Scholarship percentage negotiation

From my experience...

Hey guys,

I have short windows of internet so far out here in AZ, but I wanted to drop in a sec on this one.

When I was offered a scholarship to play baseball at UNC back in 2002, Coach Fox sat my parents and I down and told us what he had available. At that time, I was offered. 15%.

Now, there were numerous angles a person could have looked at that offer. Initially, it was the smallest percentage of any program that had offered me up until that point. However, when you break down the dollars, it came out to be a better deal than the 70% I was offered from a nearby private university.

On top of that, Coach Fox looked my parents and I in the eyes and said, "If you come here on that scholarship, and take care of business on the field and in the classroom like I know you can, we will increase your scholarship every year.

Now, that was a verbal agreement. But it was a verbal agreement from the head coach of the school that I had always dreamed of playing for. To me, I had just gotten admitted, the summer before my senior year, to the school I had always wanted to attend for a 15% discount! Plus, a chance to increase it if I earned it.

Once I got to Carolina, you never would have known I was there on 15%. I got the same looks as the "big percentage" out of state guys. From the first day I got there, if you threw strikes and got outs, you pitched. The same thing also went for how well guys did in school. If you skipped class, you sat. If you didn't go to study hall, you sat. No exceptions.

To wrap things up and to get back on topic, Coach Fox stuck to his promise. My sophomore year my scholarship was increased to 40%, then junior year 65% and my senior year was a full scholarship.

Did Coach Fox have to stick to his promise? Absolutely not. Especially my senior year. When I was drafted after my junior year, he could have promised some high schooler the money I would have gotten. But he stayed true to his word.

I'm putting all of this out there because my advice to people is to be realistic, not greedy. If you have to negotiate because of things previously mentioned by others (other siblings in college, whatever it may be), then you have no choice but to be honest and ask for more. But, don't get caught up in a scholarship % providing a "playing time cushion" once you get to school.

Hope this helps some. Scholarship talk can be a bit taboo, but Ill get over it for the guys coming up behind me that are going through the process.

 

This may be a dumb question...

My son is interested in several schools outside of North Carolina. Is there a policy for offering in-state tuition to out-of-state athletes? We are just getting started on this process and obviously still have a lot to learn - any additional info/insight is greatly appreciated!

 

Remember

Go with the school that fits your son as far as what is important to him (academics, playing time, etc.).
Academic money can take away from athletic money in somecases.
Never believe someone who says thier son got a full ride. It can happen, but usually it is other money making up the difference.

 

Scholarship $$

My son is a sophmore at Barton College which as many of you know is a private D-II school in Wilson, NC. It's not a cheap school (2010 tutition, room/board, meal plan, books, etc. about $28,000 per year). All I can say is "Thank God for academic money"!!!

 

Depends on the State, the school, the sport (football/basketball can eat'em up before any other athletes can get a shot) and the coach.

Don't hesitate to ask though!

 

IMO This process is know different than any sales call I make. Be yourself and ask for whatever you think is fair. All the Coach can say is NO! Doesn't hurt to ask ........... you might be surprised by the answer you receive. Just keep this in mind ...... if you don't ask ....... you'll probably not get all that is available!

 

The key word so far in this thread, I think, has been "tactful". It won't hurt to ask, but use tact. Explore it carefully, as you may come off as arrogant and not appreciative of their offer (lots of kids might would give their left..uhm.. pinky... to be getting that offer to play at that school).

They are coaches and evaluators of talent. They offer X and you think you are worth XX and now maybe they view it as questioning their ability? If the player is in the enviable position to ask for more based on their "skill", thats good... but not many players garner that type of juice. Asking for additional help might be best broached through academics (as stated above), so make sure you are academic money worthy.

Begin with the true understanding that at the most, there are 11.7 schollys to spread amongst 27 players at a minimum of 25%. This is very important (varies by school, so do your homework!!!!)... I think there's some good advice here, just be tactful or X may wind up as O.

I do think there it is important to explore what the feeling is as far as hard work/contribution/production garnering more X. Get in the program and then earn that extra X - on the field AND in the classroom!!

 

At some schools if your grades are high enough you can get in-state tuition if you are from out of state. For instance, right now USC has a deal where if SAT and grades are up to a defined and published standard then you get in-state tuition. I knew the numbers last year but have since forgotten them. I recall the scores were tough but obtainable and fair.

My son just signed today for football. But one thing I learned in all this is grades really matter, especially when you drop down from D1. My son had good grades but not outstanding. Top 10% of class etc. etc. But if you get that SAT up over 1300 for the 2 part and a high GPA then you can get a lot of money from D2 and especially D3 schools. We found some great D3 schools. My son got a little lucky and went D1 so it's a full be we looked very seriously at D3's with great academics. In 4 years his playing days will be over. Then he will work for 40 years. Get a quality degree. Sorry to ramble.

 

"The key word so far in this thread, I think, has been "tactful". It won't hurt to ask, but use tact. Explore it carefully, as you may come off as arrogant and not appreciative of their offer (lots of kids might would give their left..uhm.. pinky... to be getting that offer to play at that school).

They are coaches and evaluators of talent. They offer X and you think you are worth XX and now maybe they view it as questioning their ability? If the player is in the enviable position to ask for more based on their "skill", thats good... but not many players garner that type of juice. Asking for additional help might be best broached through academics (as stated above), so make sure you are academic money worthy.

Begin with the true understanding that at the most, there are 11.7 schollys to spread amongst 27 players at a minimum of 25%. This is very important (varies by school, so do your homework!!!!)... I think there's some good advice here, just be tactful or X may wind up as O.

I do think there it is important to explore what the feeling is as far as hard work/contribution/production garnering more X. Get in the program and then earn that extra X - on the field AND in the classroom!!"


I consider this very good advice. The corollary here is that if "Johnny's" interest in athletics stems significantly from his (and your) interest in securing a substantial portion of his college costs from an athletic scholarship, he's chosen the wrong sport if baseball is his choice.