What is the point of being a college athlete?

[Anonymous]

I know there are a couple obvious, valid answers:

- Love of the sport
- Athletic scholarship

But being a college athlete seems intensely time consuming and disruptive to both studies and social life (I say this not having been a college athlete). Taking money out of the equation and assuming you can enjoy your sport on a more casual basis (rec leagues, etc), what are the advantages of pursuing a sport in college?

Asking in case it's relevant to one of my kids.

[Anonymous]

To get into a college you wouldn’t have gotten into otherwise, although in that case, you can quit the day you arrive on campus for freshmen year with no repercussions.

[Anonymous]

Scholarship

Getting into colleges you wouldn't have been able to get into otherwise

You really love the sport and can't imagine not playing it because your discipline and social life revolves around it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To get into a college you wouldn’t have gotten into otherwise, although in that case, you can quit the day you arrive on campus for freshmen year with no repercussions.

Not if you are on scholarship. A lot are contingent on playing the sport.

[Anonymous]

For a lot of college athletes, the sport and competition in the sport is literally part of who they are. They love it that much. Usually, in order to be good enough to be a college athlete in the first place, you have to love it that much.

There are lots of burnouts though and they quit after a year or two.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For a lot of college athletes, the sport and competition in the sport is literally part of who they are. They love it that much. Usually, in order to be good enough to be a college athlete in the first place, you have to love it that much.

There are lots of burnouts though and they quit after a year or two.

All of this. Also, usually the sport becomes your social life. I realize that’s a downside for many, but it’s usually not if you love your sport that much. It’s fun to be around other people as passionate about it as you are. It’s fun to be part of a team.

[Anonymous]

Love of the sport, camaraderie, being with equally driven and competitive people who share your interests and maintain similar schedules? So many reasons and no, most don’t think it’s a stepping stone into professional sports. Some people also perform best in a highly scheduled, intense environment.

[Anonymous]

For our family the primary motivators were love of the sport, admissions advantage, and kid’s desire to potentially go pro later. He did receive an athletic scholarship, but that was just gravy.

The sport is certainly extremely time-consuming, but I wouldn’t say it is intensely disruptive to his academics at all. Like most D1 athletes, he’s needed to reschedule some tests for games or have them proctored on the road. He could not have majored in a lab-heavy area, or in anything involving the arts, but those were not areas of interest for him. You do have to work hard to balance the sport and school, but he has teammates who have successfully completed engineering or physics degrees. It’s manageable for a motivated student.

The social life part is a mix. You are not going to have as much downtime as the average student or be able to go to parties every weekend. You also can’t join most clubs. But most athletes are tight with their teammates and the kids they meet in their dorms. My son’s social circle also includes a large number of athletes from other teams on campus plus all their non-athlete friends.

Kids we know who play D3 have loved their experience and have to make far fewer trade offs. And I never met anyone who didn’t love playing club sports or intramurals in college. Regardless of the level, sports are a great way to meet people and build a community.

[Anonymous]

I mean you listed the two main reasons in your original post. Yes there are trade offs. I did very well in my classes but couldn’t do certain things like study abroad or an honors research thesis. But I still had my pick of graduate programs straight out of undergrad and have a good job now. I think the lessons learned about hard work, persistence, delayed gratification, and time management are worth at least as much of not more than some of those opportunities I missed out on.

The biggest long term perk beyond the two you listed, for me at least, is being in good shape and continue using to value physical activity/strength training as an adult. I am grateful that I learned how to weight train safely from professionals. I get great results from what I do now because I have excellent form without having to think about it. I have also been able to maintain a decent amount of my mobility and cardiovascular capacity. I like being fit and strong and I know it will help me as I age. The training required for club sports is much less, and no professional strength coaches, so I would not have reaped the same benefits.

Some people here like to bash D1 sports but my guess is they didn’t compete and don’t have a kid who is good enough. It sounds like coping/sour grapes. Being an athlete is a great option for a kid who is passionate about their sport. It will teach important lessons and can build social capital just like other endeavors can. Schools provide a lot of support for student athletes to succeed academically. If your kid loves the sport and has the drive to continue competing it’s great. Just make sure they truly have that fire on the belly or it will be miserable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know there are a couple obvious, valid answers:

- Love of the sport
- Athletic scholarship

But being a college athlete seems intensely time consuming and disruptive to both studies and social life (I say this not having been a college athlete). Taking money out of the equation and assuming you can enjoy your sport on a more casual basis (rec leagues, etc), what are the advantages of pursuing a sport in college?

Asking in case it's relevant to one of my kids.

You obviously are not an athlete oh gosh

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To get into a college you wouldn’t have gotten into otherwise, although in that case, you can quit the day you arrive on campus for freshmen year with no repercussions.

??

[Anonymous]

D3 athletic participation builds close relationships among teammates.

Helps students to establish and maintain a schedule based on a healthy activity.

Physical development is as important as mental development during one's teens and early twenties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know there are a couple obvious, valid answers:

- Love of the sport
- Athletic scholarship

But being a college athlete seems intensely time consuming and disruptive to both studies and social life (I say this not having been a college athlete). Taking money out of the equation and assuming you can enjoy your sport on a more casual basis (rec leagues, etc), what are the advantages of pursuing a sport in college?

Asking in case it's relevant to one of my kids.

You obviously are not an athlete oh gosh

+1. Loving a sport is a passion that's hard to put into words. I am a mid-40s busy mom who still reoccurring dreams about playing my high school sport. It's almost like never getting over a true love. I have friends who have never adjusted to life after college missing that sport and structure so that to me is the only real "downside" of playing college sports but a lot of that is life and person dependent.

[Anonymous]

Also maybe having fun?????

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know there are a couple obvious, valid answers:

- Love of the sport
- Athletic scholarship

But being a college athlete seems intensely time consuming and disruptive to both studies and social life (I say this not having been a college athlete). Taking money out of the equation and assuming you can enjoy your sport on a more casual basis (rec leagues, etc), what are the advantages of pursuing a sport in college?

Asking in case it's relevant to one of my kids.

You obviously are not an athlete oh gosh

Thus why I asked. Thanks for participating.



Thanks to all for the answers. I don't know if my kids will be good enough, but they have the potential and seem to enjoy their sports.