Parents L10 gymnast (The Reality Of College Gymnastics)

[Deleted member 18037]

This thread is about the realities of doing college gymnastics.

If a kid gets to L10 the odds are very high they can get a spot on at least a D3 team.

Whether you consider that acceptable is the judgy part

 

[Deleted member 18037]

So for giggles I looked at a somewhat local D3 college team roster.

1 kid on team only ever actually competed Xcel, a local kid, likely talented and has connections
3-4 ladies only did L9 (34-36 scorers)
The rest of the team were L10s. None scoring higher then 34 if they competed AA. Most never even scored a 33. About half were event specialists and never competed AA as 10s

Geographically spread out to as far as Co. Most locally to the area, especially the “big” gym around here. And that is networking along with talent.

If a kid makes it to L10 and really wants to do college gym. They can do it.
Heck based on this small sample even if they are a decent L9 they have a chance to compete.

 

[LJL07]

If a kid gets to L10 the odds are very high they can get a spot on at least a D3 team.

Whether you consider that acceptable is the judgy part

Do you even read before you post? I seriously wonder.

The odds are not “very high” as you state. There are only 15-16 D3 teams.

 

[LJL07]

So for giggles I looked at a somewhat local D3 college team roster.

1 kid on team only ever actually competed Xcel, a local kid, likely talented and has connections
3-4 ladies only did L9 (34-36 scorers)
The rest of the team were L10s. None scoring higher then 34 if they competed AA. Most never even scored a 33. About half were event specialists and never competed AA as 10s

Geographically spread out to as far as Co. Most locally to the area, especially the “big” gym around here. And that is networking along with talent.

If a kid makes it to L10 and really wants to do college gym. They can do it.
Heck based on this small sample even if they are a decent L9 they have a chance to compete.

This is totally inaccurate, and I don’t know why you would try to spread misinformation like this. Very few “decent level 9s” have a chance to compete on a college gymnastics team. It is not impossible, but what you are reporting here is just not representative.

 

[FlippinLilysMom]

I quit. This is totally inaccurate, and I don’t know why you would try to spread misinformation like this. Very few “decent level 9s” have a chance to compete on a college gymnastics team. It is not impossible, but what you are reporting here is just not representative.

I 100% agree. It's very VERY hard for a level 10 to find a spot on a team, much less a level 9. Again, not impossible but very unlikely.

 

[LJL07]

So for giggles I looked at a somewhat local D3 college team roster.

1 kid on team only ever actually competed Xcel, a local kid, likely talented and has connections
3-4 ladies only did L9 (34-36 scorers)
The rest of the team were L10s. None scoring higher then 34 if they competed AA. Most never even scored a 33. About half were event specialists and never competed AA as 10s

Geographically spread out to as far as Co. Most locally to the area, especially the “big” gym around here. And that is networking along with talent.

If a kid makes it to L10 and really wants to do college gym. They can do it.
Heck based on this small sample even if they are a decent L9 they have a chance to compete.

Sooo, I did a little research and pulled up 5 D3 rosters. I don’t see any level 9s on the rosters. I agree there are quite a few 10s who are not necessarily super high scoring. I saw 34-35 scoring range. I did not see any xcel gymnasts, so that must be an outlier.

One thing I noticed in particular is that most of these girls are local, which doesn’t make D3 teams terribly accessible to girls who live outside of the northeast region. D3 teams typically do not offer athletic scholarships.

So for these reasons, I don’t agree that if a kid makes it to level 10, they can just do it. And again, I didn’t see any level 9s at all. At least not on those 5 D3 teams.

 

[josie55]

Looking at a roster just tells us who made a team, but doesn’t provide any insight into who did not make the team. Sadly there are many, many level 10 gymnasts who, for a variety of reasons, do not land a spot on a team.

This thread has some great insight but has gotten very strange with too many inaccurate statements presented as facts, but I think most of us know that.

 

[Tigtimes]

GymDivas.Us | Online Resource for Gymnasts in the United States

I know this site may not be totally accurate but look at the 2022 graduates by region. Seems anyone registered here wants to do college, look at the amount of uncommitted kids. Simple fact everyone who wants to do college gymnastics just can’t. Period.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

This is totally inaccurate, and I don’t know why you would try to spread misinformation like this. Very few “decent level 9s” have a chance to compete on a college gymnastics team. It is not impossible, but what you are reporting here is just not representative.

Just because you didn’t pick the same school as me does not make it mis-information.

Sooo, I did a little research and pulled up 5 D3 rosters. I don’t see any level 9s on the rosters. I agree there are quite a few 10s who are not necessarily super high scoring. I saw 34-35 scoring range. I did not see any xcel gymnasts, so that must be an outlier.

