#17: Academic Merit vs. Athletic Abilities
The Ivy League schools may be known for their rigorous academic programs and incredibly intelligent students, but they’re not exactly top performers when it comes to athletics. Sure, their teams are great, but they’re not on par with, say, the University of Michigan or Alabama. There might be a very good reason for that.
Did you know that Ivy League schools don’t offer athletic scholarships? If you are a top athlete accepted into an Ivy League like Harvard, you would only be able to receive aid based on your academic achievements. Ivy Leagues do this in order to emphasize academic excellence. We kind of get it, but it’s a slight bummer. These schools want their athletes to play simply because they “love” the game, but that’s kind of hard to do when you’re hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.