Life After the Game: Collegiate Athlete’s Awareness of the Semi-Professional and Professional Sport Levels

1
Life after the game Collegiate Athletes
Awareness of the Professional Sport Level

• Benedict college
• health, physical education Recreation
  department
• Dr. paula Shelby, chair of hper department
• Shelby Matthews, Sports Management major

2
What is your sports level?

• Amateur sports

• Professional sports

• Amateur sports are sports in which an athletes
  participates entirely without any compensation.
• An amateur athlete is also considered someone
  whom could be inexperienced or unskilled in that
  particular sport.
• For example, most amateur athletes are those whom
  play for little league teams, high school, and
  college teams.

• Professional sports are sports in which an
  athlete receives payment for their performance
• Athletes whom are considered professional
  athletes and have a salary play on sports teams
  that are in major or minor leagues.

3
Are you a potential semi-professional or
professional athlete?

• Semi-professional

• Professional

• A semi-professional athletes unlike a
  professional athlete is similar to having a part
  time job except playing the sport of their
  choice.
• A semi-pro differs from an amateur due to the
  fact that they still receive compensation for
  their performance just at a lower rate than a
  regular professional athlete.
• Being a semi-professional athlete in laymen's
  term is the same as playing in the minor leagues.

• A professional athlete is an athlete whom
  receives payment for their performance, oppose to
  a semi professional athlete it could be consider
  a full time job.
• The pay is often higher from a semi professional
  athlete and can also vary with each sport.
• Being a professional athlete your league of
  choice would be one of the major league sports.

4
Are you out of your league?

• The Major

• The minor

• By definition the major league of sports is the
  highest-ranking league in a particular sport.
• Each professional sport has its own major league,
  with various teams surrounding the United States
  and Canada.
• The six major leagues are
• Canadian Football League (CFL)
• Major League Baseball (MLB)
• Major League Soccer (MLS)
• National Basketball Association (NBA)
• National Football League (NFL)
• National Hockey League (NHL)

• By definition the minor league of sports is a
  league of professional clubs in a sport other
  than the recognized major leagues.
• Similar to the major leagues, minor league sports
  has various teams in surrounding states in the
  country under each league.
• Key minor league names
• Association of Professional Football League
  (APFL),
• North American Soccer League (NSL) or United
  Soccer League (USL),
• Minor League Baseball (MLB)
• NBA Developmental League (D-League)
• American Hockey League (AHL) or various others

5
What is the game plan?

• According to study.com, the requirement to
  further your athletic career would be no
  education although most athletes are recruited
  out high school or during college. Athletes must
  have a competitive mindset, excellent hand-eye
  coordination, great motor skills, superior
  physical fitness, and dedication to training.
• In order to become a professional athlete, you
  need the skill, drive and willingness to play the
  sport that you love.right?

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Step One Learn Do you have a positive attitude?  
    Do you have the skills to make it to the semi-professional or professional level  
    Do you have the drive to make it to the semi-professional or professional level  
       
Step Two Practice Do you practice more than what is required on the collegiate level  
    Are you working out with trainers  
       
Step Three Educate Are you going to some minor and major league try-outs to observe  
       
Step Four Train Harder Have you compared your skills to some semi-professional or professional athletes?  
    Have you competed against other semi-professional or professional athletes?  
       
Step Five Network Do you know any semi-professional, and/or professional coaches?  
    Do you know any semi-professional, and/or professional athletes?  
    Have you contacted or surrounded yourself with any semi-professional, and/or professional coaches?  
    Have you contacted or surrounded yourself with any semi-professional, and/or professional athletes?  
       
Step Six Prepare Do you attend any semi-professional or professional  
    Workouts  
    Tryouts  
    Meetings  
    Professional Sport Conferences  
    Are you preparing your film?  
       
Step Seven Execute Do you have a promoter?  
    Do you have an agent?  
    Will you have a definite contract after graduation?  
A GAME PLAN
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Purpose/Hypotheses

• The purpose of this research is to examine the
  career choices that student athletes are making
  after graduating college, it will determine
  whether all student athletes plan to become
  semi-professional or professional athletes, it
  will also examine if those students are aware of
  the process it will require to progress to the
  professional level.
• The hypotheses for this research is that most
  student athletes are not fully aware of the
  process of transitioning from collegiate level of
  sports to the professional level.

