a decision to be made. This is understandable since they want to fill their class, and you should be respectful of their recruiting efforts. However, this is your decision and your future…
Decision Time
Imagine yourself choosing each school for one day, are you comfortable with that choice? Are you trying to find reasons to choose that school? Sometimes the choice appears obvious, but you still find yourself searching for reasons to choose that school, maybe that is a sign that it may not be the right school, even if it seems obvious. Above I stated, “Money matters,” but it isn’t the only factor in decision time. Parents, please don’t hate me for saying that, but if your child will not be in the best environment possible for success and enjoy their time on campus, is it really more important than taking the best financial package? This takes me back to the first statement; imagine you have chosen a school, and do you feel comfortable with that choice? Ultimately, you will probably have several good choices and don’t worry that you are making the wrong choice. Coach Dave uses a new car purchase analogy, you have a lot of good choices and now you’re just choosing the color of the car. What color will you choose?
If you have any further questions at any point in the process, please reach out to your coaches. I really believe we handled this process very well and everything listed will help in your decision process. You’ve put in a lot of work to get here, so relax and enjoy it!
Greg Brostowitz
715-613-1257
