How many guys would rather hang 'em up than keep playing at D3?

I will go first...  LOTS!  Just had a conversation with a senior the other day.  Calling a coach and telling him thanks but no thanks (very politely, great kid) he is going to uw madison.  Had one last year.  Same thing.  Every year there are guys that could play and choose not to.  Which goes right back to the conversation that if you really have the desire - and at least some ability - there will be a place for you.  I take it as a blessing.  Clears the way for those who really want it.  Nothing wrong with the kids who don't play.  It's a mature decision based on what they want to do with their lives.

Sluggerdad,

For many I know, it isn't that their D1 dreams were crushed, it was more about seeing and understanding the time commitment needed for college and other interests.  Also, for quite a few I believe they found out they didn't love the game as much as they did when they were younger or they realize they aren't as good as they thought they were.  

I think you absolutely have to love this game to put in the blood, sweat and tears for college baseball while getting an education at the same time.  It can be brutal.  High school baseball is different because the challenges are less and their is built in support with parents and friends.  When you go to college to play baseball you don't have that luxury and the competition is fierce.

JMO.

I think it's about 60-40 my 2017 will hang 'em up.  Mostly it's a question of what he wants out of college.  He wants a 4-year experience at a largely residential school. That rules out the JC route and most D2's here on CA. He wants to go to a medium-to-big school and/or to an urban school that offers engineering. That rules out a lot, if not most, D3's.  It's got to be at least fairly high academic; that rules out a bunch more.  If he finds the right match at a D3, and it's mutual, and the money is right, or if he gets a D1 offer (possible but not holding my breath) then he'll play. If not, he'll be one of the 90% who get on with their lives. And I'm ok with that.

I take your point Fenway:

I guess though for some if you have to make the sacrifice in any case -- whatever route you go, D1, D2, D3, or whatever -- it matters what context they are in. Seems like some who think they might be wiling to sacrifice in a big school environment, are unwilling enough to do so in a small school environment.

About fierce competition and being more on your own -- my son is definitely learning all about that this year. 

We have had this conversation. Sons priority is an Engineering degree baseball or not. He would love to play in college to have that experience but if push came to shove he is going for the degree. D1 was never a goal of his except for maybe Stanford but its out of his league baseball wise. D3 makes a lot of sense to him, especially high academic D3.       

standballdad posted:

We have had this conversation. Sons priority is an Engineering degree baseball or not. He would love to play in college to have that experience but if push came to shove he is going for the degree. D1 was never a goal of his except for maybe Stanford but its out of his league baseball wise. D3 makes a lot of sense to him, especially high academic D3.       

MSOE? (Milwaukee school of engineering)

Over the past 10-years I have seen countless young men make questionable decisions as to where they go to college and their expectations (if any) as to playing baseball).

It is my experience that 90% +/- 17-year old know two things about college; where there immediate family went or goes to school and the 35 +/- schools that ESPN show on TV.

As a rule; most kids (and parents) really don't want their kids to go to far from home. If they can drive to the school it is the right distance. For many this limits what schools that they will entertain as possible choices.

If baseball is a priority, there are almost always an opportunity somewhere. However, if the mind set is "big, urban, not too far from home" you have just made a choice which precludes playing baseball for many.

I have counseled countless families that they need to get out and see what schools in other parts of the country look like, get a feel for the campus and what their life might look like if they opened their horizons. Even then, the amount of pushback that I get from parents that say "it is too far away" is amazing. 

I used to live in northern California. I would talk to parents and they would say Santa Barbara / San Luis Obispo was about as far as they wanted their child to go. When I pointed out that this was a 4-5 hour drive and I could show them opportunities in other parts of the country where they could go and be home in the same amount of time I would almost universally get push back from the parents. The really didn't want their kiddo to stray to far from home.

Unless the student is committed to playing baseball which may require them to look beyond their backyard, it is much easier to fill their college experience with what they know versus what they might be able to experience.

We have a really good junior class. One LHP is getting D1 looks. Some of the others are getting D2 and JC looks. I'm not sure if anybody beyond the D1 guy will go on to play college ball. The draw of the big college experience is very real, plus the draw of kids that just want to start working and building some kind of life. I am often reminded that college isn't for everyone and college sports is really for the most dedicated.

I don't know what my kid will do. He is very set on D1. I think that's pretty common for the younger kids. This summer will tell him a lot. I have mentioned a respectable D2 in our city and he just rolls his eyes. I see him legitimately fitting at that D2 and getting a good education. They can potentially offer him really good financial aid on top of any athletic aid.

