Before a relative embarked on a US College football sports scholarship, a friend who works as a senior academic stated that the subjects studied would extrapolate to Aussie universities.

Even though there were concerns about the academic quality of the specific institution compared to Australia, the subjects studied will be credited towards an Arts/Law degree at an Aussie tertiary institution.

It is certainly a bonus. On balance NSR scholarships may have benefits.

All four US football scholarship recipients from this state, in a two year period, are now back in Australia, probably for different reasons.

One disadvantage though is training at a very amateurish level in football compared to a US college when returning. That is even if the style in the US was often very physical and direct.

It would be interesting to hear Silvergale's views on this.







Edited by Decentric: 10/2/2012 01:41:52 PM

Hi Decentric

I certainly intend to provide an update when my Daughter goes over but she doesnt leave till late July for an early August start.

Funny enough she will be doing Art as her main

She is fully signed but we had to go with the cheapest option as we dont have bucket loads of cash.

For the critics of NSR, we have had about a dozen offers, only a few affordable.

If anyone wants to know more on the NSR system I would consider myself an up todate expert and happy to assist anyone who wants to know more.

Personally, cant wait for her to go and she is super excited, great life experience

Have had a mate go over and caught up with him on his break back home and he told me the standard was was higher over there both technically and physically. He said all the speedy mexicans were a nightmare to play against lol.

The US has also done a similar thing to us in the fact that they have a formation and style of play (433) that all youth teams are recommended to be playing.

They have done a similar thing to us by bringing in one of the masterminds behind the German system to head there national footballing department not to mention the fact they are training 5 days or so a week.

One of my friends is playing soccer in the U.S in the university. He got a full scholarship to a D1 school. That is really good because he gets free education. On the other hand the level in U.S soccer is not like in Europe. U.S focuses more on speed and strength kind of like the Premier league. But the good thing from all of this is the College experience. The experience and friends you will make in a U.S university will be for life.

Exactly the point I have been trying to make to the negative people, not every person is doing this to try and make their kid a superstar, the pricing isnt bad if you intended to go to an Australian Uni and the experience itself is what we take most value from.
If you get a win out of the soccer portion then thats the bonus, not the reaosn to go.

True.

Yeah , my friend tells me that he loves it. Pre-season is very tough but that always comes with soccer.

A dozen offers is very good.



The problems we had were communication between the coach, NSR and the academic wing of the college.

The coach and NSR said that journalism scholarships were available. We never received a credible reason why our relative missed out after applying for one. She was being marked at masters level in the institution, even at undergrad level.

With one of the other Aussie recruits, they were excelling academically in all areas, receiving easily the top marks in all classes they attended. Yet the journalism department didn't respond. A scholarship would have won $2 000 per year. On what criteria was she deemed to have been inadequate for a scholarship?

The sports side took precedence over the academic side. Journalism was supposed to be an option. When the relative went to the college, she couldn't pursue journalism because football training was on at the same time as the football programme each day. This should have been sorted out between the coach and the journalism department before the relative left Australia. Journalism was supposedly an option because the institution had no law faculty.

The coach constantly recruited new domestic players. Assurances meant nothing. The college over-achieved and over-trained, winning the second division and then kept going to higher levels with no chance of being promoted permanently to a higher division.

Some US teammates were considered good enough for the Matildas. Yet the question was posed - why were the still playing at this level? NSR said it was easy to change institutions because scouts were out everywhere. Yet these very good US players weren't playing at the highest college division.

The relative having played with and against some current and former Matildas in Australia, thought the calibre of these US teammates would have assured them playing as some of the better players in the W League if they were Australian. Yet they were playing in the top team in the second highest college division.

This team beat the winners of division one in play-offs, for the state. But the question was asked - why weren't these players good enough for the US pro league? If these players weren't good enough then almost nobody was!!!!!!

Then if the education degree was the fall back position, many instititions weren't as good as there Australian counterparts. The best US tertiary institutions don't offer sports scholarships. Changing to other institutions wasn't as easy as NSR had emphatically stated it would be.

