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> Whether it’s envisioning their child while watching the professional sports league drafts on TV or banking on college athletic or talent-based scholarships, 8

> Whether it’s envisioning their child while watching the professional sports league drafts on TV or banking on college athletic or talent-based scholarships, 87% of parents with a kid involved in a competitive extracurricular said the activity could lead to income for their child (up from 80% of parents who said the same in the April 2019 survey). Dads are more likely than moms (92% versus 79%) to bet on their kids’ activities becoming lucrative. This is wild. Common sense should tell you getting drafted is a ridiculous thing to bank on and a quick google will tell you "Fewer than 2 percent of high school student-athletes are offered athletic scholarships"[0] 0 - https://www.ncsasports.org/recruiting/how-to-get-recruited/scholarship-facts https://www.ncsasports.org/recruiting/how-to-get-recruited/s...

xmprt 3y ago
For a lot of parents it's as simple as having another extracurricular activity on your college applications which can help you get into a better school. When that's a factor, then it makes the calculus a lot simpler. You don't need to bet on ridiculous odds like getting drafted or an athletic scholarship.
- jrumbut 3y ago
  There are about 180,000 athletic scholarships too. There is certainly a lot of competition to win one, but it's not an unreasonable dream for a talented/hardworking youth.
  - fshbbdssbbgdd 3y ago
    If you can manage good academic progress while also earning an athletic scholarship, that’s fantastic. Shoot for the moon, get into a good school, all sorts of doors will be opened for you. If your athletic focus comes at the cost of poor academic performance, that’s a disaster. Sure, you can find a university that doesn’t care about whether you’re learning anything in class, but you’re probably going to struggle after you graduate.
nradov 3y ago
Very few students get athletic scholarships, but the article is about competitive activities of all types — not just sports. Those absolutely help with college admissions, and private colleges tend to offer better financial aid packages to the highest rated applicants.
nimos 3y ago
Lots of people coach and referee. It also says "could" which seems like basically just a true statement in that it has a probability built in? It's not clear to me what the question actually asked was.
deleted 3y ago
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hintymad 3y ago
[flagged]
prawn 3y ago
My younger brother was a full-time professional athlete (basketball) from his late teens until late thirties, so I saw a lot of his career progression and that of his peers. I think risky territory is to have children that are good enough to be almost professional athletes but not so bad that they just play socially or drop out. There are a fair few competent athletes who defer or never study because they get training roles that chew up a few vital underpaid years, and then leave them with a "I didn't make it" mindset afterwards. Professional? Great. Play, then leverage the contacts to move into a new career. Social? Great. Fitness and fun, while you're able to study/work with your peers. Reminds me a tiny bit of the Silver medal in team sports. 3v4 play and the Bronze winners end on a high. 1v2 play, and the Silver medallists finish on a low.

xmprt 3y ago

For a lot of parents it's as simple as having another extracurricular activity on your college applications which can help you get into a better school. When that's a factor, then it makes the calculus a lot simpler. You don't need to bet on ridiculous odds like getting drafted or an athletic scholarship.

jrumbut 3y ago
There are about 180,000 athletic scholarships too. There is certainly a lot of competition to win one, but it's not an unreasonable dream for a talented/hardworking youth.
- fshbbdssbbgdd 3y ago
  If you can manage good academic progress while also earning an athletic scholarship, that’s fantastic. Shoot for the moon, get into a good school, all sorts of doors will be opened for you. If your athletic focus comes at the cost of poor academic performance, that’s a disaster. Sure, you can find a university that doesn’t care about whether you’re learning anything in class, but you’re probably going to struggle after you graduate.

nradov 3y ago

Very few students get athletic scholarships, but the article is about competitive activities of all types — not just sports. Those absolutely help with college admissions, and private colleges tend to offer better financial aid packages to the highest rated applicants.

nimos 3y ago

Lots of people coach and referee. It also says "could" which seems like basically just a true statement in that it has a probability built in? It's not clear to me what the question actually asked was.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

hintymad 3y ago

[flagged]

prawn 3y ago

My younger brother was a full-time professional athlete (basketball) from his late teens until late thirties, so I saw a lot of his career progression and that of his peers. I think risky territory is to have children that are good enough to be almost professional athletes but not so bad that they just play socially or drop out. There are a fair few competent athletes who defer or never study because they get training roles that chew up a few vital underpaid years, and then leave them with a "I didn't make it" mindset afterwards. Professional? Great. Play, then leverage the contacts to move into a new career. Social? Great. Fitness and fun, while you're able to study/work with your peers. Reminds me a tiny bit of the Silver medal in team sports. 3v4 play and the Bronze winners end on a high. 1v2 play, and the Silver medallists finish on a low.