Men's vs. Women's

Men's vs. Women's

Men's and women's swim teams are similar in terms of training, equipment, and facilities. The major difference is that, due to Title IX restrictions, some universities might not offer men's swimming. And when they do offer it, they might have less scholarship money available for men than for women. (Sorry, dudes.)

There are 192 Division-I women's programs, but only 134 programs for men at that level. This disparity holds true for lower divisions, too, with 73 D-II and 233 D-III programs for women, but only 54 and 198 programs, respectively, for men (source).

If a university does have both men's and women's teams, then they most likely share facilities and equipment. But the teams tend to operate completely independently otherwise, given that their budgets are often different. So, the two teams are likely to practice separately, compete in different meets, and travel to different locations for training trips.

University of Michigan men's swim team looking good in 1922.

Among universities that offer men's and women's programs, those that have a highly competitive men's program also tend to have a competitive women's program (and vice versa). For example, Cal is a perennial top-five school for both men and women (source). Those Golden Bears sure know how to swim.