I don't see my kid going D3 mainly because of the money. We have really great D3 baseball around us, but the cost of attendance, even with big scholarships for the Universities, will put him way in debt. Given his most likely intended major, I don't think taking on that amount of debt is a wise choice. He could play at a JC, with free tuition based on a new state program, so I can see him going that route with the intention of transferring after two years. So, for us, it comes down to where he wants to play and what we can afford.

ILVBB posted:

Over the past 10-years I have seen countless young men make questionable decisions as to where they go to college and their expectations (if any) as to playing baseball).

It is my experience that 90% +/- 17-year old know two things about college; where there immediate family went or goes to school and the 35 +/- schools that ESPN show on TV.

As a rule; most kids (and parents) really don't want their kids to go to far from home. If they can drive to the school it is the right distance. For many this limits what schools that they will entertain as possible choices.

If baseball is a priority, there are almost always an opportunity somewhere. However, if the mind set is "big, urban, not too far from home" you have just made a choice which precludes playing baseball for many.

I have counseled countless families that they need to get out and see what schools in other parts of the country look like, get a feel for the campus and what their life might look like if they opened their horizons. Even then, the amount of pushback that I get from parents that say "it is too far away" is amazing. 

I used to live in northern California. I would talk to parents and they would say Santa Barbara / San Luis Obispo was about as far as they wanted their child to go. When I pointed out that this was a 4-5 hour drive and I could show them opportunities in other parts of the country where they could go and be home in the same amount of time I would almost universally get push back from the parents. The really didn't want their kiddo to stray to far from home.

Unless the student is committed to playing baseball which may require them to look beyond their backyard, it is much easier to fill their college experience with what they know versus what they might be able to experience.

 

 

 

My son would love to play in North Carolina. That is, literally, the other side of the country from us. I would be ok with that, but have you seen the cost of out-of-state tuition? I think affordability is definitely a factor in picking colleges. Do you aim for the local state schools or do you incur the huge out of state tuition costs to experience another part of the country? Most people I know are very concerned about the cost of higher education and end up at the local state schools because it is more cost effective.

2020dad posted:

standballdad posted:

We have had this conversation. Sons priority is an Engineering degree baseball or not. He would love to play in college to have that experience but if push came to shove he is going for the degree. D1 was never a goal of his except for maybe Stanford but its out of his league baseball wise. D3 makes a lot of sense to him, especially high academic D3.       

MSOE? (Milwaukee school of engineering)

Hoping for one in California.

ILVBB, you make good observations, but I want to point out that this:

It is my experience that 90% +/- 17-year old know two things about college; where there immediate family went or goes to school and the 35 +/- schools that ESPN show on TV.

... omits perhaps the most influential factor in the 17yo thought process on college and everything else: their peers.  

I've seen kids pass on playing D3. One scenario is they believe D3 baseball is JV ball. They saw the local D3 play. Our high school would have crushed them. I've seen kids choose large universities over playing D3 for the alumni experience (football/basketball). In our state the state university (affordable) is a Big Ten. It's a quality resume point upon graduation. Plus it has the largest alumni network in the world. For some kids it's more important than four years of D3 ball.

Sluggerdad,

This is a very interesting topic, I think.  I just returned from San Antonio, TX and being with our son for his first trip back in a number of years to  the D3 where he played.  There is no shortage of players at the D3 level in TX.

I tend to think the answer is very multi-factorial:

One consideration is geographical. In our/your area of Northern CA. a HS senior/junior would not have a very good reference point for D3 baseball/college since there is none.  Even though they are a pretty solid team this year, some might use Menlo College (now NAIA) as a reference point for the school and baseball and not find it attractive for either.

One consideration is very regional nature to D3 and the fact that great universities exist which good players and students never learn about because of the mostly regional aspects. Getting players and parents out of their geography to see what diversity exists in D3's throughout the Country and the quality of the play and programs at D3 throughout the Country is a big issue, in my view.  Our son's college coach is hugely successful to the point where the guy sitting behind us last weekend in Texas looked at the program and marveled at the number of starters and player from outside of Tx and as far away as Canada.