All in all though, it was a worthwhile life experience. There were a number of issues though.









Edited by Decentric: 17/2/2012 06:41:38 PM

Personally, I feel a little indifferent to the whole thing, but I know 3 people who have done this/is currently doing this.

1 was home after a month. I was told that the living conditions were atrocious and the team was no better than local A-Grade here. In saying that, the team still kicked ass, but their region must not have been strong.

Another was home after a couple of months. Apparently the team was hopeless in another weak region. Baffling coaching decisions contributed to him pulling the plug on it all, apparently.

The third absolutely loves it.

Seems like the experience varies from city to city.

and how good the parties are !

It also varies from uni to uni.

There are two other points for the likes of prospective scholarship holders.


1. NSR claimed that work could be obtained working on campus, such as working in college libraries. In reality at this specific insitution they were highly sought after and difficult to obtain. These jobs, when US residents don't qualify for a work permit, only pay $6-10 per hour.

2. Twice a week scholarship holders had to coach kids for 3 hours per session. This equates to 6 hours per week. This raised money for the college soccer programme, but certainly not the team players. This was not laid out before the relative left for the US. It should have been.

The soccer programme took up 30 hours per week. That is a lot more than EPL clubs!!!!! That is a lot of time and energy taken up to study full time uni as well.


So to cut it short, the relative had access to a greater range of courses at her local uni, just a few kilometres away. It is also much more internationally recognised with rigorous courses.

The relative can also work earning up to $20 per hour in Australia.

The relative can drink alcohol legally in Australia. It is illegal for under 21 year olds in the US.




A highlight of a scholarship was meeting people from other parts of the world.

The standard of football was much, much higher than any split state league club in this state. Probably more like a W League club. Football training is disappointing back at home, particularly given the poor coaching at the particular club she is associated with here.

Yes the parties in the US were good!!!!

Hey Decentric & MM

I am sure that things will work out different from college to college as far as both of you have made comment, we knew our choice was safe as we knew two girls who has already attended the same college.

Bad living conditions sounds a worry though, you think this day and age all of that would be good enough.

One thing though as soon as we have had contact from the college NSR did not contribute any further to the negoitations or the arrangements that are/were needed. This has all been between us and the college which hasa better chance of avoiding any confusion.

I look forward to passing on our experiences later in the year, hopefully all good

PS Midfield, If you didnt hear, Broadmeadow dumped the Womens Premier League team at the end of last year (Typical Males again). Majority of the team is now with Adamstown who have been the cellar dwellers last few years. Expect them to go 1st or 2nd this year!!!

Thanks for the update, Silvergale.

I really hope it all goes well, as by the sounds of it, the WPL sounds like a basket case of a competition.

Hi MM
The basket case is actually the males running the clubs. Every year one team is left high and dry by the clubs. Broadmeadow are just the latest to dump a premier league womens team. The team basically ran itself and the reason that came from these males are total crap. This team in the last 3 years made every grand final, lost two and won one. They were dumped beacuse they didnt support the male teams, funny thing I never saw any Males supporting our girls.

Lake Maquarie join the comp this year and have stacked their side with Ex Australians and W League players from the Jets Girls

The comp will survive but we can certainly do without this happening as like you said it doesnt look good. No matter were you go the same shit keeps happening, I was hoping Newcastle would be different but.....

I'm posting as someone who actually took a soccer scholarship and went to a US College for 3 years and much that you all have said is true, but some of you have got the wrong idea.

First of all, i always had aspirations to do this, ever since i was about 10 years old i wanted to play college soccer in the USA and so i had a long time to prepare myself. I didn't go through a recruitment company, i did all my recruitment myself. If you know enough about the system, and have well prepared yourself then it isn't hard to get yourself out there. All these companies do for international students is have a database of players that colleges use a search engine to rummage through. I know this because i worked as an assistant for women's team and did this A LOT. Despite what they tell you NSR will take on board anyone who is willing to pay their $5000 fee. You're paying $5000 for them to make an online profile of you and throw it among their database with 1000's of other players. This means that if you're not either a standout athletic (soccer ability) or academic (grade point average) student then you won't come up in the database often, therefore receiving fewer 'offers'.