One thing I noticed in particular is that most of these girls are local, which doesn’t make D3 teams terribly accessible to girls who live outside of the northeast region. D3 teams typically do not offer athletic scholarships.

So for these reasons, I don’t agree that if a kid makes it to level 10, they can just do it. And again, I didn’t see any level 9s at all. At least not on those 5 D3 teams.

And again, you didn’t pull up all D3 schools, every kid on the roster or rosters past. I have been following this school for a bit, as it is one my kid could possibly go to even without gymnastics as a consideration. But I watch them because my kid could of gotten to L9, (still has a slim chance) but injuries and Covid ate up too much time. They offer summer camps, which I tell her about every year. Because that is how she would get noticed if she were to want that route. So far she has chosen to not go. This year she has elected to attend 2 lacrosse camps.

Back to your points.

1-“Most are local girls”

Yes, most are local girls, they come from gyms that clearly have a connection to the school. They likely attended the summer camps of the school to get on the schools radar. I’m sure their club gym encouraged those connections. And networking helped. I’m sure even the out of area kids did some networking, camps or had a gymmastics connection.

2- “The L10s scores were not that high.“

Correct proving my point that you don’t have to go to Nationals and be a 36 or higher scorer to do college gym. And that feeds into one of my other points. Networking and attending camps, reaching out is just as important if not more especially if you are not a L10/Elite superstar. And a gym with good relationships with colleges also more important then being at a superstar L10/Elite gym, especially if your kid is not the superstar. So please parents lurking and reading. Because most of those posting here discount being proactive. Scope out potential colleges, check into if they have summer camps and get your kid there. And don‘t necessarily wait until they are 9/10s. It’s also a great way to check out the school and the environment to see if it’s a potential fit. I have a friend whose child is a new L10. The kid has gone to quite a number of college camps for a few years now. And even took some offher list based on her experiences there. And yes I’m sure the Xcel kid is the exception rather then the rule. Likely because she was proactive.

3- “that most of these girls are local, which doesn’t make D3 teams terribly accessible to girls who live outside of the northeast”

Again, most not all. Meaning you can do gym in college, depends on how badly you want to. Yes you might need to be willing to go further then you would prefer.

4- And finally this “D3 teams typically do not offer athletic scholarships.”
No they do offer money in other ways, including for strong academics.

But you are again lamenting college opportunities. But clearly that is not what you mean. You are lamenting D1 and scholarship spots. And yes JMO you also look down on those D3 schools. That reeks of judgement.

If a kid truly wants to continue gymnastics (or any sport really) in college. Unless the are superstar/elite athletes they need to be proactive and they need to be open to all opportunities. There are very few full ride athletes in any D1 sport. Many talented HS football players whose D1 dream ended up a D3 reality. But they are on a team.

And gymnasts at D3 schools are still doing gymnastics likely because they kept an open mind, and made their opportunities. Doing gym was more important then doing D1 gym.

Most athletes who play as kids never play in college. That’s true in any sport.

 

[LJL07]

Just because you didn’t pick the same school as me does not make it mis-information.

And again, you didn’t pull up all D3 schools, every kid on the roster or rosters past. I have been following this school for a bit, as it is one my kid could possibly go to even without gymnastics as a consideration. But I watch them because my kid could of gotten to L9, (still has a slim chance) but injuries and Covid ate up too much time. They offer summer camps, which I tell her about every year. Because that is how she would get noticed if she were to want that route. So far she has chosen to not go. This year she has elected to attend 2 lacrosse camps.

Back to your points.

1-“Most are local girls”

Yes, most are local girls, they come from gyms that clearly have a connection to the school. They likely attended the summer camps of the school to get on the schools radar. I’m sure their club gym encouraged those connections. And networking helped. I’m sure even the out of area kids did some networking, camps or had a gymmastics connection.

2- “The L10s scores were not that high.“

Correct proving my point that you don’t have to go to Nationals and be a 36 or higher scorer to do college gym. And that feeds into one of my other points. Networking and attending camps, reaching out is just as important if not more especially if you are not a L10/Elite superstar. And a gym with good relationships with colleges also more important then being at a superstar L10/Elite gym, especially if your kid is not the superstar. So please parents lurking and reading. Because most of those posting here discount being proactive. Scope out potential colleges, check into if they have summer camps and get your kid there. And don‘t necessarily wait until they are 9/10s. It’s also a great way to check out the school and the environment to see if it’s a potential fit. I have a friend whose child is a new L10. The kid has gone to quite a number of college camps for a few years now. And even took some offher list based on her experiences there. And yes I’m sure the Xcel kid is the exception rather then the rule. Likely because she was proactive.