Another  consideration is the impression of the quality of play, without reliable information. I would point to a number  posts on this site about D3 as an example.  What many don't realize is what I saw last weekend:  The starter for game one for one team was 88-91 and a pro-prospect. The closer for the same team in game 3 was a sophomore who was 89-92, a strike thrower with a hammer of a hard breaking ball who is also garnering scout interest. Doesn't hurt that the SS, 3B and LF all made All Star teams in the top Summer leagues last Summer and have considerable interest for the June draft.

Certainly, desire and the intensity to continue to play and compete because of the love of baseball is an overarching factor.  D3 baseball gets "lost" for many when it is contrasted with the lure of being a spectator at a top 25 D1 football/basketball school. What does not often gets measured is the "rear view" mirror.  One of our son's HS teammates was a terrific athlete and player.  His parents were highly verbal in questioning our son's D3 choice in Texas.  Their son would attend and play only at UVA or he was heading to a large school for fun, which he did.  Since graduation, he confided how he wished he had stood up to his parents and followed a path like ours did and continued to play and compete in baseball.

At its core though, in my view,  is the fact that D3 baseball does not have visibility in the media.  Impressions for parents and son's are so much developed that way.  If anyone watches OSU-Michigan football or Oregon-Oregon State baseball or Duke UNC basketball, how could they possibly have a reference point for comparison for D3. If someone has not seen how much fun it can be to compete and succeed at the D3 level, it is pretty easy to not "miss" what you never knew existed.

I have also seen kids pass on playing D3; it is unfortunate that they make decisions based on either limited information "your local D3" or base upon perceptions with little or no basis in fact. I have seen many a high school where the baseball team was no better than a little league team; yet I would not make a decision or even make a comparison based upon such a sample.

"Resume decisions" are valid and real; but that does not change the decision making process of most families.

It has been my experience that there is always money for academically qualified students, and more often and not financial packages are designed to make the D3 experience comparably priced to your local state university. 

I think some also make the choice they would rather go to large state U and try to play club ball as opposed to D3.  For some it can be the best of both worlds. 

Infielddad:

Excellent post.   It is really true what you say about our area and the lack of perspective on D3 baseball.   Most of the kids and the parents really have no idea how much talent there is at the top of D3 and what a truly competitive atmosphere exists at those schools.   Frankly, we didn't fully appreciate it either,  until my son  stepped on campus, and got a close up, day-to-day look at it.  

Four guys from my sons HS are now playing in the SCIAC, so maybe the word will get out eventually in our community. 

ILVBB posted:

It has been my experience that there is always money for academically qualified students, and more often and not financial packages are designed to make the D3 experience comparably priced to your local state university. 

 

My daughter looked at two schools-large D1 (she didn't play a sports) and small D3. We get no aid at D1, D3 dropped their price from $40,000 to $24,000 on her application. She decided to go with the D1, or I'm sure we could haven't gotten a pretty level price from the D3. These private schools have money and they are willing to use it to help get students in. About 90% of kids at private schools get some level of aid.

Before we started a college search in earnest, daughter said she wanted small school. We made her visit three schools to start with--a small D3; a medium size D2; a large D1, just so she knew what each felt like. She ended up at large D1.

We will do the same for our son, and will focus on schools around the country close to where we know someone (West Virginia, Arkansas, Washington State). If he ends up in Iowa, great, but if someplace else is best for him then I will swallow hard, let him go, and work on building my frequent flyer miles.

There are some really goo Engineering Colleges in D3. Do not rule out playing baseball, just because you want to be an engineer. Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and Harvey Mudd  are two of the best engineering colleges in the country. Both Play baseball at the D3 level. Harvey Mudd combines with Claremont and Scripps to field a team, Claremont Mudd Scipps. 

Here in Ohio, Ohio Northern has a pretty good Engineering program as well. There are others across the country. 

At the D3 Level the coaches are more likely to understand and condone the work it takes to be an engineer/athlete and take that into consideration.

It is not baseball, but my youngest had some opportunities to wrestle at some small colleges, but He chose not to, he wanted the big College experience. He had connections with Michigan and could have walked on there, but the cost was way out of line. He wanted the big college experience. He had no interest in small colleges in any way shape or form.

My older boy, actually wanted a smaller college experience. 

BishopLeftiesDad - yes you are right.  Those schools are on my son's radar, as well as Wash U, Case Western, Tufts, JHU, Trinity. Some others, but it's not a huge number so far.  Not D3, but in the same vein I think he should also be looking hard at schools in the Patriot League.

