DIII Academic/Tennis Balance?

[BMC9670]

I've heard academically rigorous DIII schools balance academics and tennis so that students can tackle tough subjects. True in reality?

My son is a junior 3-star, 10+ UTR and is trying to decide between trying to make a team at an academic DIII or play club at a big university. He is a serious student (4.8/4.0, IB Diploma Candidate, 1540/34) and wants to study some combination of physics, math and astronomy with the goal of eventually earning a Ph.D. in Astrophysics. He's had some interested from good schools but I'm wondering if players are really able to balance tough majors in DIII. The coaches are saying yes, but is that a line to get kids to the school and then they expect more?

Any examples or suggestions of schools to look at? Not to worried about cost as he'll do well with enough with merit scholarships to put most in our comfort zone. So far we're looking at:

DIII:
Case Western
Johns Hopkins
Carnagie Mellon
Bowboin
Florida Tech (DII)
Wesleyan (CT)
MIT/Caltech (long shots)

DI (club):
Arizona
Michigan
Cornell
Colorado
Cal Berkeley
Cal Poly SLO

 

[Mrs.Weasley]

I've heard academically rigorous DIII schools balance academics and tennis so that students can tackle tough subjects. True in reality?

My son is a junior 3-star, 10+ UTR and is trying to decide between trying to make a team at an academic DIII or play club at a big university. He is a serious student (4.8/4.0, IB Diploma Candidate, 1540/34) and wants to study some combination of physics, math and astronomy with the goal of eventually earning a Ph.D. in Astrophysics. He's had some interested from good schools but I'm wondering if players are really able to balance tough majors in DIII. The coaches are saying yes, but is that a line to get kids to the school and then they expect more?

Any examples or suggestions of schools to look at? Not to worried about cost as he'll do well with enough with merit scholarships to put most in our comfort zone. So far we're looking at:

DIII:
Case Western
Johns Hopkins
Carnagie Mellon
Bowboin
Florida Tech (DII)
Wesleyan (CT)
MIT/Caltech (long shots)

DI (club):
Arizona
Michigan
Cornell
Colorado
Cal Berkeley
Cal Poly SLO

Yes, the DIII coaches are correct: academics come first and it is definitely possible to balance tough majors and tennis. Just in case you are unaware, some of the DIII schools on your list don't award any merit scholarships. Caltech and MIT also require subject tests in math and science in addition to an SAT/ACT score. Good luck in the recruiting process!

 

[BMC9670]

Yes, the DIII coaches are correct: academics come first and it is definitely possible to balance tough majors and tennis. Just in case you are unaware, some of the DIII schools on your list don't award any merit scholarships. Caltech and MIT also require subject tests in math and science in addition to an SAT/ACT score. Good luck in the recruiting process!

Thanks for the reply. Can you give me an idea of how that balance is done? Is it a shorter off season? Less hours of practice during season? Rotation of players? I'm aware of the schools that don't offer merit. I'm in the fortunate position in that my son has already qualified for enough outside merit scholarship money on top of projected aid that will make cost less of an issue. He'll take SAT subject tests this spring and I realize Caltech and MIT are long shots no matter one's stats, but you never know, right? We're just starting to visit schools so we have to see what that brings as well.

The more I'm hearing about club tennis, the more I like it. If he can continue to play decent tennis and not have the pressure of juggling a tough major and a varsity team, it might be the way to go. The other part of the equation is that at a big school, there may be more research and intern opportunities. I went to a TOC sectional tournament that was happening near us last year and it looked like the matches were really good and competitive after the early blow outs were out of the way. My guess is a good number of players in his situation go that route.

 

[TennisProdigy]

I played club tennis at a d1 school, competition was great, top players were 5.0, with plenty of 4.5s on the team too.

A couple of times some of the alternate varsity players who were 5.5s practiced with us.

Practices optional, attending matches optional, I majored in biology and graduated with a 3.5 gpa.

I basically just attended when I felt like it, no pressure so I could’ve focused on studying if that was my priority...

 

[BMC9670]

I played club tennis at a d1 school, competition was great, top players were 5.0, with plenty of 4.5s on the team too.