3- “that most of these girls are local, which doesn’t make D3 teams terribly accessible to girls who live outside of the northeast”

Again, most not all. Meaning you can do gym in college, depends on how badly you want to. Yes you might need to be willing to go further then you would prefer.

4- And finally this “D3 teams typically do not offer athletic scholarships.”
No they do offer money in other ways, including for strong academics.

But you are again lamenting college opportunities. But clearly that is not what you mean. You are lamenting D1 and scholarship spots. And yes JMO you also look down on those D3 schools. That reeks of judgement.

If a kid truly wants to continue gymnastics (or any sport really) in college. Unless the are superstar/elite athletes they need to be proactive and they need to be open to all opportunities. There are very few full ride athletes in any D1 sport. Many talented HS football players whose D1 dream ended up a D3 reality. But they are on a team.

And gymnasts at D3 schools are still doing gymnastics likely because they kept an open mind, and made their opportunities. Doing gym was more important then doing D1 gym.

Most athletes who play as kids never play in college. That’s true in any sport.

This is crazy. You definitely didn’t read. We would love a D3 spot. I actually wish you would refrain from chiming in when you don’t have the knowledge base or experience. It’s actually kind of harmful rather than helpful. Your objective seems to be to argue and prove everyone wrong. It’s bizarre.

 

[JBS]

Because most of those posting here discount being proactive.

Really?

 

[skschlag]

Here's the thing. Yes, be proactive and open to any and all opportunities. But, that still does not guarantee you a spot. Yes, there is club, but that is very different. It does allow for continuing gymnastics in college, which is fantastic!

Camps are great, connections are great. But you have to have the gymnastics the team is looking for.

The important part is making yourself known to a wide array of teams, showcasing your gymnastics, finding out what the teams need (do they need a bars specialist? vault? or all arounder?), make sure the academics and majors are there, and make sure you can afford it. I know women have more scholarships available than the men, but odds are you will be paying for something.

as for D3, when you do not live near a D3 school, it is often financially out of reach.

 

[JBS]

This thread is about how tough it is to get on a college team. I am assuming that people reading this are looking for a conversation that leads to a decent shot to get on a team... not a lottery ticket to the last spot available in college gymnastics for that year.

Very simply... if every Level 10 without a college spot decided that they wanted to go to a small D3 school... then there would be no spot for Level 9's. Bottom line... going from D1 to D3 is a big jump that many athletes just don't do. They opt out of gymnastics and go to their school of choice for other reasons.

So for all those lurking... if every Level 10 without a college spot and every decent Level 9 decided to attend D3 schools... then there would not be enough spots for them... period. So it is not possible of everyone lurking (all 40,000+ of you according to our stats) to get their kids in D3 programs for gymnastics.

 

[LJL07]

Just because you didn’t pick the same school as me does not make it mis-information.

And again, you didn’t pull up all D3 schools, every kid on the roster or rosters past. I have been following this school for a bit, as it is one my kid could possibly go to even without gymnastics as a consideration. But I watch them because my kid could of gotten to L9, (still has a slim chance) but injuries and Covid ate up too much time. They offer summer camps, which I tell her about every year. Because that is how she would get noticed if she were to want that route. So far she has chosen to not go. This year she has elected to attend 2 lacrosse camps.

Back to your points.

1-“Most are local girls”

Yes, most are local girls, they come from gyms that clearly have a connection to the school. They likely attended the summer camps of the school to get on the schools radar. I’m sure their club gym encouraged those connections. And networking helped. I’m sure even the out of area kids did some networking, camps or had a gymmastics connection.

2- “The L10s scores were not that high.“

Correct proving my point that you don’t have to go to Nationals and be a 36 or higher scorer to do college gym. And that feeds into one of my other points. Networking and attending camps, reaching out is just as important if not more especially if you are not a L10/Elite superstar. And a gym with good relationships with colleges also more important then being at a superstar L10/Elite gym, especially if your kid is not the superstar. So please parents lurking and reading. Because most of those posting here discount being proactive. Scope out potential colleges, check into if they have summer camps and get your kid there. And don‘t necessarily wait until they are 9/10s. It’s also a great way to check out the school and the environment to see if it’s a potential fit. I have a friend whose child is a new L10. The kid has gone to quite a number of college camps for a few years now. And even took some offher list based on her experiences there. And yes I’m sure the Xcel kid is the exception rather then the rule. Likely because she was proactive.