8
Literature Review (1) Career Planning For
Student Athletes, and Identifying their roles
after life as a student athlete.Patricia S.
Lally and Gretchen A. Kerr (2005)

• The purpose of this study was examine the career
  planning of university athletes and relationships
  between their career planning and athletic and
  student role identities.
• They used a small number of students whom they
  asked their early career plans and then late
  career plans. The students in this study varied
  from all athletes, both genders and a various age
  range of at least 40. It began at the beginning
  of the fall semester asking them their early
  career plans then following them throughout the
  year to see if they changed or not, calling them
  their late career plans.
• As a result of this study they realized that many
  of the student athletes did not have set plans,
  it changed vastly throughout the process of
  conducting this research. Many changed their
  plans after defining their interest in things
  outside of their sports and helps the exploration
  of a non-sport career option.

9
Literature Review (2)Understanding the career
transition of athletes. Steven J. Danish and
Patrick H.F. Baillie (1992)

• The purpose of this study is to break down the
  transition that you can see within student
  athletes from childhood all the way through
  adulthood, explaining the involvement in sports
  from a young age, going into high school then
  college and possibly the professional level,
  which can later end in retirement.
• Nothing like an actual study it simply explains
  the factors that each stage can bring into an
  athletes life or decisions that they on whether
  or not they continue on with this sport.
• The result of this study was that each individual
  goes through different transitions in their
  athletic journey as they progress from childhood
  to adulthood.

10
Literature Review (3)Going pro in sports
providing guidance to student-athletes in a
complicated legal and regulatory
environment.Warren Zola, Glenn M. Wong and
Chris Deubert (2010-2011)

• The purpose of this study was to demonstrate that
  many schools focus more on the athletic part of a
  student athlete rather than the student part.
• The results of this study shows that students and
  even the institution they may attend do not give
  the necessary attention to the areas that are of
  major importance to the students whom are also
  athletes.

11
Literature Review (4)Choosing a Career in
Athletic Training Exploring the Perceptions of
Potential Recruits.James Mensch and Murray
Mitchell (2008)

• The study was constructed to get an in depth
  look for student athletes whom may be interest in
  other career paths sports related but not
  necessarily a professional career.
• With this study the researcher interviewed each
  person involved and ask about their career path,
  whether they were aware of the opportunities of
  other careers that they may be afford in
  athletics.
• The result of this study was that more then half
  of the athletes that were interviewed did want to
  look into other careers in the sports industry.

12
Literature Review (5) Student-athletes, athlete
agents and five year eligibility An environment
of contractual interference, trade restraint and
high stake payments.Lynn Zioko and Marianna
Jennings (1988-1989)

• The purpose of this study is to discuss the many
  problems that student athletes face trying to
  pursue their career.
• Majority of the time you will find that there are
  obstacles besides not being aware of the
  opportunities you have, such as not having the
  support you need or not being aware of the things
  that can prevent you from being an athletic.
• The results of this study is that many of those
  student are not completely aware of the obstacles
  they may face while trying to pursue a
  professional athletic career.

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How is your study similar but differs from others?

• This survey differs from the literature review
  presented because this focus strictly on an
  athletes life after the game.
• It asked the athletes on Benedict College campus
  if they feel as if they are prepared for the
  professional level of the sport of their choice.
• It also differs based on my demographics and the
  survey that which I am using to fulfill this
  study.
• This purpose of this researchers study is to
  identify the awareness of athletes knowledge
  about the process of becoming a professional
  athlete. The hypothesis of this study is that
  student athletes are not completely aware of the
  necessary steps needed to become a professional
  athlete.

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Methods

• Demographics
• 120 student athletes whom play a sport for
  Benedict College.
• Gender male and female
• Ages range between 18-25
• Sports Basketball, Track and Field, Baseball,
  Football,
• Athletes or Non-athletes? All participants will
  be athletes.
• Data collection tools/survey
• The survey used is a random sample survey created
  by the researcher.

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Methods

• Procedure
• The survey was conducted randomly throughout the
  campus.
• The researcher stopped each athlete and asked
  those whom wanted to participate in the study to
  fill out a survey.
• Once completed, the participate handed back the
  survey to the researcher.