A couple of times some of the alternate varsity players who were 5.5s practiced with us.

Practices optional, attending matches optional, I majored in biology and graduated with a 3.5 gpa.

I basically just attended when I felt like it, no pressure so I could’ve focused on studying if that was my priority...

That's great. Thanks! How often and how far did your club team travel?

 

[TennisProdigy]

That's great. Thanks! How often and how far did your club team travel?

Np, traveled twice a year for tournaments, both times within 90 minutes

 

[ollinger]

Plenty of fine schools on the list, a great student could flourish at nearly all of them, I see Arizona on the list and can strongly endorse it. My eldest brother is an astrophysicist (Ph D Univ. of Chicago), took over directorship of the astrophysics program at UA in the 1980s from Prof. Charles Sonett (for whom the building is now named), left there about 15 or 20 years ago to become provost at another university. Arizona's astrophysics program is a well know world-class operation, and those tennis courts are a short stone's throw down the road. My brother's son studied physics at Arizona, is now a professor (in a biological science) at M.I.T., had something called a Flinn Scholarship at Arizona, a merit based program that paid all his college expenses plus two summers abroad.

 

[BMC9670]

Plenty of fine schools on the list, a great student could flourish at nearly all of them, I see Arizona on the list and can strongly endorse it. My eldest brother is an astrophysicist (Ph D Univ. of Chicago), took over directorship of the astrophysics program at UA in the 1980s from Prof. Charles Sonett (for whom the building is now named), left there about 15 or 20 years ago to become provost at another university. Arizona's astrophysics program is a well know world-class operation, and those tennis courts are a short stone's throw down the road. My brother's son studied physics at Arizona, is now a professor (in a biological science) at M.I.T., had something called a Flinn Scholarship at Arizona, a merit based program that paid all his college expenses plus two summers abroad.

Thanks, ollinger! That's great inside information. U of A is high on our list because of their strong program, research publishing track record and proximity to well-known telescope sites. Plus it's in-state for us and my son would go there nearly free. He already qualifies for their highest merit award based on scores and grades, which covers 100% of tuition and will get another $5k scholarship for completing is IB diploma in high school. He'll also be a strong contender for the Flinn Scholarship and a few others. In short, he's set for scholarship money so we just need to find the right fit. U of A is about 2.5 hours away so it's near home but still with enough of a go-away-to-school distance.

Of course, varsity tennis is out of reach for him there, but they seem to have a very active club team. Not sure about level, but we're planning to check out some of the matches when they come up to Phoenix to play ASU.

 

[Overheadsmash]

I'm a Case Western alum and their tennis program is excellent. Great coach too.

Club tennis is hit or miss. Sometimes it is student run and not very well organized.

 

[mmk]

My youngest daughter played field hockey in the fall and lacrosse in the spring at MIT. She would tell you that sports helped keep her sane. One of her high-school lax teammates played for Oregon on athletic scholarship, and said that lax came first, the coach basically owns you.

 

[W4TA]

My son recently played for a highly ranked DIII tennis team on your list. The prioritization of academics was a major factor in his decision to play DIII.

With that said, we were a bit surprised by the athletic demands, especially preseason, where it was not uncommon to have 3-4 hitting sessions and three weight sessions per week (preseason activity is player-led, no coach). It was demanding but manageable... and rewarding. He thrived academically, and the team made allowances when conflicts arose between tennis and academics.

Regarding DI club tennis, we knew many mid-level four stars who elected to play club tennis at powerhouse DI schools versus playing for lesser ranked DI or DIII teams. From what we were told, club tennis at these DI's offered high level competition... and great scheduling flexibility. These players enjoyed the experience.

In short, the DIII experience was great, especially the team camaraderie (dining, studying, socializing, and travelling together), and the level of competition was strong (many teams in his league had 3-4 players at 12-13 UTR). And while academics were strongly prioritized over athletics, the time demands for tennis were greater than we expected... but easily managed by an organized, committed student.