My son is currently playing at a D3 and he is considering hanging up the cleats.  He is a freshman and has yet to see any playing time this year, and he suspects he won't see any, but that isn't his primary issue for ending his baseball career.  It really is the level of commitment involved; it is a HUGE chunk of time taking away from the time he could be putting into his academics.  He doesn't like missing classes, making up work, and worst of all, the long bus rides.  Not to mention, this early in the season, they have to deal with the miserable weather (East Coast).  He says the game has just stopped being fun, so why put up with it all when he should be focusing on the things that will better perpetuate his future.

Now, I don't know if his tune would change if he was "getting a lot of love", as he puts it, from the coaches and he was actually getting to play in games.  But right now, he isn't very happy about his situation.  That being said, without baseball he is still in the right place - we all believe that.  He is really excelling academically, likes his professors, and has made good friends.  We all felt that if he went to the big D1 school, he would have been way too distracted and would not be where he is grade-wise.

So, as sad as his Pop might be at no longer getting to watch him play the game we love, I have come to terms with it; cuz in the end, if it doesn't end this year, it will in 3 years (tops) anyway.

kandkfunk posted:

 

My son would love to play in North Carolina. That is, literally, the other side of the country from us. I would be ok with that, but have you seen the cost of out-of-state tuition? I think affordability is definitely a factor in picking colleges. Do you aim for the local state schools or do you incur the huge out of state tuition costs to experience another part of the country? Most people I know are very concerned about the cost of higher education and end up at the local state schools because it is more cost effective.

I checked some good NC baseball schools that keewartson has played against recently or on their field: UNC-C, UNC-W, and ECU.   Their OUT of state tuition is in line with my son's IN state in Virginia.  

(Of course, I didn't even try to compare UNC-CH, or the privates, Duke, WF, or Davidson.)

structuredoc posted:

My son is currently playing at a D3 and he is considering hanging up the cleats.  He is a freshman and has yet to see any playing time this year, and he suspects he won't see any, but that isn't his primary issue for ending his baseball career.  It really is the level of commitment involved; it is a HUGE chunk of time taking away from the time he could be putting into his academics.  He doesn't like missing classes, making up work, and worst of all, the long bus rides.  Not to mention, this early in the season, they have to deal with the miserable weather (East Coast).  He says the game has just stopped being fun, so why put up with it all when he should be focusing on the things that will better perpetuate his future.

Now, I don't know if his tune would change if he was "getting a lot of love", as he puts it, from the coaches and he was actually getting to play in games.  But right now, he isn't very happy about his situation.  That being said, without baseball he is still in the right place - we all believe that.  He is really excelling academically, likes his professors, and has made good friends.  We all felt that if he went to the big D1 school, he would have been way too distracted and would not be where he is grade-wise.

So, as sad as his Pop might be at no longer getting to watch him play the game we love, I have come to terms with it; cuz in the end, if it doesn't end this year, it will in 3 years (tops) anyway.

Not  getting any playing time, when you still have to make all the other sacrifices involved,  is indeed a big deal and does leave lots of guys discouraged, I think,  especially when there is no guarantee that even if you stick it out, you will eventually get playing time.   It can be a very dog eat dog environment, even at the D3 level.   

keewart posted:

kandkfunk posted:

 

My son would love to play in North Carolina. That is, literally, the other side of the country from us. I would be ok with that, but have you seen the cost of out-of-state tuition? I think affordability is definitely a factor in picking colleges. Do you aim for the local state schools or do you incur the huge out of state tuition costs to experience another part of the country? Most people I know are very concerned about the cost of higher education and end up at the local state schools because it is more cost effective.

I checked some good NC baseball schools that keewartson has played against recently or on their field: UNC-C, UNC-W, and ECU.   Their OUT of state tuition is in line with my son's IN state in Virginia.  

(Of course, I didn't even try to compare UNC-CH, or the privates, Duke, WF, or Davidson.)

Sounds like your son is getting to play some first class baseball.

I have all the data for Colleges in NC, from D1 through NAIA (there are only 2). My data is based on 2014 rates, so I'm sure things have gone up, but it's a good starting point. I am assuming you are referring to Charlotte, Wilmington and East Carolina. Out-of-state tuition alone, at each school, is about $10k more per year than our two big state schools. Chapel Hill is about $20k more per year (but, in my opinion is one of the most beautiful campuses in the country). Duke is a little more than the average tuition at the D3 schools in our area, but Duke only provides financial aid to roughly 50% of students (82-93% of kids receive financial aid at our local D3 schools) . Maybe that has more to do with the type of kids that attend Duke. Their families can afford to pay the entire tuition amount and don't need the aid (just a guess since I they probably have a very large endowment).

