Young High school senior graduate and gap year

[Collegetalk]

Hello everyone,

My son turned 16 in March 2019 and is entering his Senior year in the fall 2019. (yes he is young) He is currently an UTR 11 at the moment and attends full time school and has a current SAT of 1320. We have been planning on him going to college in the fall of next year once he graduates. However, recently a coach mentioned to us the benefits of him taking a gap year or a semester off before applying to college. That way when he graduates from high school he can focus on tournaments and improving his ranking and playing ITF's. He does not play too many tournaments due to school commitments and only trains 1.5 hours a day because of same reason. I feel that taking one year gap before entering college would be so beneficial for him and he can focus on travelling to play ITF's and improving his UTR. It would also give him time to mature and develop more physically. He is an international student but he has been living and training in the USA since he was 9 years old. Therefore he has been limited to playing USTA tournaments up to level 6 (cant play passed level 6 because he is not allowed) so only UTR matches, 2 ITA's and some ITF's. He is though ranked on Tennisrecruitment as a 257 3 star but doesn't play USTA tournaments so impossible to get any more points there since UTR tournaments do not get calculated on Tennis Recruitment.

I would like some advice on this topic as I am very confused by the whole system. He would love to attend a high academic school but realizes he needs more.
If he applies a year or 6 months after highschool graduation would that encounter a problem getting a scholarship? when would he be applying then if taken a gap year or semester.

Any advice would be highly appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[jcgatennismom]

Read this article https://www.donovantennis.com/2012/03/should-i-or-can-i-take-an-extra-year-before-starting-college/ Per this article and what I have heard before, if your son takes a gap year, he can only compete for 6 months after graduation without losing a season of eligibility. Probably better for him to enroll in Jan 2021 but he still should apply by fall or spring 2019 deadlines to have best chance at merit scholarships to go along with any athletic $. Most of the athleticscholarship $ are allocated by fall for the next year and the merit $ for 20/21 would probably be decided by March 2020. Semester off is better than whole year off though players who enroll in January miss out on fall orientation activities for all freshmen, and professors expect more of freshmen 2nd semester. However with a 1320 SAT, your son is smart so hopefully that would not be an issue. Is he hoping to play D1, D2 or D3? There are strong academic schools in D3 where a UTR level could play on a top 25 D3 school lower in lineup as low 11. To play at a strong academic D1 school, he should aim to be an 11.5 to play midmajor or at least a 12.5/13 to play bottom of lineup for a Power 5 top 50 ITA university.

If your son were to enroll in fall 2021 and played any tournaments that showed up on UTR, he would only be able to play 3 years. If he enrolls spring 2020 and coach decides he is not ready to play, he could be redshirted and still get to play 4 years starting the following fall. He would still practice with team spring 2020. Look up redshirt.

If your son just takes 6 months off, fall 2020 he could play jr iTF since still young, try to get in some Future Qualis, play men's opens and prize $-does not have to all be USTA. I assume he trains in Florida as Fl has the 6/7 only rule for internationals. I have seen internationals play sectional 3s in other sections. There are a lot of junior ITFs in Florida in Nov and Dec and also some $15K futures-sometimes players who show up at sign ins get in as alternates.

There are a few ITA summer circuits left when he could play some college students and jrs-only$30 for membership and they are open to anyone with membership-each tourney fee is around $65. Only play ones where there are other 11s or 12s-some are weak. There is the ITA summer championship in Fort Worth at TCU in August-he could play that for competition vs college players. With an 11 UTR, he would get in Qualifier and possibly main draw but registration ends July 22. There is one at Univ of Florida this weekend-registration ends at 8pm tonight https://www.myutr.com/events/5627?t=1 Several of the guys from the Gator lineup have signed up so it is one of highest level summer circuits, but there are also 11s and 12s. There will be at least two draws probably with 11+ in A draw and under 11s in B draw.

https://itatennis.com/ITA/Events/EventsCalendar/2019_Summer_Circuit_Powered_by_UTR.aspx
https://www.myutr.com/events/5588