Good luck in your decision making-

 

[Mrs.Weasley]

Thanks for the reply. Can you give me an idea of how that balance is done? Is it a shorter off season? Less hours of practice during season? Rotation of players? I'm aware of the schools that don't offer merit. I'm in the fortunate position in that my son has already qualified for enough outside merit scholarship money on top of projected aid that will make cost less of an issue. He'll take SAT subject tests this spring and I realize Caltech and MIT are long shots no matter one's stats, but you never know, right? We're just starting to visit schools so we have to see what that brings as well....
.

My kids play for highly ranked academic D3 schools and are both majoring in STEM fields. Both love their coach and teammates and are having great, but different experiences:
Kid 1: Fall season is short with an ITA and one other weekend tournament. Hitting practices are two hours each weekday afternoon. The school has a block of time set aside for Varsity practices for all sports so there is never a conflict with practice and a class. There are no weight lifting sessions or any type of extra conditioning outside of those two practice hours. (Not sure my kid has even looked at a weight since he graduated high school, but the facility at his school is top-notch.) Fall season ends mid October. In addition to tennis, he has time time to conduct research with a professor the entire school year, captain and play on two IM football teams in the fall, play IM basketball year-round, and do a ton of volunteer stuff with his frat. During off season, he also hits with one of his teammates at least 4 times a week, usually more. However, some of his teammates don't pick the racquet up again until the team practices resume in the spring and that is fine as well. The team does not take a trip over spring break.

Kid 2: Fall season is the same as Kid 1. However, in addition to practice hours, the team also lift weights and does other conditioning on their own time and in the off season. Most of the team also gets together daily to hit during the off-season, too. Kid also conducts research with a prof, but does not have time for any additional IM sports or Greek life. During the season, the coach offers daily individual hitting lessons in addition to the team practice for any player that is interested. The team also travels and competes over spring break.

Both kids are extremely happy at their respective schools,but they both spent a lot of time researching various teams before making their final decisions to make sure that the culture of the team would be good fits for them.

 

[BMC9670]

My son recently played for a highly ranked DIII tennis team on your list. The prioritization of academics was a major factor in his decision to play DIII.

My kids play for highly ranked academic D3 schools and are both majoring in STEM fields. Both love their coach and teammates and are having great, but different experiences:

Thanks for the great info! Do you mind sharing what their tennis stats were during the recruiting process? My son has steadily improved his stats/rankings/ratings each of the last 4 years and I'm wondering where to push this last year - UTR improvement, TRN rating, playing showcases, or ???. The challenge is that we're in a weak and somewhat geographically isolated USTA section, so he doesn't get to play much national competition. This past summer we went all-out and he played Intersectionals, Clay Court Nationals, and Kalamazoo but we can't sustain that kind of travel throughout the year. Anything you could offer that helped your sons would be appreciated.

 

[Mrs.Weasley]

Thanks for the great info! Do you mind sharing what their tennis stats were during the recruiting process? My son has steadily improved his stats/rankings/ratings each of the last 4 years and I'm wondering where to push this last year - UTR improvement, TRN rating, playing showcases, or ???. The challenge is that we're in a weak and somewhat geographically isolated USTA section, so he doesn't get to play much national competition. This past summer we went all-out and he played Intersectionals, Clay Court Nationals, and Kalamazoo but we can't sustain that kind of travel throughout the year. Anything you could offer that helped your sons would be appreciated.

My kids didn't travel much at all during the year, either, but they played a lot of tournaments during the summer which was enough to let them maintain their star ratings and UTR (although UTR wasn't as popular with the coaches when my oldest went through the process as it was when my younger son was being recruited.) None of my kids played Clay Courts or showcases. If we couldn't drive to the tournament, they didn't compete in the tournament. They played a lot of matches locally with their friends and with each other in order to keep improving their games. UTR seems to be the metric coaches are most interested in, which is good for the kids who don't travel as much as some of the other kids.

 

[BMC9670]

My kids didn't travel much at all during the year, either, but they played a lot of tournaments during the summer which was enough to let them maintain their star ratings and UTR (although UTR wasn't as popular with the coaches when my oldest went through the process as it was when my younger son was being recruited.) None of my kids played Clay Courts or showcases. If we couldn't drive to the tournament, they didn't compete in the tournament. They played a lot of matches locally with their friends and with each other in order to keep improving their games. UTR seems to be the metric coaches are most interested in, which is good for the kids who don't travel as much as some of the other kids.

