The dreaded "phone call"

[absdad]

My DD is a bit freaked by the prospect of calling on coaches, but I think we're at that point. I'm assuming she should have some questions written down that she wants to ask about the coach and the program; as well as answers to questions that the coach will likely ask her. Some seem pretty obvious, some not so much. Does anyone have a list or some ideas on the things she needs to be prepared with? Is it acceptable to ask the coach their interest level in her?

Also, whats the best way to go about it? I know they're not sitting by the phone waiting for someone to call. I'm assuming that you would email first scheduling a time that you will call? If they have to leave messages, whats a good number for when to give up the ghost?

I'm thinking that she should try calling on a coach that's not really at the top of her list, to get past that first hurdle of butterflies. And of course, this is all dependant upon if she ever gets anyone to answer.

[hit4power]

Spazsdad's reply is a good one. The coaches are good at this and your DD will be no less or more nervous than any of a few hundred kids the coach has talked to before. FWIW, a few other thoughts:

1) We found assistant coaches to be far easier to get hold of than head coaches. Perhaps start there and let the ass't help with a time to talk to the HC (assuming there is interest)
2) As Spaz said, let your TB coach help with this and be sure the TB coach knows who your DD is trying to call and with whom she has actually talked. Good TB coaches will run interference as needed and followup after any conversation.
3) I can almost guarantee you will get some form of these questions:
a) Why are you interested in this school/program? The equivalent question is why do you think our school/program is a good fit for you?
b) What kind of player are you? This is a good chance to talk about your strengths, and probably more importantly what areas of the game you are working on.

[McGee]

Preparation, preparation preparation. Calls like these one of are our daughter's first experiencies entering the real world and selling themselves to others who need to recruit/hire strong personnel to succeed.
In any interview an candidate must ellucidate why the are interested in the position/school, how their past experience shows the can succeed in the position and then they have to ask for the job, scholarship or enterence to the school.
Practice in advance, serious examination of the school/job, and planned responces to expected questions will differentiate the prepared from interested and will deliver better results. Preparation for interviews will also demonstrate the preparation skills needed to excel in collegiate sports and academics.
There are plenty of websites and books dedicated to interviewing skills and although it is hard to get our daughters to buy in, the preparation the offer is invalaubele in their sports career and in life.

[CheckWriter]

I come down non-trivially more toward SpazsDad than McGee.

I do think it depends if you are a freshman or a senior (older you might want to prepare a bit more), if you have been to camps at the school, if you know the TB coach has been asked about you and you should have some sort of answer as to why you want to go to that school.

If there is a top school by far for DD then maybe she could at least call one other school first so that her heart rate is somewhat below where it would be after an inside the park home run.

Anyway, DD was pretty freaked out about her first call but within about 3 minutes sounded like she was talking to one of her schools buddies.

One dad's opinion.

[jonriv]

The "call" as well as the interview is great practice for real life. Making the firts call to a school lower on the list as practice is a great idea. My DD's first interview was with a school that was at the bottem of the list. It was great practice.

My daughter felt that the phone calls and interviews with coaches were a great experience. The confidence and skills she learned were key in getting the internship she had last summer. One of the many key skills and experiences from softball that carry into the business world.

Reheasal is key, but as mentioned before, most coaches are very good at making the players feel at ease.

[absdad]

Turns out this was much ado about nothing. DD has a few calls under her belt now. "No big deal" she now says...
Seems most coaches take the ball, and run with the conversation.