3- “that most of these girls are local, which doesn’t make D3 teams terribly accessible to girls who live outside of the northeast”

Again, most not all. Meaning you can do gym in college, depends on how badly you want to. Yes you might need to be willing to go further then you would prefer.

4- And finally this “D3 teams typically do not offer athletic scholarships.”
No they do offer money in other ways, including for strong academics.

But you are again lamenting college opportunities. But clearly that is not what you mean. You are lamenting D1 and scholarship spots. And yes JMO you also look down on those D3 schools. That reeks of judgement.

If a kid truly wants to continue gymnastics (or any sport really) in college. Unless the are superstar/elite athletes they need to be proactive and they need to be open to all opportunities. There are very few full ride athletes in any D1 sport. Many talented HS football players whose D1 dream ended up a D3 reality. But they are on a team.

And gymnasts at D3 schools are still doing gymnastics likely because they kept an open mind, and made their opportunities. Doing gym was more important then doing D1 gym.

Most athletes who play as kids never play in college. That’s true in any sport.

Now that I collected myself and read the whole thing, this entire post is infuriating. Just infuriating. And wildly inaccurate. If you had bothered to read, I am lamenting BOTH the competitiveness and limited number of D1 scholarship opportunities AND available team spots IN ADDITION to the very limited number of D3 college teams which would actually be a BETTER fit for my daughter than a D1 team. I actually cannot believe the stuff you write.

 

[cmg]

Sooo, I did a little research and pulled up 5 D3 rosters. I don’t see any level 9s on the rosters. I agree there are quite a few 10s who are not necessarily super high scoring. I saw 34-35 scoring range. I did not see any xcel gymnasts, so that must be an outlier.

One thing I noticed in particular is that most of these girls are local, which doesn’t make D3 teams terribly accessible to girls who live outside of the northeast region. D3 teams typically do not offer athletic scholarships.

So for these reasons, I don’t agree that if a kid makes it to level 10, they can just do it. And again, I didn’t see any level 9s at all. At least not on those 5 D3 teams.

I have also seen a few L9's on D3 rosters, but I think they were older perhaps junior/seniors. I suspect now that the competition is getting stronger everywhere, that making it to a D3 team as a level 9 will become more and more rare.

 

[gymgal]

Yes there are a couple of D3 who have had L9's but in general, there are very few L9's on D3 rosters and primarily the ones who are either have connections to the school/coach (which also likely means they won't compete) or a specialist that the team needs - namely Vault b/c most D3 teams primarily have only LO vts and really need more twisting or front/fronts.

Going through recruiting with my dd a few years ago, I found that yes there are many more walk-on spots available to mid-level L10s than I previously thought especially if they can be a specialist but the gymnast will need to make sacrifices in location and/or academics and a lot are not willing to do that, choosing to end gymnastics entirely. My dd had very specific criteria for D1 schools and unfortunately, it didn't work out for her. fortunately she decided to look into D3 and she found a great school and team that fit her.

Scholarship? Forget about it unless you're gymnast is a multi year L10 with high scores and/or has made it to nationals (preferably both). Is it possible without this? yes, but not likely.

 

[Leo7]

This too... this really is a great conversation.

This is a bit of a spinoff, but if someone wants to do college gymnastics, how important are camps and how to narrow them down? It would be a big expense for us to do more than two camps that involve travel and given that gymnasts need to target a considerable number of schools....how do other families do this? Can you get a spot on a team without having gone to their camp?

 

[Leo7]

GymDivas.Us | Online Resource for Gymnasts in the United States

I know this site may not be totally accurate but look at the 2022 graduates by region. Seems anyone registered here wants to do college, look at the amount of uncommitted kids. Simple fact everyone who wants to do college gymnastics just can’t. Period.

Thanks for sharing this site

 

[lovofu]

Look through the college bios and through state results of various levels. Most college gymnasts compete L10 for 3-5 years. That places them at L7 around 5th grade and beyond. Level 7 is usually when the hours go to 20hours. Yes, there are some who have repeated levels but they are less likely to spend as many years in L10 and there are others who went the elite route so were training 20 hours as 8yr olds but that's not the norm.

My DD was a level 10 in sixth grade and trained up to 32 hours a week before that. Her sanity was restored when she got off the elite train and had a more reasonable training schedule!

 

[lovofu]

This is a bit of a spinoff, but if someone wants to do college gymnastics, how important are camps and how to narrow them down? It would be a big expense for us to do more than two camps that involve travel and given that gymnasts need to target a considerable number of schools....how do other families do this? Can you get a spot on a team without having gone to their camp?

I would only attend a camp at a college that had expressed any interest in my athlete. This could be a letter sent to the gym...a conversation with a coach, following my athlete on social media.