The Ncaa and Student Athlete Issues

Collegiate sports have turned into a billion dollar industry and are probably just as popular, if not more popular than professional sports. College athletes put their bodies on the line to play a sport they love, many with hopes and dreams to one day make it to the professional leagues. Athletic facilities are the major money makers for all universities. Colleges bring in billions of dollars in revenue annually, yet athletes do not get paid. Some fans believe athletes should not get paid due to their sports level being “amateurish.”; however, this is far from the truth. There is much more to being a college athlete than just practicing and playing games. These student-athletes must practice, weight lift, go to meetings, travel, go to tutoring and study groups, all the while maintaining sufficient grades. This is very tedious work and is very time consuming. College athletes have a high standard to live up to (Frederick Web; Huma Web; Patterson Web ).

In his article “The Shame of College Sports,” Taylor Branch (2011) describes how universities are focused on advancing and receiving money from major athletics and having star athletes, but how the universities are not caring for the “student athlete.” The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has made college sports into an unmerited business. However, as years progress more athletes are getting smart and are taking the NCAA to court. The more students that challenges the rules by the NCAA and take them to court, the secrets and undermining values of the NCAA come out and the closer the NCAA comes to an end.

There are several ethical issues in the news lately about the treatment college athletes are receiving compared to the non-athletic students of universities. Is the practice of favoring athletes and bending the rules in the favor of universities to enable the best college sports stars to play ethical? Two major ethical issues that have been in the public eye as of late is cheating and grade tampering, and recruiting tactics. Both of these actions are unethical, but it still isn't stopping universities around the country to discontinue in these manners.

The ugly truth behind the money machine that is college sports is that, every year, college athletes are deceived by the institutions the compete for into making them millions of dollars, with relatively little in return. Athletes are said to be given a chance to attend college and to attain a free college degree. However, research has shown that this is not completely true for two reasons. For one, the student athlete will spend most of their time in preparation for competition. Secondly, what education the student athlete does receive hardly serves them outside of maintaining eligibility just so

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.”

For many students, the college experience is measured by the success of their NCAA-sanctioned athletic programs. Without the experience and athletic performance the student athlete brings, most colleges would not reap the benefit of these significant revenue-generating activities. At best, current NCAA regulations need to be revisited to ensure all avenues are addressed to enable the success of athletic students both in the classroom and on the field or court of play. As stated previously, even though students receive full and partial scholarships determined by their athletic performance, in both instances

It is important for the athletic directors and other authoritative figures in men’s basketball to strive for a common goal and establish a better sense balance among those in the basketball environment by changing the contradicting expectations and policies of the NCAA. Some say basketball players have been taken advantage of for far too long and ask “how much longer are universities willing to wait [the] before students see them as a threat and an aid to the issue rather than a source of education and athletic support”? Neglecting the issue has only postponed its significance to emerge as more relevant. By helping address this issue with urgency will allow the players to feel acknowledged and help create a solution for everyone’s benefit to the issue at

College athletic programs should be kept as an important part of the athlete’s academic schedule, and student athletes are considered an important part the student body. Every university or community college’s admissions and scholastic excellence for student-athletes should be planned to encourage educational success and

There is a growing problem where much of a school’s popularity and funding stems from athletic success. Even more, if a school has a student or group of students with great athletic ability, the school will likely bend some of its rules to maintain the athletes’ image and eligibility.

I think the ethical issue you decided to address in this weeks discussion is a prevalent issue in the NCAA. I agree that athletes at big D1 schools don't have the luxury of being able to balance academics along with their sport. I also believe that it is wrong for players to pay other students to do their homework and such fourth. If other students are doing the players homework that doesn't help the players gain knowledge about the course. Instead, it holds them back from being able to learn subjects focused toward their major. As we learned in class most players who play in college sports don't even make it to the professionals thus they only have their studies to fall back on but if other students have been doing their homework for them

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

There has been amplified debate on the treatment, education, training of the college athlete. To avoid exploitation of athletes, “The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), formed in 1905, set bylaws requiring college student-athletes to be amateurs in order to be eligible for intercollegiate athletics competition” (Schneider n.p.). Intercollegiate athletics have dramatically changed over the last several decades. Currently, intercollegiate athletics generate tremendous amounts of revenue, remarkably in football and basketball. College sports in America is a

In the United States, approximately sixty percent of all high school students participate in school-sponsored sports, according to a 2015 report by Child Trends. Most high schools across the U.S. not only have school-sponsored sports, but have some type of eligibility requirement for their student athletes regarding their GPA and attendance at school. These are important policies because they ensure that student athletes are attending their classes, maintain their GPA, and their sports are not interfering with the students' academics. With such policies, student athletes that are performing well in their classes are deemed eligible to participate in various sports. However, student athletes who are not performing well academically are deemed ineligible and not allowed to participate in any sport until they bring their GPA or attendance levels up. This is very important and should be enforced because it teaches student athletes responsibility, the importance of their GPA, and prepares them for their futures. With the importance of such, students who fail to pass their classes should not be allowed to participate in school-sponsored sports until they are able to pass all of their classes.

There’s no secret that sports play a big role in college, football being one of the most favorite and preferred in the United States. That being said, student athletes equally play the same role because they are what make sporting events enjoyable to every age group. Each athlete longs for moving onto the pro level and getting paid to play the sport that they adore or love, yet actually a lion's share of the 450,000 NCAA understudy athletes won't proceed onto the pro level. This is making individuals contemplate if the dropping out of school will help them advance to the pro level within four years or less. Many people will argue that the academic performance of athletes is od concern considering that after sports they only have their education to fall back on and make a life out of what little knowledge they earned from the college of their choice.

Another key point pertaining to the demands that an athlete faces are the eligibility requirements to participate in sports that non-athletes do not have. Although the eligibility requirements vary between school districts and states for high school most of them still include an emphasis on school attendance and a minimum grade point average (GPA). Most high schools utilized the same philosophy about school attendance, which is if the athlete does not attend school, then the ability to participate in practice or games is essentially forfeited (Klesse, 2004). The GPA requirement to participate in athletics does fluctuate, but none the less there is a minimum requirement of an academic standard athletes are obligated to fulfill (Klesse, 2004). From a college perspective the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) clearly identifies academics as a priority by setting the tone surrounding eligibility for high school students looking to play sports in college (NCAA, n.d.). The NCAA website provides a guideline for each year of high school followed by requirements that each student can refer to that encompasses the number of classes needed, GPA, and SAT/ACT calculations (NCAA, n.d.). The NCAA attempts to set a standard that participation in athletic programs is a privilege by enforcing levels of academic standards that have to be maintained (NCAA, n.d.).