As for the standard of soccer, it varies WIDELY.
- Men's Soccer has 1,317 colleges that play competitively across 7 Divisions.
- Women's Soccer has 1,512 colleges across 6 Divisions.

They strongest of these Divisions is the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) Division I, which has 204 men's teams and 322 women's teams, so you can imagine the difference in quality in that division alone. Although, because teams are put in divisions based on the size of the university and the number of athletic teams it has and not the strength of each individual program playing, often is the case that Top 25 ranked teams in the NCAA Division II and Top 10 ranked teams in the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) are of a better standard, the schools are just a lot smaller, and in more rural areas of the country.

Different school's will offer different scholarship options, NCAA Division III schools are prohibited to give athletic scholarships, so they're primarily academic or international student grants and small, rural schools.

As i did and i assume many others want from going to the USA is the 'college experience'. What you see on the movies about the parties and the lifestyle they live is somewhat accurate for the major universities, not often the ones that are very good at soccer. All their athletic budget is spent on Football and Basketball.

What im trying to say is, if you do your research on the academic side of things (knowing what subjects are required to be eligible to play) and athletic side of things (standards, sizes and locations of schools) then you will be a lot better off directly emailing coaches of specific colleges that you hand pick yourself so that you won't be disappointed or not knowing what to expect when you get there. www.collegeboard.com is a perfect website for you to search the exact college that you want want to attend through their 'college matchmaker'.

I had the time of my life in the US, it was 3 and half of the best years of my life, i made amazing friends that i'll have forever, i learnt a lot in life as well as my subjected major at the university. Whether you're going there to try and become a professional player, or taking advantage of the fact someone will pay for your university for you to do something you would be doing (and paying for) anyway here in Australia, I believe Its perfect for a young man/woman to do if you can find the right uni that you can afford and will enjoy.

If you want any more information, or any help with recruiting PM me, i am more than welcome to help.

Great read. Deejay. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Did you gain a degree in the three years in the USA?

What disturbed me is that a mate of mine said he realised his four year degree in the US would have only taken three years here. To me it is a year wasted.

When my relative went to the US, first year involved doing very easy work. Now the same relative is attending the local uni here in Australia. The work is much more difficult and a bit more of a cognitive challenge since completing HSC in Australia. At least the study is taking pace is at a well recognised uni.

I now know 8 football scholarship holders who have gone to the USA. Most are back in Australia. None have completed degrees in the USA for a diversity of reasons. About half of these players are pretty capable academically and would be recognised as excellent students here. They would also be capable of qualifying to study at very good unis in the USA, not quite the Ivy League, but close to them.

One cannot work easily in the USA. It is difficult to obtain a Green Card. Immigration is shocking. The US Embassy in Australia is abysmal to deal with. I can quite happily cope with that because I may never visit the US again!

Of course all soccer scholars have acquired great life skills from living in another country. I posit a different position. It may be better to study here and travel after getting a degree. Or study in the UK with much better average tertiary institutions. Of course the soccer programme in the US is better than most scenarios in Australia, unless one is in the elite of the elite.

Then again read the article about the disintegration of Fury and life for pro footballers when a clubs breaks up may not be that promising.

The only benefits from US scholarships is the quality of football training and experience living in another country. In many parts of Australia quality of life is decidedly better.

Slow learner, aren't you.

I gave you this (sage) advice before you wasted your money sending your daughter to the US. But nope, you didn't listen, 'cos you had a dream to fulfill.



Edited by judy free: 19/3/2012 10:51:30 PM

No problems.

I did earn a degree, i left a graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology, minor in Psych.

As you said, a lot of internationals don't finish their degrees over in the US.. a lot get sick of it, miss home, or its not exactly what they had expected and just throw in the towel.

US institutions aren't exactly known for the quality of their degrees and i found that out when applying for post-graduate degrees just very recently... I haven't started my post grad degree yet so i can't comment on whether or not i find it more difficult than in the US.. i am expecting for it to be a lot harder and a lot more strenuous, partly because of the previous education in the US and partly because its more specified post-graduate work.