Add in the cost of travel to and from school and it doesn't really make sense from a purely monetary position. My goal is to get my kids through college with a good education and the least amount of debt possible. If baseball helps my son achieve that, great. If not, then he moves on with life.

Now, if an offer of a lifetime comes in for him to play at his dream NC school, I will do everything in my power to make sure he can live that dream. I don't want to sound like a total dream killer here. I am just very much a realist and I like to be prepared and know all of the options.

JCG posted:

BishopLeftiesDad - yes you are right.  Those schools are on my son's radar, as well as Wash U, Case Western, Tufts, JHU, Trinity. Some others, but it's not a huge number so far.  Not D3, but in the same vein I think he should also be looking hard at schools in the Patriot League.

Great to hear. And while all those are private, not all of them can be claasified as small. 

He doesn't want small; and small often means no engineering - that's one of the troubles with finding the right  D3.  As for public vs. private, our stance as parents is that we can afford a UC.  Any private school that comes in at or below that number is okay.  From anecdotal hearsay, privates are aware of what state schools cost and that many people feel this way, and they often make their offers accordingly.

@JCG: Don't forget about some of the 3/2 programs. Might be a way to do bb for a few years at a small private (where you might get merit aid) then move to a real engineering school for two. Just be careful of the details on this pathway.

Al Pal - no question some fine schools offer 3/2 programs, and no question that can be a way to leverage admission to some incredible engineering schools.  But we've pledged to both of our boys that they'll leave college after 4 years debt free.  If it takes longer than 4 years to get their degree, or if they want advanced degrees, then they've got to step up.

JCG, size was my point, many think D3 means small. You gave some excellent examples of schools that would never be considered small. I was happy that you did find some.

I would never suggest a 3/2 for engineering.  Their are much be^er options. 

We are living this right now with my 2016 in football.  He has several offers at D3/NAIA schools.  He needs a small school environment as he is easily distracted.  And the structure of football will be good for him.  But, he is not high academic and his aid packages still leave us with $20-25k per year to cover.  Which we cannot afford regardless of what FAFSA thinks.   So we're struggling with what to do.  There are 2 schools that are good fits academically and football wise but as of yet we haven't figured out the financial side.

LivingtheDream posted:

We are living this right now with my 2016 in football.  He has several offers at D3/NAIA schools.  He needs a small school environment as he is easily distracted.  And the structure of football will be good for him.  But, he is not high academic and his aid packages still leave us with $20-25k per year to cover.  Which we cannot afford regardless of what FAFSA thinks.   So we're struggling with what to do.  There are 2 schools that are good fits academically and football wise but as of yet we haven't figured out the financial side.

Have you thought about the military route?  Navy offers a ROTC scholarship worth $180,000. 

lionbaseball posted:

LivingtheDream posted:

We are living this right now with my 2016 in football.  He has several offers at D3/NAIA schools.  He needs a small school environment as he is easily distracted.  And the structure of football will be good for him.  But, he is not high academic and his aid packages still leave us with $20-25k per year to cover.  Which we cannot afford regardless of what FAFSA thinks.   So we're struggling with what to do.  There are 2 schools that are good fits academically and football wise but as of yet we haven't figured out the financial side.

Have you thought about the military route?  Navy offers a ROTC scholarship worth $180,000. 

I've thought about it but he hasn't.  He is still living in la la land where money grows on trees and will magically appear to pay for tuition.  He wants to be a surgeon and thinks that he can just take out lots of loans because he will have no problem paying them back.  You know, unless he decides he doesn't want to be a surgeon after all, or can't get into med school, or meets some pretty little coed and doesn't want to spend that much time in school.  He will certainly have to put a heck of a lot more effort in than he has ever shown in high school. 

This thread is incredibly timely. My 2017 catcher is a fantastic athlete, great student, and hard worker. He worked all winter on his swing and bat speed and weighted ball velo training and I look forward to see it applied on the field.

But...I hoped he'd shoot up past me height-wise but he's 5'10" (like me), and ripped (not like me ;-). I think he might have a last growth spurt in him like I had from 18-20, when I grew 2.5", but even if he does, it will be too late unless he transfers, which is very unlikely. So, the D1 dream is probably already gone.