Good to know. This past summer, playing the big events, my sons stats got a nice bump, but we just don't have much competition locally. We may have to do some longer drives in the next year if he wants to have a shot at a team.

 

[BusyMom]

My daughter plays for a Top 20 D3 college. She is very happy with the balance at the college. Academics definitely come first. She has time for school and tennis plus other EC activities. There are pre-med students on her team. The team only plays for one month in the fall. Captain practices are sparsely attended in the off season. Last year she only missed a couple of days of classes for tennis and a few late afternoon classes for matches. However, not all D3 teams are the same. During recruiting, she visited a couple of D3 colleges that are ranked in the Top 5 and they are run more like D1 programs. So you definitely need to check the specific college program. You can also look at the team roster to see what the guys are majoring in.

From what I hear, club tennis is very low key and the level of play varies greatly. D3 and club are very different experiences and your son really needs to figure out which is right for him.

As far as summer tennis, I believe most of the D3 colleges you listed attend the Donovan Tennis Showcase at Yale. Multiple coaches asked my daughter if she would be there.. It is a good opportunity to have lots of coaches see you in one place, but it is expensive. Coaches will often arrange to attend a tournament that a recruit is playing. We saw a number of college coaches at the July level 3 National. I'm sure they were at the level 2 also. But D3 coaches don't necessarily travel far, so your son should consider playing a National in the northeast where most of his college choices are located. He also needs to let them know he will be there. The most important thing is to talk to the coaches and find out whether they need to see your son play and then work something out with them.

Good Luck!

 

[sureshs]

I've heard academically rigorous DIII schools balance academics and tennis so that students can tackle tough subjects. True in reality?

My son is a junior 3-star, 10+ UTR and is trying to decide between trying to make a team at an academic DIII or play club at a big university. He is a serious student (4.8/4.0, IB Diploma Candidate, 1540/34) and wants to study some combination of physics, math and astronomy with the goal of eventually earning a Ph.D. in Astrophysics. He's had some interested from good schools but I'm wondering if players are really able to balance tough majors in DIII. The coaches are saying yes, but is that a line to get kids to the school and then they expect more?

Any examples or suggestions of schools to look at? Not to worried about cost as he'll do well with enough with merit scholarships to put most in our comfort zone. So far we're looking at:

DIII:
Case Western
Johns Hopkins
Carnagie Mellon
Bowboin
Florida Tech (DII)
Wesleyan (CT)
MIT/Caltech (long shots)

DI (club):
Arizona
Michigan
Cornell
Colorado
Cal Berkeley
Cal Poly SLO

Yes it is true. A girl from my club went to a D3 school so that she could still major in both Biology and Computer Science, and is now on her way to med school. She said the sports load was very bearable.

On the other hand, a guy turned down a D1 free ride. He had planned to major in Business but decided to pursue Biology, and felt that D1 with Biology would be very very difficult.

D3 and NAIA or whatever it is called is quite manageable I hear.

 

[Raw_Coach]

The great thing about D3 is that they have no control over you. If you decide the sport is too much, just quit the team. They can't take any scholarship away from you.

There is something to be said about being a part of a real team, that the club team can't provide for you. If you have a chance to go to a fantastic school and be part of the tennis team, it would be silly to turn it down, IMO. It is such a unique experience that very little people get the opportunity to have. Especially if it makes sense financially.

Check out the University of Chicago team as well. Fantastic school with good tennis as well.

 

[BMC9670]

Check out the University of Chicago team as well. Fantastic school with good tennis as well.

Thanks. He would be a good fit academically for schools like Chicago, but he's not there is terms of tennis. Their 1-6 UTR spread is 12.25 - 11.76. Improving his UTR from a low 10 to mid 11 in a year to be in the recruiting conversation is a big ask with his academic load.