I dont know if you are in the US with your son or if he is boarding at an academy. If the later, the ITA summer circuits are only 3 days. Parents could pay coach to take a couple guys for the weekend. Also check out universal tennis events https://www.myutr.com/search?type=events and have your son/his coach look for WC events to bigger tourneys. International players are able to play USTA men's open events. At these, most of the players could be 11s-13s.

if you want to private message me through TTW, I may be able to give you more specific advice if I know where he is currently training in US, what major he desires, etc. Good luck. Glad he is prioritizing his education while still keeping up a good tennis level but he will have a lot more options if he can at least get to 11.5

 

[bobleenov1963]

However with a 1320 SAT, your son is smart so hopefully that would not be an issue. Is he hoping to play D1, D2 or D3? There are strong academic schools in D3 where a UTR level could play on a top 25 D3 school lower in lineup as low 11. To play at a strong academic D1 school, he should aim to be an 11.5 to play midmajor or at least a 12.5/13 to play bottom of lineup for a Power 5 top 50 ITA university.

Is 1320 on the SAT a good score?

 

[jcgatennismom]

Is 1320 on the SAT a good score?

It's not a good score for Ivys or super selective schools, but I meant a player with a 1320 probably would do just as well in classes starting in January as in Sept. It's all relative. It's not like he's a borderline basketball or football player who has to learn how to study. There are merit scholarships for players with SATs in the low 1100s and yet at top public universities, a 1300 may only be 25%ile. A 1300 will earn a player a merit scholarship at many colleges. A relative with a 1550 got very little academic scholarship (not a tennis player) at his school of choice-he had almost full academic rides at other colleges. Recruits have to find a good academic and athletic fit.

 

[bobleenov1963]

It's not a good score for Ivys or super selective schools, but I meant a player with a 1320 probably would do just as well in classes starting in January as in Sept. It's all relative. It's not like he's a borderline basketball or football player who has to learn how to study. There are merit scholarships for players with SATs in the low 1100s and yet even at top public universities, a 1300 may be 25%ile. A 1300 will earn a player a merit scholarship at many colleges. A relative with a 1550 got very little academic scholarship (not a tennis player) at his school of choice-he had almost full academic rides at other colleges. Recruits have to find a good academic and athletic fit.

I think you're right about "it's all relative"

My son scored 1580 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. He also has a UTR rating of 11 but no academic scholarship, even very little . The area where I live, kids who are UTR 11 with 1500+ SAT and 35+ACT are dime and dozens. Quite a few of them attend Thomas Jefferson High School of Science and Technology. This HS ranks either 4th or 5th in the nation.

 

[jcgatennismom]

I think you're right about "it's all relative"

My son scored 1580 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. He also has a UTR rating of 11 but no academic scholarship, even very little . The area where I live, kids who are UTR 11 with 1500+ SAT and 35+ACT are dime and dozens. Quite a few of them attend Thomas Jefferson High School of Science and Technology. This HS ranks either 4th or 5th in the nation.

On the bright side, I bet your son is going into college with at least a semester's worth of science and math credits from APs. That discounts the costs a little or allows him to take just 12 hours during each spring dual season. My nephew-the 1550-also from a top public HS- has changed his idea of a major at least once a month but with all his starting credits, he has a little room to explore his interests his freshmen year. Is your son playing D3 so he can choose a STEM major? I think it would be hard to fit in all the labs playing D1 unless he took all his lab courses in summer and fall. My daughter was a STEM double major but she only played sports (lacrosse) in HS; she chose sorority and science for college, recently finished her Masters and is working on her PhD. There was one female premed tennis major in her Science Honors College.

 

[NoChance]

TJ is the end all, be all, academic HS in Northern Virginia. Most of their students have impeccable credentials. The HS (boys) tennis team is very good, Virginia state champs in 5A for awhile now. Though, Chantilly HS (6A) is currently the big dog now in HS tennis there. One notch above TJ in tennis, one notch below in academics. Both are great schools with quality programs, both academically and athletically. So different from where I live in the boonies.