I think he'd be an outstanding D3 catcher, but he's really "into" the big in-state college experience, and most D3s don't hold much interest for him (too small). A very few do, and if one of those work out and want him to play, then I think he'll play college baseball. If they don't, I think he hangs up the cleats, or more likely plays some form of club or adult league, and goes to a semi-big D1 he really likes about 2 hours from us.

Anyhow, I'm going to try to really enjoy HS baseball this season and next.

standballdad posted:

We have had this conversation. Sons priority is an Engineering degree baseball or not. He would love to play in college to have that experience but if push came to shove he is going for the degree. D1 was never a goal of his except for maybe Stanford but its out of his league baseball wise. D3 makes a lot of sense to him, especially high academic D3.       

I am not sure if you ever read where I have  said that he was told he couldn't take engineering as his major.  Sons passion for baseball was much bigger than an engineering degree.  There are many D1 programs that do allow it, but as Fenway has posted,  no one really realizes the time commitment for both. Especially from the power conferences.  

Its OK for your sons to leave the game because they have other things that they feel are more important.  Making a decent living is and should be the priority because most will not earn a living playing baseball.

DK called last night. I said wow, its baseball already tomorrow.  We talked about the team being in good shape, but its a long season, and he remembered how exhausted he was physically and mentally afterwards. Its not for everyone.

That is why I preach over and over...enjoy every game like its the last and stop trying to micro manage his future and let him enjoy it as well.

JMO

based on the sheer amount of small to mid size private schools out there I assume not all kids want the big school experience. I know for my 2017 he likes 10k and under, prefers 5 or 6k - likes small towns and or college towns, hates urban areas and as best as I can tell has a fondness for schools at 50k and above...none of that indicates he would ever want to attend state u

BishopLeftiesDad posted:

JCG, size was my point, many think D3 means small. You gave some excellent examples of schools that would never be considered small. I was happy that you did find some.

I would never suggest a 3/2 for engineering.  Their are much be^er options. 

 

BLD, could you provide a quick follow up re your 3/2 engineering concerns?

Thanks.

9and7dad posted:

I think some also make the choice they would rather go to large state U and try to play club ball as opposed to D3.  For some it can be the best of both worlds. 

I wonder whether this is a viable option. Have anyone's kids actually played club ball? What's the experience like? Looks like club ball also have "Division 1" or "Division 2". Are those correlating to the skill levels?

Bogeyorpar posted:

9and7dad posted:

I think some also make the choice they would rather go to large state U and try to play club ball as opposed to D3.  For some it can be the best of both worlds. 

I wonder whether this is a viable option. Have anyone's kids actually played club ball? What's the experience like? Looks like club ball also have "Division 1" or "Division 2". Are those correlating to the skill levels?

This is the course Everyday2016 is choosing. He really never had any interest in going to a small school. I would certainly love to hear some experiences about club ball as well. There isn't much in the search option.

My son played D3 and got an engineering degree and I can tell you from watching him (from afar mind you) that it is no cake walk and very few have the discipline to pull it off, it's hard, but it can be done. He also had some D1 options but decided against them for various reasons. 

We did look at some 3/2 options but they did not work out, but were viable for the right player.  

One other comment on D3's. There is a wider range of talent playing D3 baseball than other levels, so you can not lump all D3's in the same bucket. There is really no thing as "a D3 baseball player". If your son is thinking about D3 baseball at a top 20 program (and he wants to be on the field playing) he better be a D1 athlete or will develop into one with time. My son's D3 program has played D1 teams in the past and they were very competitive with them, and most freshmen don't play much. 

A couple of my son's played club ball at a D1, one enjoyed it, (not a college baseball athlete) and the other transferred to another school and is in his last year of college ball at a NAIA school.

Hope this helps.

BishopLeftiesDad posted:

JCG, size was my point, many think D3 means small. You gave some excellent examples of schools that would never be considered small. I was happy that you did find some.

I would never suggest a 3/2 for engineering.  Their are much be^er options. 

 

Our son had two teammates who were 3/2 engineering program students.  Both played all three years at his LAC, graduated after 3 years with BA, transferred to an Ivy school for the last 2 years, and will be completing their engineering degrees this spring.  It seems to have worked-out wonderfully for both guys......so, I certainly wouldn't summarily rule-out the option.

I would add, finances were not an issue in both cases, so that does help if that fifth year of tuition is a concern.