The Collegiate Experience Of Student Athletes

Do student athletes make the most of their opportunity to obtain a post-secondary education? Do they have the same academic success as those students that are not athletes? Are student athletes just “dumb jocks?” The answers to these questions might surprise you. Much research has been done to dispel the myth that athletes going to college are only there to play sports with little regard to their education. Programs have been created to assure that colleges and universities hold athletes to the same standards as the everyday student. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has decided that the “magic number” to put the “student” back into “student-athlete” is 925 (Hamilton).

In the article, Class and Cleats: Community College Student Athletes and Academic Success, Horton first examines the statistics of evidence showing college athletes and their underachievement. There are many instances of concern about college athletes and their poor grades having an affect of their athletic responsibilities, though this belief is usually denied due to a student always being a student before anything else. This study researches the idea of the way that college students and college athletes view success. Many college athletes tend to state that success is passing all courses and being more successful in their sport, rather than academics coming first (Horton, 2009).

Multiple studies have shown that college athletes do not perform as well in the classroom as their nonathletic peers. For example, according to Michael Maloney in the article An Examination of the Role that Intercollegiate Athletic Participation Plays in Academic Achievement, he states that “SAT scores of athletes are, on average, 150 points below non- athletes. Similarly, athletes come to college with inferior high school preparation in academics. Their high school rank is 20 percentage points below nonathletes.”

Academic success is important for both high school and college athletes. To be eligible to participate, athletes must maintain a certain GPA. Student athletes that don’t make school a priority, not only miss out on playing time, but also fail to prepare themselves for the next step in their life. For high school athletes, that means prepare for college while for college athlete, it means preparing to enter the workforce. Although, both high school and

Literature surrounding athletic participation and its impact on the college experience is well documented (LaForge & Hodge, 2011). Many scholars purport that athletic participation enhances the academic experience, while others argue that it creates a divide between colleges’ missions and student-athletes lived campus experiences. To support this claim, Lawrence, Henedricks & Ott (2007) found in their study that nearly one-third of faculty who responded to their survey indicated that they believed that academic standards are lowered to achieve success in the sports of football and basketball. One question that is often posed by

The NCAA believes “that a student-athlete is a student first and athlete second.” Student-athletes benefit more than from playing a sport that they love. The graduation rate is higher among the student athletes than the general student body. “NCAA studies show that student-athletes enjoy high levels of engagement in academics, athletics and community: have positive feeling about their overall athletics and academic experiences: attribute invaluable life skills to being a student-athlete: and are more likely to earn similar or higher wages after college than non-student athletes.”

Many athletes spend lots of hours dedicated to their sport of choice. They do this by practicing in their free time, team practice, team meetings, and traveling. Then, they have to study for their classes. This to me is like working a full time job with a heavy load ofn classes you have to attend to and do well. Dave Anderson stated, “College athletes spend an average of 43.3 hours per week dedicated to their sport” (Anderson 1). Also, Anderson stated, “This means that college athletes have to work 90 hours per week just to remain in school on their scholarship. This is the equivalent to working two full time jobs with a side job on the weekends just to pay their bills” (Anderson 2). Sports can put a lot of stress on a student’s school work achievement goals. People should know that college for student athletes demands a lot out of them and basically drains them physically as well as mentally. This is based on all the time they spend on sports and

Athletic programs in college have grown tremendously since they first began years ago, and now some believe that collegiate athletics have no place in higher education. Contrary to this, if one takes a closer look they see that college athletics do play a valuable role in higher education and should continue to play a part in the college experience. Students who participate in college athletics help carry out their school’s traditions, and by competing at such a high level they have the chance to put their school on the map. While competing, these people handle the load of a full-time college student and learn to be responsible and reliable. Some see college athletics as just a business, but truly they provide an opportunity for young adults to compete in the sport that they love, while getting an education and learning lessons that will last a lifetime.

Should College Athletes Get Paid? Would you like to work harder in college sports if you got paid? I know I would. I’m talking about this topic because I think it’s important that the college athletes get something for themselves. College athletes should get paid because some of them are tempted to gamble or accept illegal payments, they win games for their university in the premier sport, and they do the same stuff as professional athletes.

One of the main pressures these athletes face is academics. College athletes’ level of stress is extreme. They have to face double challenges everyday. Aside from having to perform well in their sport, they have to keep a decent grade point average (GPA). Although their classes might be less demanding, college athletes are recommended to choose an easier major so it’ll be manageable for them to balance out sports and school (Eitzen, page 56). Regardless of their majors not being

The typical Division 1 athlete devotes a whopping 43.3 hours per week to his sport- 3.3 more hours than the average work week (Smith). In addition to this, the athletes have to deal with waking up far earlier than others to lift, followed by going to classes and ending the day with more practice. They are then expected to be able to perform academically the same as everyone else. Student athletes are also expected to hold themselves at a higher standard than others simply because they play a sport. Many coaches monitor the social media of the athletes to make sure they are not putting their athletic career at stake by going to college

Most of the other non-athlete students get stuck paying after a long four years of education. Student-athletes are non-professional athletes that choose to engage in college athletics as a part of their college experience. Although, the student athletes must maintain a variation amongst student-athletes who take part in college athletics and those who are professional athletes, are also considered graduates. A basic obligation presented by the NCAA under the college athletics department is to maintain the athlete’s improvement, while the university or community college has the full control to create and keep an environment in which the athlete’s recreation is organized to motivate the student’s educational success as a part of the student’s college experience. Another responsibility of the athletic department is to convey educational guidelines.

College athletes are put into games that are not only televised nationally, but sometimes even worldwide. They gain acknowledgement similar to famous figures that any other person would covet. What goes unnoticed is the life behind the player. How’s their school grades? What do they do with their time? Being a student athlete means that person must manage time between school work and a busy sport schedule. This person also must fulfill the academic requirements of a student athlete to be eligible to play. The requirements are set at a 2.3 minimum GPA and 16 completed core classes. Of those 16 classes, ten must be completed before the start of senior year, and 7 must be completed with english, math, or science classes. Transfer students are

Despite the many stereotypes that are connected with being a student athlete, student athletes in general are held to much higher standards by their institutions. Before a prospective student athlete even enters college, they are made fully aware of the academic standings and requirements of the college they choose. Although the academic requirements vary from college to college, the standards are still held high for all student athletes. The transition into college can be exceptionally difficult especially for the

The academic performance of student-athletes is a current and highly publicized topic in higher education. The relationship between the educational mission of colleges and universities and intercollegiate athletics has been questioned by students, parents, faculty, student personnel workers, and academic and athletic department administrators. The concerns are whether student-athletes have been prepared for college level work and whether they are given an adequate opportunity to attain a college degree Academic success is important because