 

[am1899]

The coaches aren’t blowing smoke. Academics come first in D3. I volunteer some of my time coaching at a local D3 school. I think it was 2 years ago that our ladies team had the highest avg gpa of any women’s sport program at the school. And they were all in tough majors. Still, the tennis isn’t “country club” - I’ve worked with some really good players at our school, and seen countless others on opponents’ teams.

 

[tennisjon]

I coach D3 and for sure academics come first. My team GPA for the past few years is around 3.7. All of my players have graduated with either admittance to grad school or a full-time job and my team has made the NCAA tournament each of the past 5 years. It is a challenge to balance work, academics, and tennis for my players as they have classes for 4-6 hours per day but we make it work. Student-athletes need to learn to plan out there schedules to allow time to study as well as practice. It is a life skill. There are certain stress weeks and when they know, we try to make it work. I let them know the big matches to start the season that the starters have to make and except for those matches, I will sit starters to get the subs in when the starters have mid-terms or projects due. This balancing has allowed each of my 13-15 players to get into at least one singles and one doubles match every season (last year 5 matches played was the minimum). It's not easy to balance, but having been a D1 athlete myself, D3 certainly is more academically focused.

 

[3kids]

I've heard academically rigorous DIII schools balance academics and tennis so that students can tackle tough subjects. True in reality?

My son is a junior 3-star, 10+ UTR and is trying to decide between trying to make a team at an academic DIII or play club at a big university. He is a serious student (4.8/4.0, IB Diploma Candidate, 1540/34) and wants to study some combination of physics, math and astronomy with the goal of eventually earning a Ph.D. in Astrophysics. He's had some interested from good schools but I'm wondering if players are really able to balance tough majors in DIII. The coaches are saying yes, but is that a line to get kids to the school and then they expect more?

Any examples or suggestions of schools to look at? Not to worried about cost as he'll do well with enough with merit scholarships to put most in our comfort zone. So far we're looking at:

DIII:
Case Western
Johns Hopkins
Carnagie Mellon
Bowboin
Florida Tech (DII)
Wesleyan (CT)
MIT/Caltech (long shots)

DI (club):
Arizona
Michigan
Cornell
Colorado
Cal Berkeley
Cal Poly SLO

As a parent of 2 kids with admissions to Caltech, MIT along with other selective schools, I'd encourage your son to aim high in the college application process. Before applications, we never would have dreamed that our kids would have been accepted to these schools. As you probably know it's a crapshoot but if the student has the academic numbers, they have a shot of getting in. The athletic coaches at these schools can't get an academically unqualified student through admissions but if the student has the academic credentials, support from the coach to the admissions office can tip the student from the general great applicant pool into the admitted pool.

Your son may be interested in this summer astrophysics program https://summerscience.org My kid went through this 6 weeks program and was quite an eye opener in terms of:
1. giving a preview of how intense college will be academically
2. how academically capable other similar aged students are around the country/world as my kid isn't exactly challenged in high school

 

[BMC9670]

As a parent of 2 kids with admissions to Caltech, MIT along with other selective schools, I'd encourage your son to aim high in the college application process. Before applications, we never would have dreamed that our kids would have been accepted to these schools. As you probably know it's a crapshoot but if the student has the academic numbers, they have a shot of getting in. The athletic coaches at these schools can't get an academically unqualified student through admissions but if the student has the academic credentials, support from the coach to the admissions office can tip the student from the general great applicant pool into the admitted pool.

Your son may be interested in this summer astrophysics program https://summerscience.org My kid went through this 6 weeks program and was quite an eye opener in terms of:
1. giving a preview of how intense college will be academically
2. how academically capable other similar aged students are around the country/world as my kid isn't exactly challenged in high school

Thanks for the info. Are your kids playing tennis at those schools? My son is certainly academically qualified for many top schools - in addition to his stats (4.8/4.0, IB Diploma Candidate, 1540/34) he got his PSAT results and will be a National Merit Finalist as well. I know admissions are bombarded with similar (or better) stats and that it's a crap shoot, but even if he did get in to a top tier academic school, I think playing tennis and studying a tough major would be too much. There is also the cost. So we're leaning toward a top D1 school where he can get a full ride via merit and play club tennis. We'll apply to a variety and see what happens, but with grad school it will be a long haul.