I hope to eventually return to the US to work in my field, so i hope my experiences with the Australian Embassy are a little better than yours.

I really doubt whether that staying in Australia to get a degree is beneficial more-so than undertaking a sports scholarship. it is very difficult for young people to be so far from home and their friends, i know from experience, but with knowing exactly what to expect by having all the info on where you (or your children) are getting recruited, you're not getting thrown into the deep end and end up wanting to come home before you are able to graduate.

I'm going to add more info on this topic.

I tend to advise anyone offered a scholarship not to go to the US, if , they are capable of gaining a degree here. The colleges offering scholarships are usually suspect acaedemically compared to Aussie unis. All capable students from here have found studies easy in the US compared to local Aussie unis.

The good US institutions, and they have the best in the world, often don't offer sports scholarships.

From another angle, after having professional coaches in America, players often feel frustrated with the quality of coaching they receive when they return to Australia. The US college football programme is usually much better than here.

It even extends to elite levels. One player, currently in the US, now thinks that the National Training Centre (Institute) coach in a state programme was vastly inferior to the training the player is now getting at a US college.

We are comparing like for like, because both are full time programmes.

Which is the best football college in the USA?

I know of other college scholarship holders having gone to the USA college system for soccer this year.

Some of the players had already studied in Australia at uni. The academic standards at the USA colleges are again very, very disappointing and quite frankly are very low. This is a recurring theme.

Another student who has gone this year isn't as academically inclined. The player is finding the coaching to be very good, even compared to elite level in Australia.

Aspersions have again been cast about NSR.

It would be interesting to hear from Silvergate.

Hi Decentric & All

Wow, not long back from a fantastic 1 month holiday in the USA.

The main aim going there was to drop off my daughter and have a holiday with the wife and overall very happy
We got to spend 4 days in the area she is in and meet all the other girls as well as the coach. 12 Internationals in her team as the rules in California are different than the rest of USA. Attended a couple of training runs but wasnt around for the first game (In Vegas losing money by that stage)
Coach is full on but also a really nice bloke, very unique and brings a brand new program together this year as the college didnt field a team last year due to the old coach leaving. Teaching attack attack attack and not the boring style of soccer that we all watch too much of.
As a brand new team, never expected them to be "world beaters" but they have gone well only losing 3 from 8 (couple of draws as well)All games have been road trips as well!!
Conference play starts in approx 2 weeks and after checking the other teams in her conference they may do well.
Education isnt that hard for the first year and she seems to be getting through her stuff pretty well, actually made comment that her soccer assignments are harder than her college ones. She is studying a graphice arts degree. Heaps of the other girls just doing general studies for the first year.
Yes thats right, soccer assignments!! Its full on, training every day and other work on top of that.

The girl if definetly having to adjust to the coach, the style of coaching and the commitment but all is good.
Loving it all the way and she sounds so happy every time we talk.

Again Im not going to attack NSR as this is brilliant but at least costing us 20K for the first year, more like 10K second year. If you are going to do it and have the money, highly recommend it. Again I offer my knowledge to anyone who wants to no more!!

I will give you more updates as the season progresses

Silver

Also forget to mention how serious it is in regards to discipline. In the first 4 weeks, 1 girls was suspended for two games and last week one girl completely kicked off the team. They dont take any bad attitudes or people simply not putting in 100%. This isnt a holiday so any future people wanting to go need be aware of this.

Cheers

Thanks for the updates, Silvergale.

How much game time is your daughter getting?