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Statistical Results

• Question 1 Being a semi-professional or a
  professional athlete is a passion.
• Basketball 2790 agreed, 310 disagreed
• Track and Field 30100 agreed
• Baseball 30100 agreed
• Football 2790 agreed, 310 disagreed

17
Statistical Results

• Question 6 I am aware of the steps to take in
  order to become a professional athlete.
• Basketball 30100 agreed
• Track and Field 30100 agreed
• Baseball 30100 agreed
• Football 30100 agreed

18
Statistical Results

• Question 9 I plan to pursue a career in my
  sport after graduation.
• Basketball 1550 agreed, 1550 disagreed
• Track and Field 1860 agreed, 1240 disagreed
• Baseball 1240 agreed, 1860 disagreed
• Football 30100 agreed

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Statistical Results

• Question 10 I have a thought out plan about my
  future in sports after college.
• Basketball 1550 agreed, 1550 disagreed
• Track and Field 1860 agreed, 1240 disagreed
• Baseball 1240 agreed, 1860 disagreed
• Football 30100 agreed

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Statistical Results

• Question 15 I have a backup plan if my career
  as an athlete does not flourish.
• Basketball 1963 agreed, 1136 disagreed
• Track and Field 30100 agreed
• Baseball 30100 agreed
• Football 24 80 agreed, 6 disagreed

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Step One Learn Do you have a positive attitude?  
    Do you have the skills to make it to the semi-professional or professional level?  
    Do you have the drive to make it to the semi-professional or professional level?  
       
Step Two Practice Do you practice more than what is required on the collegiate level?  
    Are you working out with trainers?  
       
Step Three Educate Are you going to some minor and major league try-outs to observe?  
       
Step Four Train Harder Have you compared your skills to some semi-professional or professional athletes?  
    Have you competed against other semi-professional or professional athletes?  
       
Step Five Network Do you know any semi-professional, and/or professional coaches?  
    Do you know any semi-professional, and/or professional athletes?  
    Have you contacted or surrounded yourself with any semi-professional, and/or professional coaches?  
    Have you contacted or surrounded yourself with any semi-professional, and/or professional athletes?  
       
Step Six Prepare Do you attend any semi-professional or professional  
    Workouts  
    Tryouts  
    Meetings  
    Professional Sport Conferences  
Games or Special Events
    Are you preparing your film?  
       
Step Seven Execute Do you have a promoter?  
    Do you have an agent?  
    Will you have a definite contract after graduation?  
A GAME PLAN
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Basketball
Graph of Step 1
Graph of Step 2
Graph of Step 3
23
basketball
Graph of Step 4
Graph of Step 5
Graph of Step 6
24
Basketball
Graph of Step 7
25
Track and field
Graph of Step 1
Graph of Step 2
Graph of Step 3
26
Track and field
Graph of Step 4
Graph of Step 5
Graph of Step 6
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Track and field
Graph of Step 7
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football
Graph of Step 1
Graph of Step 2
Graph of Step 3
29
football
Graph of Step 4
Graph of Step 5
Graph of Step 6
30
football
Graph of Step 7
31
Baseball
Graph of Step 1
Graph of Step 2
Graph of Step 3
32
baseball
Graph of Step 6
Graph of Step 4
Graph of Step 5
33
Baseball
Graph of Step 7
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Limitations

• The present researcher initially desired to
  survey all athletic teams on Benedict College
  campus, both male and females however due to
  scheduling conflict and time restraints the
  surveys were distributed throughout the campus
  randomly.
• Furthermore, the present researcher intended to
  assess the knowledge collegiate athletes have
  about furthering their careers in sports once
  graduating.
• Time constraints anywhere to technical
  difficulties, some athletes did not want to take
  the survey, some did not fully fill the survey
  out and others were unable due location they were
  in when presented with the study.
• Unable to reach out the multiple sports teams and
  genders among the Benedict College athletic
  department.
• The researcher did not have access to every team
  desired to survey thus it was a limited number of
  participants. Also not using multiple
  colleges/universities for a wider range of
  participates.