 

[bobleenov1963]

On the bright side, I bet your son is going into college with at least a semester's worth of science and math credits from APs.

Nope my son is not very motivated with school. He is doing the minimum work to get by classes that he is interested in like science and math. Yes, he has very high SAT and perfect ACT score but his GPA is 3.0. He only likes three things in life: 1) playing tennis, 2) writing and playing music, 3) girls. He is not taking any AP classes because, according to him, it is boring. He thinks school is a burden for him. He wants to major in one of the easiest programs like music since he is already at the highest level 10 of Royal Conservatory Music program and he has been playing the piano for the past twelve years and guitar for the past five years.

Is your son playing D3 so he can choose a STEM major?

I don't think he is motivated enough to major in STEM. The problem is that his older brother has a very successful career financially and he is always there to bail out the younger brother. Not a good thing but not much I can do about it.

 

[Collegetalk]

Read this article

Wow thank you so much for taking the time to respond and explain everything in such detail. Yes my son has a lot of interest in some D3 schools. I know D3 schools don’t give any $ for athletics and as he is an international student that would mean full price tuition. I’m hoping he can get some sort of scholarship as full price will be too high for us to pay. ( and most of the Div 3 are private) so seems to me his best bet is to improve his UTR in order to get a scholarship for a Div 1. Maybe I’m wrong.

When you say apply in the fall or spring of 2019 do you mean accepting an offer then but deferring it until January 2021? Or did you mean applying in the fall of 2020 ( after he graduates) and starting in Jan 2021?

Read this article https://www.donovantennis.com/2012/03/should-i-or-can-i-take-an-extra-year-before-starting-college/ Per this article and what I have heard before, if your son takes a gap year, he can only compete for 6 months after graduation without losing a season of eligibility. Probably better for him to enroll in Jan 2021 but he still should apply by fall or spring 2019 deadlines to have best chance at merit scholarships to go along with any athletic $. Most of the athleticscholarship $ are allocated by fall for the next year and the merit $ for 20/21 would probably be decided by March 2020. Semester off is better than whole year off though players who enroll in January miss out on fall orientation activities for all freshmen, and professors expect more of freshmen 2nd semester. However with a 1320 SAT, your son is smart so hopefully that would not be an issue. Is he hoping to play D1, D2 or D3? There are strong academic schools in D3 where a UTR level could play on a top 25 D3 school lower in lineup as low 11. To play at a strong academic D1 school, he should aim to be an 11.5 to play midmajor or at least a 12.5/13 to play bottom of lineup for a Power 5 top 50 ITA university.

If your son were to enroll in fall 2021 and played any tournaments that showed up on UTR, he would only be able to play 3 years. If he enrolls spring 2020 and coach decides he is not ready to play, he could be redshirted and still get to play 4 years starting the following fall. He would still practice with team spring 2020. Look up redshirt.

If your son just takes 6 months off, fall 2020 he could play jr iTF since still young, try to get in some Future Qualis, play men's opens and prize $-does not have to all be USTA. I assume he trains in Florida as Fl has the 6/7 only rule for internationals. I have seen internationals play sectional 3s in other sections. There are a lot of junior ITFs in Florida in Nov and Dec and also some $15K futures-sometimes players who show up at sign ins get in as alternates.

There are a few ITA summer circuits left when he could play some college students and jrs-only$30 for membership and they are open to anyone with membership-each tourney fee is around $65. Only play ones where there are other 11s or 12s-some are weak. There is the ITA summer championship in Fort Worth at TCU in August-he could play that for competition vs college players. With an 11 UTR, he would get in Qualifier and possibly main draw but registration ends July 22. There is one at Univ of Florida this weekend-registration ends at 8pm tonight https://www.myutr.com/events/5627?t=1 Several of the guys from the Gator lineup have signed up so it is one of highest level summer circuits, but there are also 11s and 12s. There will be at least two draws probably with 11+ in A draw and under 11s in B draw.

https://itatennis.com/ITA/Events/EventsCalendar/2019_Summer_Circuit_Powered_by_UTR.aspx
https://www.myutr.com/events/5588