100% game time, he loves her. Playing left back which she hasnt really done much off since she was younger but shes solid and he needs good defence. Competing well but lack goal scoring ability.
They beat the 11th rank team in the state last week 1 nil and I guess he figures the best way to win with what he has is to not let any in.
Tomorrow they play the 17th rank team and then the team they lost 1 nil to in the first game of the year which will show their improvment I hope. After that its serious time, conferecne games start.
No huge expectations being a new team but still wont stop my hoping

Will update via this section in this topic early next week

Silver

Here is the coaches comments from the two games they had Frdiay & Saturday (Road trip)

Hello just a brief update. We played on Friday against a really good team. Their record has been ok, but they were a really athletic and gifted team. I was looking for some follow-through after our last game, but we didn't get the result. We played hard for 45 minutes and just shut them down. That was the best this team has played all year. No doubt they came to play, but they did what young inexperienced teams do and they let up to start the second half. The defense let a long ball get behind them and they scored on a breakaway 3 minutes into the second half. We had about 10 opportunities on goal and missed everyone of them. High shots, breakaways kicked straight to the goalie, and a comical missed shot in front of the goal with no goalie! We then had a goalie mistake where she allowed a deflected shot to go between her hands, and that was the game.

I really lost it with the team for the first time after a game and let them have it (my language was colorful and animated). I told them that it was unacceptable and that we would not allow that to be the norm. We cant continue to play hard against good teams and lose games on mistakes and the inability to score easy goals. You can guess what the mood was like. I made them all get in the van and then instructed them to put all of their gear back on and we had a two hour practice on just shooting and finishing. We were well into the dark before we finished and got something to eat. I made it clear that it was not a punishment but a training session to fix a glaring weakness. They agreed and we pushed on. During dinner I had small meetings with the defense, offense and midfield to go over the mistakes and to get back on track.

Saturday was a different story. We started with breakfast at 7 and everyone had a great positive attitude. During the game we scored within 5 minutes and had a 3-1 lead at half. 5 minutes into the second half, Corinne executed a beautiful corner kick and our goalie Beth who was playing on the field scored on a beautiful header. It was the most beautiful header I have seen as a coach off a corner. The team went wild and dog piled on her. A few more goals and we finished 6-1.

It is an inside joke with the team that when we go to restaurants I don't allow them to order dessert, a few have tried to sneak it in, but I always confiscate it and they literally hate me for it, I mean they bring it up out of the blue as to how mad they are. (Nothing like depriving a woman of her chocolate) I have made a deal with the team on three occasions that if they won, that I would buy them all dessert. On Friday after the practice, I told them that if they won the game by 5 goals, I would buy them all dessert the next day. The score was 5-1 with 10 minutes to go and they were killing themselves all over the field like I have never seen them before trying to get that last goal. Well they didn't quit until they got it and well you know the result. They have never lost a game with dessert on the line and the joy of having to see their coach buy it for them. I am just completely puzzled by this, but I thought you might think it is funny as well.

League starts Friday!

Coach

Sorry mate, only just saw your response.

Your big institutions will always have the best programs, in terms of quality and especially facilities.

Colleges like Maryland, North Carolina, Wake Forrest, Akron, UCLA, Indiana, and Notre Dame are all renowned for their excellent soccer programs.

Hope that helps

What college does your daughter go to if you mind me asking?

Sent you a PM

Hi All

First game of the conference got off to a bad start, game tied up at 1-1 half time but a Red card early in the second half and two injuires that forced two key players off for the rest of the game saw the game turn and finished off a disappointing 4-1 loss.
The coach met with 3 players after the game (including my girl) and congratulated them on being the only 3 players who didnt dropped their heads and give up for the whole game.
Coach also had to play both his back up keepers on the park to field a team.

Struggling with numbers being a first year team and gunna be hard for the remainder of the matches.

Hi All

Second game fo the conference saw the Girls bounce back agaisnt the conference leaders, down 2-0 at half time they game back and drew 2-2. Big effort considering both his back up keepers are having to play on the field and the leading goal scorer suspended from last game.
Keeps their slim chaces alive
These Girls are huge underdogs and walking wounded but fully committed. Coach has at least have them beleiving
Next gale this Friday (Saturday our time)

Thanks for the updates, Silvergale. :)

Edited by decentric: 10/10/2012 10:30:01 PM

Third game on Friday saw the walking wounded girls get a well earnt 1-0 nil in the conference game.They have now moved to second in their conference league with next game against the conferecne leaders. They need to win or at least draw to have a chance of continuing.
For a team picked off the back of a weetbix packet, all credit due to the coach in getting all these new girls pulling together. What ever happens this year is a bonus.

