Courtesy of Aaron Schwartz, a SwimSwam intern. Follow: @aaronnschwartz
Every swimmer dreams of swimming Division 1. It’s just what you do. As some get closer to recruiting season, however, they start to see the benefits of Division 3, but some still want to swim D1 solely because it is D1 and not because it is the right fit. If you are deciding between D1 and D3 swimming, read these 5 reasons why I believe Division 3 is the right fit for many swimmers.
-
The swimmers are there because they want to be.
One of the nicest aspects of D3 swimming is the absence of swimming scholarships. Now that statement may seem pretty counterintuitive, but it really is a blessing in disguise. Since the athletes are not being paid to swim, they are swimming purely because they love the sport. This nurtures a much more positive and productive environment as opposed to schools where the athletes are only swimming to maintain their scholarship.
-
The team is closer than you could imagine
At a meet, I observed the Cal team, and noticed that the men’s and women’s team were completely separated, something that seemed very odd to me. I have seen this behavior associated with other D1 schools before, and in my opinion, it is not an atmosphere I would like to be a part of. A real team integrates the men and women into one team, which provides the framework for a stronger and more supportive atmosphere. Due to the fact that most D3 schools have a smaller student body, you will be forced to be close with your team, which is not a bad thing by any means. I have met some of my best friends from just a short time being on a D3 team, and I can attest to that a D3 team is truly a family.
-
There is a balance between academics and swimming
In D1 swimming, usually the swimming takes over your life and balancing academics and swimming becomes an impossible task. At a D3 school, the coaches understand the importance of academics better and so this balance becomes much easier to maintain. It is also possible at D3 schools to get an excellent education to prepare you for the future, where at D1 schools swimming takes up so much time that student athletes are forced to pursue “easy” majors. If you are looking to get a great education without swimming getting in the way, but still grow as a swimmer, a D3 school may be the perfect place for you.
-
You’ll stand out.
If you are deciding between a faster D3 and slower D1 school, heed this warning. At the D3 school you could be the star or at the top of the team but still have competition from your team and other teams. You can win events and really make an impression in the program you belong to. Who knows, maybe you will even break a couple of records. At the D1 school, unless you have an incredible breakout your first year, you will most likely be at the bottom half of the team, barely contributing any points to the team. It’ll be a struggle to even make conference and you probably will never make a real mark at the school.
-
Making NCAAs is actually realistic.
Let’s be honest. Unless you are a top 50 recruit in your class, making D1 NCAAs is extremely difficult, and most people who swim D1 never even come near the cuts. On the other hand, if you are swimming for a D3 team, making nationals is by no stretch of the imagination easy, but it is definitely reachable and a realistic goal for many at the faster schools. You are going to want to be on that relay that wins nationals, and unless you can go under 20 in your 50 freestyle split, you will never be on that D1 team’s relay. Instead you can win it with your closest buddies at D3 NCAAs and get a nice shiny ring. Just sayin’.
That looks very hard swimming, as for me, being a swimmer, we have to do 4/100 swim every day.
No one mentions attrition rates — I am most familiar with the women’s side but looking back on the All-Mets from our area including several who signed with top 5 D1 programs it appears that d with one or two exceptions, they all quit after a year or two, or never hit there PBs from high school. Anectdotally, the D3 kids from our area seem to complete their college careers at a much higher rate than those who go for D1. The comments also blur the distinction in that many D3 teams can hold their own against mid-level D1 teams — Emory comes to mind in this regard.
I swam at a D2 school my brother swam D1. Its impossible to say what is right for everyone, it all depends on the person I think personally D2 was right for me I felt very connected to the team and 10 years later I’m still friends with some of them, not to say that can’t happen at a DI school I just feel like in general most D1 programs are at very large schools and generally most D2 programs are at somewhat smaller schools. I do think not enough people look at D2 and D3 programs as options. I know I didn’t till they called me up with a scholarship and even then my first thought was “hell no”.… Read more »
Not sure it really matters but my 2 cents…
I grew up as an age group stand-out so I knew all the fast swimmers in my state. I ended up knowing about half the guys on a few of the Big Ten teams and this is the overall consensus I always heard:
1. If you aren’t the best on the team, then the coaches don’t care.
2, The swimmers who aren’t the best aren’t happy.
3. The team has tons of in-fighting and competition among themselves. So much so that they mostly hate each other.
4. The attitude was “I am being paid to be a swimmer and get a degree on the side”. Academics did not… Read more »
There are many DI schools that are at a lower level of a number of DIII schools. There are many more programs besides the top 60 schools in DI because of usually B-Ball. Pick the school you would fit at and have a ball.
I am not sure how many students get into the likes of Hopkins, MIT, etc. because of swimming but I am pretty sure its are far lower percentage of applicants than the typical DI school. That said, the bottom line is that students should go to the school/division that is the best fit for them. Weight rooms, tutors, semesters abroad etc only matter to the extent they move you ahead to your next stage in life.
Wow…. A bit harsh…?
There are a lot of problems with this article. Now, as a D1 swimmer, I may be a bit biased, but my second choice college was a D3 school, so I am familiar with the advantages there. Also due to being a D1 swimmer, I have experience with all these points and can say that many of them are quite the opposite.
1. I’m a walk-on at my school and there are many other walk-ons with me on my team. Further, it has been my experience that the swimmers with the most scholarship money at my school are the most dedicated to swimming.
2. While there are several teams structured this way, the majority of teams… Read more »
Just a note:
Many commenters are portraying DIII athletes as swimmers who just want to take it easy because they don’t want to work hard. While this may be true for some swimmers, there are many swimmers who want to continue to work hard but are simply not fast enough for a DI program.