Athletic Scholarships: Should They Continue to Be Awarded?
Over the years, scholarships have provided many students with the chance to continue their education. Whether awarded based on the individual’s excellence in academics, artistic talent, or outstanding skill in a sport, they all help the daunting task of paying for college expenses seem much more manageable. However, some speculate on whether or not athletic scholarships should still be given out, believing they are not as valid nor achievable as their academic counterpart. Athletic scholarships have provided the opportunity for many gifted athletes to expand on their education, as well as reward them for their dedication to their sport. As scholarships were created to help those
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For others, the expense of college may be what keeps them from attending. A 2016 study from the National Center for Education Statistics found that in the 2014-2015 school year, the charges for just the tuition and required fees was $6,371 at public institutions, $30,643 at private non-profit institutions, and $13,971 at private for-profit institutions (http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/). Even the least expensive of these options is still not what the average high school graduate could realistically afford. That is why scholarships play such an important role. As they do not need to be payed back, they help the student pay for college fees while not contributing to any debt. Athletic scholarships are just as important as they also provide student athletes a way to afford college. Without them, it would be more difficult for those students to find another scholarship to help them pay for college, maybe even …show more content…
Art, music, dance, and athletics are all other areas that often take hard work and dedication to master, if one does not already have a natural talent for them. Athletes in general are hard working, making time for training, practice, and participating in competitive events while also keeping up with their studies. Those who wish to continue competing in sports while in college or actively pursue a career as a professional athlete face even more challenges. While organizations like the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) award about $10 million in scholarships and grants to student athletes, and an additional $2.7 billion is awarded by schools, it is estimated that only 2 percent of high school athletes are awarded these scholarships (ncaa.org). There is a high amount of competition for these scholarships from the start. Those who want to earn these scholarships and compete in a Division I school must also have at least a 2.3 grade-point average in up to 16 core courses. Once in college, student athletes are expected to meet the academic standards of their school while also being a full-time athlete, supporting the NCAA’s belief that those who compete in college sports are, “Students first, athletes second.”
The payment of NCAA student-athletes will deteriorate the value of an education to the athletes. The value of an education for a young man or woman cannot be measured. It is our gate way to success as...
Throughout the country young men and women are losing their priority for an education. To attend a university should be a highly cherished privilege, and it should be an even greater honor to play athletics for the university. Therefore, the writer supports the decision that the “student” comes before “athlete” in student-athlete. Playing for pay should be considered a job for “professionals”. In the rulebook, the NCAA views college athletes as armatures. This statement sums it up best. When athletes go to college, not all of them go in with the mindset that athletics is going to be their future job....
This points out that if student athletes were given a salary, the only athletes that would receive it are those in basketball and football. The less popular sports athletes would either switch to these two sports, or continue playing the sport they love while their colleagues thrive in the sport they love while getting an incentive. Universities and colleges pride themselves as environments where students seek further education in a particular field of study.
Millions of Americans stare at ESPN or absorb themselves in the most recent issue of Sports Illustrated just to catch the latest news on their favorite teams' recruits, recent games, and statistics. Often just viewed as a past time to most, it is easy to lose sight of why these athletes are on the field, court, etc. to begin with. Believe it or not, it's for their education. These young adults ranging anywhere from seventeen to twenty-three years of age are all members of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association). As such these students must initially meet the requirements to get accepted into their chosen university, participate in their sport, and ultimately graduate from their selected institution.
Paul Dietzel, former head coach of LSU, once said, “You can learn more character on the two-yard line than anywhere else in life.” Ever since the beginning, not only children but also college athletes have been playing sports for the love of the game and have used it as a way to grow character, teamwork, and leadership. Although when playing for a University an athletes job is to bring in profit for the school, this is not why these young men and women have continued with these sports they love. It is usually these students passion, a way for them to express themselves like others have art and music. The question has been up whether these college athletes should be paid for their loyalty and income for the University but by paying these students more than their given scholarship, it would defeat the purpose and environment of a college sport versus a professional sport, cause recruiting disputes, and affect the colleges benefits from these school athletics.
Today, most college athletes receive a scholarship to pay for a portion or sometimes all of one’s college tuition. So, what does a scholarship cover? According to an article written by Tyson Hartnett, “A $25,000 scholarship covers the basics, university fees, tuition, housing, a meal-plan and textbooks.” But most scholarships given to college athletes are not full rides. According to US News, in 2010, the average scholarship given to a college athlete was worth $10,400. Even with this amount, many college athletes are not granted a scholarship and have to pay for college themselves.