 

[Mrs.Weasley]

Thanks for the info. Are your kids playing tennis at those schools? My son is certainly academically qualified for many top schools - in addition to his stats (4.8/4.0, IB Diploma Candidate, 1540/34) he got his PSAT results and will be a National Merit Finalist as well. I know admissions are bombarded with similar (or better) stats and that it's a crap shoot, but even if he did get in to a top tier academic school, I think playing tennis and studying a tough major would be too much. There is also the cost. So we're leaning toward a top D1 school where he can get a full ride via merit and play club tennis. We'll apply to a variety and see what happens, but with grad school it will be a long haul.

In my experience, your son would be able to handle a tough major and play tennis at MIT. The coach is fantastic and academics definitely come first. Have you run the net price calculator for MIT? MIT meets full need and is one of the few schools that does not take home equity into account when calculating aid.

 

[BMC9670]

In my experience, your son would be able to handle a tough major and play tennis at MIT. The coach is fantastic and academics definitely come first. Have you run the net price calculator for MIT? MIT meets full need and is one of the few schools that does not take home equity into account when calculating aid.

He'll apply to MIT as one of the reach schools. He has the grades/stats, but doesn't have a strong "hook" for a super-selective school. But, you never know. We did the estimator for MIT and several other schools and the EPC comes up between $20-$30k. I'm not sure how accurate these are since we are self employed business owners, which is a bit tricky on reporting income. Eventually I'll talk to the financial aid offices to find out how this is handled. Not sure he'd even make the tennis cut at MIT - would have to up his UTR to the 11 range in the next year. Still, paying $20-30k to be at MIT all the way across the country as opposed to $0-$5K for the UofA in our backyard is hard to pass up. Arizona has a top physics/astronomy program and he can apply to a more selective grad school later. Decisions, decisions!

 

[3kids]

Thanks for the info. Are your kids playing tennis at those schools? My son is certainly academically qualified for many top schools - in addition to his stats (4.8/4.0, IB Diploma Candidate, 1540/34) he got his PSAT results and will be a National Merit Finalist as well. I know admissions are bombarded with similar (or better) stats and that it's a crap shoot, but even if he did get in to a top tier academic school, I think playing tennis and studying a tough major would be too much. There is also the cost. So we're leaning toward a top D1 school where he can get a full ride via merit and play club tennis. We'll apply to a variety and see what happens, but with grad school it will be a long haul.

My oldest decided to attend one of the HYPS schools instead but is no way good enough to play on the tennis team. Does play club tennis and enjoys it but is involved in too many other activities to devote much time to tennis. The younger one is still trying to decide which college to go. I agree with Mrs.Weasley that your son can likely do a tough major and tennis. He's also not obligated to continue playing since there's no athletic scholarship money to bind him. My nephew played golf for Carnegie Mellon but decided to drop off the team starting junior year.

 

[Big Bagel]

DIII schools are generally going to do a good job of putting academics first. He'll obviously have to work very hard for it, but he should be able to exceptionally well in his classes while playing varsity for DIII.

As for club tennis at a D1 school, it can be absolutely fantastic. Some schools will only do 1-2 tournaments each semester, others will do 4-6. Most places it's fairly laid back and if you can't go to a tournament or a practice it's not a big deal at all. I noticed Michigan on your list... Michigan has one of the best club tennis programs in the country and actually won the national championship just a few years ago. The programs are student-run and student-led, you meet a lot of new friends from other schools at tournaments, and there are some great players. I'd say there's probably the occasional 5.5 player on a club team, with most D1 club teams having a couple 5.0 players and mostly 4.5s and you might see some 4.0s. Professors at our school always respected club tennis and if we had a test on a Friday but we had to leave for a tournament that day, the teacher would let us take it early just like they would with the varsity athletes.

I think he'll do great either way. You've got him in a great position so I wouldn't worry about it. I wish him the best of luck!

