student-athlete's goal is to be prepared for the classroom as well as the playing field. The reward for academic success in the high school classroom is increased opportunities. The ultimate reward for success in college is a degree that is meaningful, while competing at the highest level possible athletically.

Academic Preparation

Academic Preparation vs. Academic Eligibility

There is a thin line between academic eligibility and academic preparation for college. It is not uncommon to learn that many of today's student-athletes are eligible to participate in their respective interscholastic or intercollegiate athletic programs, yet are unprepared to compete in the classroom. There are too many examples of student-athletes receiving diplomas and graduating from high school without the ability or confidence necessary to graduate from college in a competitive major.

Success in any college classroom is known to be linked to the challenge of a rigorous high school curriculum. Therefore, it is important to begin selecting college preparatory courses starting with the first year of high school through graduation. Not all high schools offer students a choice of a college preparatory curriculum. If not, simply take the most rigorous courses the school has to offer.

Compare the following minimum standards required for graduation at most public high schools to the minimum requirements for admission into the nation's most competitive and selective colleges in the United States:

Public High School Standards		Competitive/Selective Colleges
English	4 years	English	4 years
Mathematics	3 years	Mathematics	4 years
Social Science	2 years	Social Science	3-4 years
Science (include one year of a lab science)	2 years	Science (two years of lab science preferred)	3-4 years
Foreign Language	2 years	Foreign Language	2-4 years
Additional Course Work (electives)	4 years	Additional College-prep Course Work (AP, Honors, Etc.)	4 years

 

It is clear that the nation's most competitive colleges (both private and public) require entering students to meet a higher set of standards. The higher standards are not necessarily designed to exclude people from attending college. Standards, however, ensure that those who enter college have a reasonable opportunity to advance through their courses and graduate successfully.

COACHING POINTS... Always take additional college-prep course work exceeding minimal standards for graduation. Challenge yourself to complete a fourth year of math, a third year of science and/or a fourth year of a foreign language. Minimal efforts equal minimal results.

All too often, high school athletes take exception to the rule and choose to take the minimum amount of courses required to remain eligible for athletic participation. The NCAA now has a rule requiring all eligible high school seniors to attain minimums in course loads, grade point average and standardized test scores before earning a Division I or II scholarship.

To an athlete, the concept of "minimal achievement" on the field, or on the court is intolerable. Why is it acceptable in the classroom?

A student-athlete's goal is to be prepared for the classroom as well as the playing field. The reward for academic success in the high school classroom is increased opportunities. The ultimate reward for success in college is a degree that is meaningful, while competing at the highest level possible athletically. The grim realities of those who are not prepared academically are severe. Academic probation, potential loss of scholarship, refused admission to selective colleges, or worse yet, failing to graduate, are often the result of poor academic planning and preparation.