I dont know if you are in the US with your son or if he is boarding at an academy. If the later, the ITA summer circuits are only 3 days. Parents could pay coach to take a couple guys for the weekend. Also check out universal tennis events https://www.myutr.com/search?type=events and have your son/his coach look for WC events to bigger tourneys. International players are able to play USTA men's open events. At these, most of the players could be 11s-13s.

if you want to private message me through TTW, I may be able to give you more specific advice if I know where he is currently training in US, what major he desires, etc. Good luck. Glad he is prioritizing his education while still keeping up a good tennis level but he will have a lot more options if he can at least get to 11.5

Read this article https://www.donovantennis.com/2012/03/should-i-or-can-i-take-an-extra-year-before-starting-college/ Per this article and what I have heard before, if your son takes a gap year, he can only compete for 6 months after graduation without losing a season of eligibility. Probably better for him to enroll in Jan 2021 but he still should apply by fall or spring 2019 deadlines to have best chance at merit

Wow thank you so much for taking the time to respond and explain everything in such detail. Yes my son has a lot of interest in some D3 schools. I know D3 schools don’t give any $ for athletics and as he is an international student that would mean full price tuition. I’m hoping he can get some sort of scholarship as full price will be too high for us to pay. ( and most of the Div 3 are private) so seems to me his best bet is to improve his UTR in order to get a scholarship for a Div 1. Maybe I’m wrong.

When you say apply in the fall or spring of 2019 do you mean accepting an offer then but deferring it until January 2021? Or did you mean applying in the fall of 2020 ( after he graduates) and starting in Jan 2021?

 

[Collegetalk]

I think you're right about "it's all relative"

My son scored 1580 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. He also has a UTR rating of 11 but no academic scholarship, even very little . The area where I live, kids who are UTR 11 with 1500+ SAT and 35+ACT are dime and dozens. Quite a few of them attend Thomas Jefferson High School of Science and Technology. This HS ranks either 4th or 5th in the nation.

1580 SAT and 11 UTR and no scholarships?? we have no hope

 

[jcgatennismom]

@Collegetalk "When you say apply in the fall or spring of 2019 do you mean accepting an offer then but deferring it until January 2021? YES Or did you mean applying in the fall of 2020 ( after he graduates) and starting in Jan 2021?"

If your son would start play in Jan 2021, that is still the 20/21 school year. Selective schools will have application deadlines as early as Oct 2019-depends if he is applying early or regular admissions. Coaches may want athletic recruits to apply early. For less selective schools you could apply in winter/spring 2020. There are obviously international players who commit in the summer for the following January but that's only if coaches have athletic $ left over-maybe a player is transferring or leaving or a committed recruit has issues with NCAA, visa, etc so $ are available late in the year. However, players will have more choices in the fall of their senior year. US players may commit in 11th grade.

I would think some D3 schools would give merit $ to internationals. Most D3 schools are private and each one may have different rules. Some privates may even give need based aid to internationals. Your son needs to identify colleges of interest and then search for scholarship info on the college websites to see if there are merit/need scholarships for internationals. He can also ask college coaches as they are very aware of academic $ available at their colleges. Coaches will encourage recruits to apply for merit/need scholarships on top of athletic $ but the fin aid dept makes those decisions and not athletics. My son knew his athletic scholarship when he committed, the coach gave an estimate of what merit he thought son would be awarded based on his test scores and grades, but son didnt receive merit scholarship until the following spring after he bumped up his SAT scores a little. Some colleges have very clear scholarship criteria-earn a GPA over a set minimum and earn a certain SAT/ACT score and student is guaranteed a scholarship if he/she applies by deadline, Other scholarships may have more subjective criteria in addition to grades and scores.

Dont let bobleenov1963's example scare you. The most selective, highly academic colleges dont give merit $ as all applicants are very talented with high scores-they only give need-based aid. There are plenty of colleges that give merit $.