College sports are a major revenue producing industry. Athletic programs and their student-athletes can achieve national recognition and generate millions of dollars in revenue for their university. Colleges use this revenue to invest in players, pay for their education, and provide state of the art training facilities, which are used to improve their athletic performance. As revenue driven colleges begin to prioritize athletics, the emphasis on the quality and standards of an undergraduate education are diminishing. Compromising their academic acceptance requirements, universities have now found that the educational ability of their newly accepted student athletes are inadequate, to say the least (Gurney). The same universities must then spend millions of dollars to provide these athletes with “learning specialists”, who in turn helps them to meet academic requirements and maintain their eligibility (...
Pennington, Bill. "Expectations Lose to Reality of Sports Scholarships." nytimes.com. New York Times, 10 Mar. 2008. Web. 17 Dec. 2013.
Student athletes should not be paid more than any other student at State University, because it implies that the focus of this university is that an extracurricular activity as a means of profit. Intercollegiate athletics is becoming the central focus of colleges and universities, the strife and the substantial sum of money are the most important factors of most university administration’s interest. Student athletes should be just as their title states, students. The normal college student is struggling to make ends meet just for attending college, so why should student athletes be exempt from that? College athletes should indeed have their scholarships cover what their talents not only athletically but also academically depict. Unfortunately, the disapproval resides when students who are making leaps academically are not being offered monetary congratulations in comparison to student athletes. If the hefty amount of revenue that colleges as a conglomerate are making is the main argument for why athletes should be paid, then what is to stop the National Clearinghouse from devising unjust standards? Eventually if these payments are to continue, coaches, organizations, and the NCAA Clearinghouse will begin to feel that “c...
If you or anyone else knows a college athlete, especially one who is on scholarship, you would think that they have it easy. Free tuition and room and board; meanwhile you have to work at a part time job and actually pay for your schooling. But in all reality these people earned what they got, because many of these students did not come from wealthy families. According to USA Today, 85% of college athletes who are on scholarships live below the poverty line. So by receiving a scholarship for athletics it is giving them a chance to improve their own quality of life, and as humans we deserve to at least have some sense of self-worth. Athletes get many accommodations while attending school, aside from them going for free; they c...
Around the country, college athletic programs are pushing their athletes more and more every day. The NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) is an association set up to regulate the athletic programs of colleges in the United States and Canada such as eligibility, sportsmanship, and play. Due to NCAA rules, the “student” comes first in “student athlete.” This means that in order to be a full time student, 12 credit hours a semester are required, and in order to compete in athletics, students must maintain a core GPA of 2.3 or higher. It may seems easy right now but throw in lifting, games and practices, along with team meetings, and you’ve got yourself a full time job on the side.
Not only can sports teach you great life characteristics, it can also get you into a good college. Student athletes in high school dream of getting scholarships for the sport th...
College universities yearly recruit athletes from all-around the world to show case their talents to the public. Since January 13th 1973, the scholarship system was developed and from then on out gave recruits reasoning’s on why they should join their universities. The NCAA athletic system was divided into 3 divisions in 1973, Division I, Division II, and Division III. From then on out it was the universities intentions to recruit the most talented athletes that fit their Colleges and would help them win their Division championship. Every sport at each University is allowed a certain number of full –ride scholarships. At each Division 1 school Football is credited with the most scholarship offers yearly with 85. While other sports such as Division I tennis receive a whopping number of 14 scholarships. “Most College athletes earn a spot on the team with some level of funding in their pocket by marketing themselves” (Scholarship A...
For decades there has been a debate on student athletes and their drive to succeed in the classroom. From the very beginning of organized college level athletics, the goal to want to succeed in athletics has forced students to put academics to the back burner. In spite of the goal to want to succeed over a hundred years of attempts to check limits of intercollegiate athletic programs on colleges' academic standards still seems to struggle to this day. This brings to surface one of the most asked questions in sports, “What effect does college sports have on academics and economics?” Herbert D. Simons, Derek Van Rheenen, and Martin V. Covington, authors of “Academic Motivation and the Student Athlete” researched the topic on whether athletics and academics benefit each other. Bryan Flynn, the author of “College Sports vs. Academics” poses the question “Should institutions of higher learning continue to involve themselves in athletic programs that often turn out to be virtual arms races for recruiting talented players who bring big money and prestige, but put academics to the back burner?” Although both authors agree that sports have an impact on an athlete’s academics, the focus of their argument differs.
Many people view college athletics as a pastime, not a profession, and paying athletes would make these sports seem like a profession, not just a representation of the school (Sobocinski 289). The NCAA, and others who oppose compensation, believe in amateurism, the idea that college students should focus on academics first and athletics second (Amateurism 1). Also, they think student athletes are already receiving fair compensation for their work. College athletes receive full scholarships that cover tuition, fees, and books (How 1). Furthermore, these scholarships are granted for at least one year, in case a student suffers a sports injury, the student does not play as well as expected, or the coaching staff is changed (How 1). Some people argue that full athletic scholarships are enough ...