What formations are the team playing?

What sort of style are they playing?

The college coach I know of makes no excuses for playing direct football.

Started with 4-3-3 but has had to revert back to 4-4-2 due to injuries of some key players. The coach plays basic but attacking football, just doing it really tough with numbers so trying to get the balance right

Fourth game saw the Girls come up against the conference leaders for their second head to head. Like the first time they played they have come from behind to snatch a 2 all draw.
Makes the proposition of winning the conference alot harder as we now need the leaders to lose or draw their last game and we need to win both games we have remaining. If the leaders win their last game its all over.
Its incredibly hard not being able to watch these games and to have to sit back waiting for an SMS or email to get updates, hate it!!
Regional ranking remains around 14 out of 34 and Statewide, 34 out of 84. Not bad considering its a first year team. Recruitment is already underway to get the squad up to approx 25 players (currently 9 fit girls and 6 playing with different levels of injuries)
Any keen Girls out there?

Forgot to mention, played in approx 2 inches of snow!!!!

I'm not sure about your daughter's academic capabilities, but how is she finding the level of uni compared to her Grade 12 here?

Pretty good. Shes doing graphic arts and has made comment that some of her soccer assisgnments are harder than the college subjects. Not easy but shes coping well.
Shes not a scholar, more like the middle of the road type of student

The academic program was my major concern.

No plausible reason was proffered from the Journalism professor about why a scholarship wasn't awarded. In fact he didn't even respond. My daughter's work was marked at master's level in the subjects she took, which was ridiculous, because the standards were so low - more like grade 9 or 10 work here!

The college ensured that the sporting program took precedence over the academic program too.

If one faces it, it is almost impossible to break into the US pro football league. Academia takes precedence for life opportunities.

Edited by Decentric: 24/10/2012 12:58:11 PM

The Girls payed their 5th game on Friday with all the pressure on them in a do or die game.They had only lost one game in conference play which was to this team.The Girls quickly started dominating and ended up with a comfortable 4-1 win. My Daughter even earnt her second yellow card of her career!.
Still reliant on the conference leaders either losing or drawing for us to have a shot at winning the conference. The last game is Tuesday (our Wednesday morning)
All fingers will be crossed!

The Girls just played their last conference game against the team equal second with them and ran out 2-1 winners. Currently sitting top of the group but pending the result of the team that was sitting first, if this team loses or even draws we will win it but if they win we wont finish any lower than second.
Great result for a first year team

I think you were asking how one could appraise a first year team's performance?

First or second is pretty good.=d>

Hi D

The other team ended up winning 1 nil yesterday so 2nd place finish, as you said pretty good.(1 point seperated them)
They still have the State Wide knockout split into Northern and Southern California. Currently sitting 12th out of nearly 40 in the Northern and 30th in the State out of 80.

Hi All

Season is done and dusted in dramitic circumstances,9 colleges had their November results taken away due to incorrect paperwork submissions, pretty heavy. Not limited to soccer or the girls, the entire college sports where penalised.
This took us from 12th to 23rd, outside the top 16 playoff

In much better news, my Daughter was nominated and achieved "All Conferecne 1st team" selection as a freshman which is the highest you can get in your first year.
:d
There coach also recieved coach of the year for their conferecne and also got coach for the Northern and Southern game later in the year.(Coaching Northern)

Overall great over achievement for team and coach for the year and couldnt be happier.

Congratulations to your daughter.=d>

Great achievement.

Thanks D
Its not uncommon for freshmans to make the first team but they are usually made up of a majority of Sophomores
Nows that she has been recognised/identified in her conference, she just needs to produce the same again next year and hopefully better.
She played the whole season with a badly bruised meniscus(spelling?)which may even had a slight tear. Couldnt get it checked properly as she would have been excluded from playing and she was that determined to fight on through the pain. This was all agreed upon by coach, player and parents.
Now the long wait till next season and the end of my post updates, thanks for all of your support!!!!

I studied in the US as well and was very close to the soccer teams on campus, which featured a lot of Swedish, Canadian and Aussie players.

