Time Management as a Student-Athlete

College is a hard time for all students. Between balancing your academic and social life a while being away from home for a long period of time for the first time of your life. A stereotype that most people have against college athletes is they have to do more work, but don’t pay to be here. In fact, a majority of student-athletes are on the same academic scholarships as many fellow classmates and have to maintain their GPA’s to keep their scholarships. Looking at the average day of a student-athlete seems crazy and you would wonder how so much is fit into one day. While all teams are different, it usually starts with a 5:20 a.m. wake up to walk or drive to the locker room for a team lift or conditioning session. After you’re dead from a workout circuit or sprints on the field, it’s time for breakfast and homework until practice. 9 a.m. practice starts with warming up and the in-season goes until noon. Following that, it’s a quick shower, treatment for injuries, lunch, and then class for the rest of the day. At this point, many of us would love to just call it quits, but the day isn’t even half done. Although everyday is different regarding classes, it’s safe to say classes will go until 5 p.m. or 7:20 p.m. All tied into this are meetings for various clubs or internships that most student-athletes are apart of that take up a good amount of time. This athletic schedule goes on for six days a week, with Sunday as the usual off-day. Although this schedule can be stressful it can teach these young people so many valuable life skills that can translate to life after college. Playing a sport you love in college with your best friends is something that very few college athletes would give up. If you asked athletes on-campus if they made the right decision, more often than not it would be a resounding yes.