Mildo Dad - Thank you for the suggestion, I will be sure to pick up the publication you recommended.

I don't have the one you mentioned but I do have several books, Fiske Guide, The Princeton Review, etc. that give me the "range" of SAT and ACT for each school so I have a good idea what Ivy's and others are looking for but I am curious where athletes fall within the range, are they lower than the range, middle of the range, or same as any other student (non-athlete) applying to the school.

It is surprising to me that 70% of the campers attending Headfirst did not realize they were outside the range for the target schools. For the cost, time, etc. I would think they probably thought they WERE in the range or they probably would not have attended.

I just hate to invest the time and money if my son is not a good fit academicly. He is a good student but not sure if his grades and tests are high enough for top tier schools.

Be advised that many of the IVIES are adjusting their admission criteria thus with this in mind I would check their websites---many of the current publications went to press way before the IVY adjustments

TRhit - thanks for your input.

What is causing the Ivy adjustments for admission criteria? I am not familiar with what you are referring to.

baseballfan


Many of them are taking a different view of things lately---each is doing their own thing and that is why I suggest you look at the websites of the IVY schools you have interest in

quote:

what is good enough for ivy league admission for athletes?

Under the assumption my son will continue on his academic and athletic track (he's a freshman) I talked with a couple of dads from our area with sons at two different Ivy's. Both of their sons were in the 3.5+/1300 range in high school. These grades/scores would not get them accepted if they weren't baseball players. Also, how colleges accept student-athletes may vary from institution to institution.

My son attended the Richmond showcase this past week. I was pleased with the experience. Almost all of the 60+ coaches listed were there and the Headfirst staff worked hard to keep things rolling. The Headfirst staff took time with most players to make them feel comfortable and confident.

Player contact with a particular college coach can be a little challenging. Some coaches were not in uniform; so it took a little effort to figure out who was who. Figuring out when a specific coach was available was also tough. The coach that my son most wanted to talk with was in the dugout when my son didn't have a game. Fortunately, the weather delay made the right opportunity.

The general skill level and athleticism of the players wasn't much different than any AAA tournament here in Michigan. Two notable exceptions were the hitting and the outfielders' arm strength. There were only a couple of home runs, but I saw very few bad swings in two days. The top half of the OFs had tremendous arms.

I also noticed that many of the coaches are friends with each other, especially within their conference. This could be a positive or negative during the recruiting process.

Seeing Coach Clark from Emory in action was the highlight of my weekend. His interaction with the players was great. He asked questions, he pulled to get their questions. He wanted them all have fun. I could see that he values every day that he can put on a baseball uniform.

Leaving the academic piece aside, how does this event rank against Best in Virginia? If you have to limit yourself to only one showcase next summer, would you go to BIV or Headfirst?

BIV is to be seen by colleges across Virginia (or Mid-Atlantic region) whereas Headfirst is an academic showcase, i.e., seeking to attract students with high academics (grades/test scores) and match them with schools across US with high admission standards.

DCBa, I was surprised during our son's recruiting process to find that the coaches from rival schools talk to each other A LOT.

When we went to one school, they were fully aware of my son's already having received an offer from another school. They made a point of offering compare/contrast comments to us. Nothing untoward was said, mind you, but I was shocked that they knew. At that time we hadn't told anyone, so there was only one way they could have known.

Turns out many coaches here used to work with other coaches there, and they keep up with one another. Hey, I guess you never know when you might need a job, or at least a reference, so networking goes on from a business standpoint as well as just from a social/friendship standpoint. And sometimes when a school thinks highly of a kid but truly has no spot for him, they'll even help you out by referring you to a friend, even a conference rival.

Now, some guys are indeed bitter rivals, but though I was surprised initially at how much talk went on among coaches, in hindsight it shouldn't have surprised me.

DCBA..did your son go on Thur/Fri or Sat/Sun. My son was there on Sat/Sun and the weather could not have been better!