I agree with most things said on this forum:

Make a choice:

- If academics is most important to you, an Aussie uni is probably better for most majors. Plus you can play state league or NYL in parallel, which is likely better for a football career in Australia in the long run.
- If you just want to get "a degree", have a really good time and be pretty much fully funded - go to the US.



If you do go to the States:

- Yes, campus jobs can be hard to come by. Quite a few foreign athletes sold hot dogs at the basketball arena for $6/hour. But then again, you get a full scholarship including housing, food, tuition. So the amount you save compared to renting a flat in Camperdown, paying Sydney Uni a lot of money for fees and spending $10/beer at the Ivy is incredible.

- Yes, you can combine a good education with good football training. Take a look at the rankings at http://www.ncaa.com/rankings/soccer-men/d1 and then compare them to the US News & World Report rankings. Top soccer schools like Cornell, Georgetown, Notre Dame, UCLA, Elon and Brown offer top notch education. Cornell, UCLA & Brown are more than comparable to Sydney Uni or UNSW. Then again, Cal State Northridge will not be your first choice academically. But you can have a bloody good time partying there!

- Housing can be bad; or good. Do your research about what buildings are offered, check them on review websites. Just google enough and you'll be fine.

Good info, Penrith Party.

Just heard of three more stories.

Two more have come back after a semester.

Again, it was the low academic standard of the US junior colleges that was the concern. Both these these students were passing uni here before they left.

A third one is doing very well in football terms over there. Still, they are stuck at the top of division 2. The issue will be the quality of the degree when this player returns.

The player will be knocking on the door of playing professionally in Australia. The player is a mediocre student academically.

Hi Decentric

From my daughters team, approx 5 will not return for different reasons, not all Aussies either
One fell in love with a player from the boys team, going back to Tassie to get married!!
Two Poms complained about the coach and the college, said they where going to go to another college (Typical whinging Poms)
Two just got home sick

Seriously, Kids today lack mental toughness, harden the fcuk up

A useful forum. A shame the posts don't seem to be very current but a good insight regardless.
My son is only in Yr10 & has been 'accepted' by NSR for a US soccer scholarship & was looking for any feedback negative or positive about NSR. This has given me a good starting point with some useful links, although the choices of Uni/College are huge and not easy to identify the costs. I don't even have an idea about how much it would cost in Australia either for comparison. It is also difficult for a Yr10 student to select where in the US he would want to go to study when he probably couldn't even place any one University on a map of the US!

I know one player who has enjoyed a productive visit to a US scholarship. Mediocre academically and a very good footballer, but still unlikely to get a US pro contract.

The problem is the academic level of the academic institution. A degree is a degree in Australia. It is generically acclaimed. As a friend who lived in the US said, they have the best and worst universities in the world.

Most of the institutions that offer scholarships, are a long way below the academic standards of any Aussie university, whereas the Ivy League, and another group I cannot remember, are the best universities in the world, well above any uni in Australia.

As far as I know they don't offer academic scholarships though.

A poster on here, I think his name is Dimi, did a sports scholarship in the US and completed it. He thought it was great.

With NSR there were too many things that they said and the institution said, that didn't concur, in a relative's case. What was supposed to happen, often didn't. NSR's communication with the college, with both parties at fault, was too nebulous.

When NSR laud the US College system , some of the people who've worked there seem to have paid more for their degrees in Australia than necessary.

There is no doubt it is great life experience. However, I think it is best to study here and travel later.

The football coaching will probably be better than anything in Australia unless at HAL and NTC level and some NPL clubs. They will probably play some long ball though.

Ask NSR to provide statistical evidence of what percentage of Aussie NSR scholars progress to professional contracts.





Edited by Decentric: 28/3/2014 08:45:50 AM

Ash,
There has been some corruption with the dates on this forum, The entire story I posted was over 2012 & 2013, there is another post further down the page titled the same but YEAR 2
I have mentioned many times, am happy to provide a full review of the NSR story, the good and the bad, you can PM (personal message) me and happy to talk you through it