As you start to explore the academic landscape in the USA, you’ll be taken back by how many options you’re presented with. Given the large number of universities that offer an education while rowing for the university, it can be hard to determine which one is the right fit for you. Similar to universities in Great Britain, US universities have reputations as very academically competitive, middle of the road, or less academically competitive. As a result, you may be asking yourself, “where do I even start to find a school that will be a good academic fit, and how does this play into my recruitment plan?”
Understanding the differences in schools within the US system can help significantly when assessing the degree of difficulty of acceptance to a school. One thing to remember is that athletic support can mitigate the staggeringly low acceptance rates of some schools. If you’re a student in the top 10% of your school, you might align well with the more selective schools within the United States. US News has a list of the top 100 lowest acceptance rates, which will give you an indication of some of the more academically competitive schools in the United States. Not all have rowing programs, but admission support will be critical in securing a spot for the ones that do.
Large Schools:
The more prominent public universities (ranging from 15,000 to 50,000 students) have more academic flexibility in admissions for exceptionally talented students in one area of their life. The larger the school and the lower the ranking, the more variability one might see.
This affects the recruiting process in two ways:
- Larger schools have more academic flexibility.
- Larger schools can recruit more athletes and may have a larger recruiting window because they can recruit unlimited athletes.
Small Schools:
The smaller the school, the less flexibility the school will have regarding academic flexibility. This is a direct reflection of the size of the school: the smaller the school, the fewer spots available to athletes.
This affects the recruiting process in two ways:
- Smaller schools have less academic flexibility.
- Smaller schools have a limited number of spots, and their recruiting window may be shorter due to such constraints.
Academic Requirements
In addition to the size and ranking of the school, the NCAA also has floor requirements that could be different requirements from what a school might require. Here are the summary points of the NCAA academic floor requirements:
- A 2.3 GPA in your core classes
- Must take 16 core courses
- Four years of English
- Three years of math (Algebra 1 or higher)
- Two years of natural/physical science (1 yr of lab science if offered)
- One additional year of English, Maths, Sciences
- Two years of social science
- Four additional years of English, maths, sciences, social science, foreign language, comparative religion OR philosophy
- Ten core courses must be completed by your 7th semester of high school
- SAT/ACT scores minimum scores based on your GPA*
Most students from GB will meet the core requirements through their GCSEs, assuming they receive passing marks. It is crucial to pick strong A levels if you are considering a top-end university. Although the Russel Group no longer publishes a list of ‘facilitating subjects’, the legacy list still provides a good idea of what top-end American Universities would expect to be completed to a high standard for entrance:
- Biology,
- Chemistry,
- Physics,
- Mathematics,
- Further Mathematics,
- English Literature,
- Geography,
- History,
- Modern & Classical Languages.
The recommendation is to take two of the eight subjects that align with the top American academic universities. As you choose your A-Levels, remember that the US system allows two years of discovery before declaring a major – you won’t be locked in a narrow degree from day one!
Therefore, the more traditionally academic your A-Levels are, the better prepared you’ll be for a liberal arts education. Regardless of the number of A levels you choose, the top US universities will accept three A Levels.
For your reference:
NCAA International Student Flier
*SAT/ACT is optional for most schools for the ’21/’22 and ’22/’23 application cycles due to the pandemic.
This article was written by Laura Simon, currently the lead recruiter at Yale University for the Women’s Team. To find out more about her work and story, head over to our content partners page, or read more of her work here.
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Photo by Matthew Fournier
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