What if college students were forced to select their future employers 2-3 years before they graduated?

Imagine sending them on mid-semester job shadows armed with corporate pamphlets while CEOs sold them on competitive salaries, lunchroom facilities and 401(k) plans.

The idea is not so dissimilar from the current state of girls’ college recruiting, where players are being identified and committing to programs at younger and younger ages.

Because females mature faster – both physically and emotionally – coaches get an earlier idea of the players they’ll be down the line.

So they line up earlier.

Top 100 player Sarah Killion recalls first receiving looks from coaches when she was in the seventh grade. And she’s not alone.

“It’s the natural progression of competition,” explained Kentucky women’s coach Jon Lipsitz. “There is some debate about it. As long as the (NCAA) process is the way it is we will be involved, if it is ever changed we will not be.”

Lipsitz’s Wildcats are currently very involved, and have secured a mind-boggling number of 2012 verbal commitments, including Top 100 stars Courtney Raetzman, Kylie Morgan, Courtney Kobashigawa, Olivia Jester and Kelli Hubly.

And while other programs may not be quite as successful in garnering the allegiance of players prior to their senior year Signing Day, they’re certainly trying every bit as hard as Kentucky – despite some reservations.

Coaches may not like the game, but if they want to be competitive they better play it.

“If I don’t (recruit early) then I’m going to be playing against the top players that we could have signed,” said Duke women’s coach Robbie Church. “Still, sometimes it does feel weird having to look at freshmen and sophomore players. I’m not a real fan of all the early commitments.

“At that stage, players shouldn’t be playing for coaches, they should be playing to get better.”

Selecting a college program is only one of the most important decisions a young person can make. We’re talking future implications here (see salary, 401(k) etc …). It would seem that it’s the kind of decision a young person would want to weigh carefully over time, but in some instances the pull of the recruiting culture is hurrying things along.

“Many of us feel a lot of prospects are not picking schools for the right reasons and haven’t taken their time,” said Boston University women’s coach Nancy Feldman. “What does readiness look like? That’s what needs to be discussed … is it an age or multiple visits?”

Maybe readiness is having all the information necessary to make an informed decision. That’s really all a player can ask for when searching for a program, and vice versa.

But can that occur on either side before a player even reaches her junior season?

The debate will continue just as inevitably as early recruitment will.