 

[3kids]

He'll apply to MIT as one of the reach schools. He has the grades/stats, but doesn't have a strong "hook" for a super-selective school. But, you never know. We did the estimator for MIT and several other schools and the EPC comes up between $20-$30k. I'm not sure how accurate these are since we are self employed business owners, which is a bit tricky on reporting income. Eventually I'll talk to the financial aid offices to find out how this is handled. Not sure he'd even make the tennis cut at MIT - would have to up his UTR to the 11 range in the next year. Still, paying $20-30k to be at MIT all the way across the country as opposed to $0-$5K for the UofA in our backyard is hard to pass up. Arizona has a top physics/astronomy program and he can apply to a more selective grad school later. Decisions, decisions!

My kids are on "parental" full rides so I'd consider $30K a year a bargain! Sounds like U of A is a great fit with physics/astronomy but I would be wary of the set in stone plans of an 18 y.o. My oldest was set on ChemE going in, then considered CS, then EE. Now is settled on a different engineering major but will be working in the business world for Big 4 consulting firm.

 

[BMC9670]

My kids are on "parental" full rides so I'd consider $30K a year a bargain! Sounds like U of A is a great fit with physics/astronomy but I would be wary of the set in stone plans of an 18 y.o. My oldest was set on ChemE going in, then considered CS, then EE. Now is settled on a different engineering major but will be working in the business world for Big 4 consulting firm.

I hear you loud and clear that plans/interests can change. See it all the time. Hard to go wrong with a STEM degree for next to nothing, though.

 

[BMC9670]

A question for those who have been through the process: How interested is a coach if they have visited a TRN profile multiple times and often? There are a few coaches that have visited 8, 9, 10+ times with increasing frequency recently. Logic tells me they are interested. Only contact from one of them. Any insight?

 

[Mrs.Weasley]

A question for those who have been through the process: How interested is a coach if they have visited a TRN profile multiple times and often? There are a few coaches that have visited 8, 9, 10+ times with increasing frequency recently. Logic tells me they are interested. Only contact from one of them. Any insight?

If the same coach is visiting your son's profile multiple times, I think it is safe to assume that they are interested. If a coach has only visited once, the coach may actually be interested in another player and researching that player's opponents (which is why he was looking at your son's profile.)

Most D3 programs/coaches don't have the funds to spend on much/any recruiting. Your son should reach out to the coaches at the schools he is interested in. He should not wait for the coach to contact him.

Also, if you haven't done so already, make sure you update your son's TRN profile to include his fantastic test scores. Good luck!

 

[BMC9670]

If a coach has only visited once, the coach may actually be interested in another player and researching that player's opponents (which is why he was looking at your son's profile.)

Yep, I did notice one specific case like this. A coach from one of the top D1 schools in the country visited my son's profile and I later found out that his son played my son at Kalamazoo, so he was just scouting the opponent. The ones that have visited multiple times are DIII, some DII and a couple of low DI coaches.

 

[tennisjon]

A question for those who have been through the process: How interested is a coach if they have visited a TRN profile multiple times and often? There are a few coaches that have visited 8, 9, 10+ times with increasing frequency recently. Logic tells me they are interested. Only contact from one of them. Any insight?

I have seen several profiles that lack correct contact information. I would reach out and contact the coach.

 

[TimeToPlaySets]

Is the skill level at D3 higher than you'd expect,
since it could be loaded with D1 caliber players who want to focus on their education

 

[jcgatennismom]

Is the skill level at D3 higher than you'd expect,
since it could be loaded with D1 caliber players who want to focus on their education

Depends on the class year. In 2017 eight 5 stars committed to play D3. No 5 stars did for 2018 and so far none for 2019. However, a lot of 4 stars for all three of those years which is still a high level of play. There is only one UTR 13+ currently in all of D3 though some of those 5 stars used to be UTR 13.

 

[TimeToPlaySets]

What is the lowest UTR one could have to play on the weakest of D3 teams?

 

[Mrs.Weasley]

What is the lowest UTR one could have to play on the weakest of D3 teams?

Some of the weakest D3 men's teams have players in the lineup with a UTR of 4. While the strongest D3 teams have players with 12 UTR riding the bench.