Some college coaches will increase athletic scholarship if a player has excellent performance. If your son received a low athletic scholarship based on his level this fall, if he played strong next summer and fall before starting in Jan and then also played well spring 2020, the coach could increase athletic scholarship for his 2nd year . Coaches that dont reward high performing players who had low freshmen year scholarships could risk losing them. With the new transfer portal, it is easy for players and coaches to find each other.

 

[andfor]

Hello everyone,

My son turned 16 in March 2019 and is entering his Senior year in the fall 2019. (yes he is young) He is currently an UTR 11 at the moment and attends full time school and has a current SAT of 1320. We have been planning on him going to college in the fall of next year once he graduates. However, recently a coach mentioned to us the benefits of him taking a gap year or a semester off before applying to college. That way when he graduates from high school he can focus on tournaments and improving his ranking and playing ITF's. He does not play too many tournaments due to school commitments and only trains 1.5 hours a day because of same reason. I feel that taking one year gap before entering college would be so beneficial for him and he can focus on travelling to play ITF's and improving his UTR. It would also give him time to mature and develop more physically. He is an international student but he has been living and training in the USA since he was 9 years old. Therefore he has been limited to playing USTA tournaments up to level 6 (cant play passed level 6 because he is not allowed) so only UTR matches, 2 ITA's and some ITF's. He is though ranked on Tennisrecruitment as a 257 3 star but doesn't play USTA tournaments so impossible to get any more points there since UTR tournaments do not get calculated on Tennis Recruitment.

I would like some advice on this topic as I am very confused by the whole system. He would love to attend a high academic school but realizes he needs more.
If he applies a year or 6 months after highschool graduation would that encounter a problem getting a scholarship? when would he be applying then if taken a gap year or semester.

Any advice would be highly appreciated.

Thank you.

For NCAA D1, if he plays competitive tennis he can take the fall semester off, but the eligibility clock with start the following spring. Taking the entire year off from college and playing competitive tennis would effectively take a year from his eligibility. Don’t believe this applies to D2, 3 or NAIA. Best to look up the rules. The NCAA and NAIA have eligibility hot lines you can call with questions. NJCAA has an email.

The other option is to ask a coach if you know one.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Mrs.Weasley]

Hello everyone,

(snip)

I would like some advice on this topic as I am very confused by the whole system. He would love to attend a high academic school but realizes he needs more.
If he applies a year or 6 months after highschool graduation would that encounter a problem getting a scholarship? when would he be applying then if taken a gap year or semester.

Any advice would be highly appreciated.

Thank you.

I am not familiar with the rules involved in taking a gap year, but thought I would offer some feedback on your son's desire to attend a high academic school. Since "high academic school" is a relative term, if you would be able to provide us with some colleges that your son considers a "high academic school", it would help us when offering advice.

For example, if your son wanted to play for a high academic school in D3, your son's UTR would be high enough right now for some of them, but depending on the school, his SAT score is currently too low for him to be accepted by admissions even if the coach wanted him on the team. Two of my kids have recently gone through the recruiting process in D3. The high academic schools they were looking at required both the verbal and the math section of the SAT to begin with a "7" (along with a high gpa and course rigor). Some of these schools also required SAT Subject Test, with scores above 760.

If your son decides that he wants to play D3, he would be better off devoting his time this month to raising his SAT score and retesting this August instead of working on raising his UTR. D3 does not give athletic scholarships, but some of them do give merit aid based on test scores/gpa. Each college has a net price calculator that you can use to give you a rough idea of the cost of attendance at that institution. Some colleges will provide aid to international students, while others will not.

One of my kids was also being recruited by high academic D1 schools. At the time, the D1 schools he was looking at wanted a junior year UTR greater than 12.5 along with the SAT verbal and math scores beginning with a "7". Many of these schools also required SAT Subject Tests that also began with a "7", but I think some of these schools have dropped that requirement.

Now is the time of year when many coaches at the high academic schools are conducting pre-reads for the high school class of 2020. If you decide not to have your son take a gap year, it would be a good idea for your son to begin reaching out to coaches as soon as possible (if he hasn't already). Many coaches are limited to a certain number of spots, and most of the spots will be taken within the next couple of months.

Good luck with the process!