If you were a top HS distance runner, where would you commit?

My daughter attended Princeton. My sons attended Duke and Georgetown. I know more about it than most do.

Anne Arundel Community College

Non D1:

Mines. You are still gonna run fast, but will finish with a degree to earn a living with. The coaching is really good and Golden is way better than Boulder from a place to live vs. $ perspective. We hire Mines graduates at just over $100k.

I don’t believe you. The kids I coached who went to Ivies received great need based packages. I’ll admit we are a working class town and were eligible for the aid, but it was as inexpensive as a state school.

People are just naming the top distance teams, this shows they are fanboy elitists. I would go to an up and coming school so I could be a part of building something great. At a school already at the top, you would just be a cog in the wheel. They wouldn’t care if you didn’t pan out because they have five more to replace you. Building a program would be much more beneficial to your life skills such as leadership, relationships, and teamwork. The process of college teams are more important than th end result. Enjoy the journey of building a program, it is much more fulfilling than going to a place that already is there.

It doesn't really matter if you believe me. You can take 5 minutes to put some examples into schools' NPCs. I earn about $200k and my wife stays home. We have about $1.5M in my 401k which doesn't factor in and about $500k in home equity. We also have about $600k in mutual funds and another $125k in the bank. We own a spare lot valued at $200k.

Tell him about the 11 inches and that time The Rock said he wished he looked as good as you with his shirt off.

1. Stanford (self explanatory)
2. Princeton
3. Harvard, Yale, MIT
4. Texas for a CS-based honors program (best social life by far)
5. Cal for a CS-based honors program
6. Penn for a CS-based honors program
7. Carnegie Mellon

Smarter than a fast runner speaks from his experience. No way I could qualify for aid for my daughter at Princeton. The aid doesn't come to those with upper middle class salaries and investments. I get it. No complaints, but I lived a rather spare lifestyle while she was in college. I never have had debt except for a mortgage, and that was paid off long ago. And I wasn't going into debt for Princeton. I might add they have an excellent payment plan for around a 60 dollar services fee to permit monthly payment, and treat parents well administratively (and wonderfully don't let parents hover over their kids at the same time - they wanted parents out on move in day rather quickly). I went to Georgetown and Duke, and they are less generous than a school like Princeton in terms of aid for those who need it. But still all three are top flight places - only worth it if you apply yourself and make the finances work. If you are poor at Duke or Georgetown social life is dismal - and I was poor as poor could be. The truth is I was glad to get an education that most thought I could never get, so you make the most of what you have. Men's track and cross country in terms of funding is not in a good state, especially looking to the future. NIL and transfer options make it more difficult for a school to capture money from football - as donors and sponsors arguably give a finite amount of money to their school and now some of that money will go directly to the athletes. Throw in Title IX and the lesson for the future is to study hard and be careful of relying on athletics in terms of school choice, matriculation and success. College is all about value today. (To this end, my other daughter went to Michigan as a Shipman Scholar - although out of state, we paid no tuition - again, the value was tremendous).

You'll have to explain how the number of students at an academic institution is related to the injury rates on their track team lol

There is only one option: The Buffs

The majority of top HS runners will never be Olympians or make significant money as a pro.

In HS I was roughly top 10 to 30 nationally depending on distance event. I went to a DI school on scholarship. Academics there were OK, but unfortunately weak in the major I ultimately landed on. I made it to NCAAs a few times but never was a top runner at the NCAA DI level. I had a lot of great experiences and don't regret going there, but looking back I wish in HS I was more aware of my college options.

If I could do it over I'd make a list of the top DIII running and academic schools and order them by endowment. If you are middle class or lower, as I was, these schools with multi-billion dollar endowments offer significant financial aid.

Top liberal arts DIII schools offer excellent academics, small class sizes, and great connections. DIII competition is reasonably challenging. It strikes me as a better academic and athletic balance. At the DIII level if you only achieve 3:4x/14:xx/29:xx that puts you in the mix at DIII nationals. And there are DIII athletes that have gone on to become world class performers.

en.wikipedia.org

List of colleges and universities in the United States by endowment

Many institutions of higher education in the United States maintain financial endowments, sums of money that are invested in stocks, yielding returns that fund a portion of an institution's operational expenses and help ensur...

Open link

Based on what you say I would select Williams College as one of the best in the nation which is a D3 school and great academics and absolutely great distance and cross country running school at the division 3 level in the United States. If financial aid were available this would be a great college to attend depending on your major.

Schools are mostly only "better" in terms of selectivity. The actual education and information is roughly the same. Hell, you can get the same actual information for free on the internet and online courses if you are willing.

This is a tough one. Are you gonna run pro or Oly? If so go for the best program/coach/education level. If not go for education only. My national level dd chose and Ive(Y) over all others and it paid off very well post grad. The sport was 2ndary to the education. No regrets

I subscribe to this theory. Consider mid-majors for realistic travel team opportunities.

NAU easily.

What ever school gave me the best financial package..This isn't football or basketball where you pretty much get a full ride...Very few make money off of running after college and there is no reason to be in debt for years.....

Most certainly NAU, especially if they offer a course on understanding the strange accent that Mike Smith speaks with.