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results

• The data was able to be untrue the total of 25
  Benedict College student athletes surveyed.
  Totaling a population of 24 being female
  athletes and the other 76 being male athletes
  whom all seem to be aware of their athletic
  career choices after conducting this study. With
  a combine 92 majority of athletes from the
  basketball, baseball, football and track and
  field teams agreed that being an athlete is a
  passion for them. 100 of the athletes surveyed
  stated that they were aware of the necessary
  steps needed to become a professional athlete.
  60 of the athletes surveyed agreed on planning
  to pursue their athletic career after graduating
  from Benedict College. Leaving a 40 of the other
  athletes planning to switch careers once
  graduating from college. Another 60 of the
  athletes say that they already have a plan
  thought out in order to pursue their athlete
  career while the 40 that are left does not have
  a plan for their athletic career at all. An 84
  of athletes agreed to having back up plans if
  their professional athlete career does not
  progress any further once they graduate. After
  concluding this study, the researcher discovered
  that many of the student athletes were quite
  knowledgeable of what it takes to begin and
  further a professional athletic career. For those
  participates whom did not know much about the
  proper steps, also were not as interested in
  pursuing a career as a professional athlete.
  Thus, proving the researchers hypothesis to be
  incorrect for this particular set of data.

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discussion

• The present researcher being a sports fanatic
  examined the thinking process behind the decision
  made by student athletes to pursue a professional
  career after graduating from Benedict College. To
  examine the career choices that student athletes
  are making after graduating college will
  determine whether all student athletes plan to
  become professional athletes, it will also
  examine if those students are aware of the
  process it will require to progress to the
  professional level. In light of recent studies
  and the completion of this research study,
  majority of collegiate athletes are aware of the
  transition and plan to continue on with their
  athletic careers once graduating college.
  Overall, knowledge and making sure that athletes
  are in the necessary position to gain access to
  the career of their choice is extremely important
  whether it is athletic wise or not. Moreover,
  insuring that our colleges/universities athletic
  departments should be active in making sure that
  their athletes not only have choices and chances,
  but are fully aware of how to take on those
  particular opportunities. The researcher
  recommends that future researchers apply the
  present study towards continuations of better
  preparing student athletes for the life they may
  want to pursue once graduating from college and
  making sure that they are fully aware of the
  entire process it may take to achieve their
  career of choice. The future researchers should
  plan to further this information and conduct it
  outside of Benedict College to determine the
  difference between one set of athletes verses
  another one set of athletes.

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Recommendations

• Overall, knowledge and making sure that athletes
  are in the necessary position to gain access to
  the career of their choice is extremely important
  whether it is athletic wise or not.
• Moreover, insuring that our colleges/universities
  athletic departments should be active in making
  sure that their athletes not only have choices
  and chances, but are fully aware of how to take
  on those particular opportunities.
• The researcher recommends that future researchers
  apply the present study toward better preparing
  student athletes for the life they may want to
  pursue once graduating from college and making
  sure that they are fully aware of the entire
  process it may take to achieve their career of
  choice.
• The future researchers should plan to further
  this information and conduct it outside of
  Benedict College to determine the difference
  between one set of athletes verses another one
  set of athletes.

38
References

• Lally, Patricia S Kerr, Gretchen A. (2005). The
  Career Planning, Athletic Identity, and Student
  Role Identity of Intercollegiate Student
  Athletes. Research Quarterly for Exercise and
  Sport 76, 3 ProQuest Science Journals pg. 275.
  Retrieved from http//search.proquest.com/docview
  /218564363/fulltextPDF/2B16D12EA74E 4984PQ/1?accou
  ntid40301
• Danish, Steven J. Baillie, Patrick H.F. (1992).
  Understanding the Career Transition of
  Athletes. The Sport Psychologist, 6, 77-98.
  Retrieved from http//www.storre.stir.ac.uk/bitst
  ream/1893/7648/1/PSE1_2004.pdf
• Zola, Warren Wong, Glenn M. Deubert, Chris.
  (2010-2011). Going Pro in Sports Providing
  Guidance to Student-Athletes in a Complicated
  Legal Regulatory Environment. 28 Cardozo Arts
  Ent. L.J. 553. Retrieved from
  http//www.cardozoaelj.com/wpcontent/uploads/Jour
  nal20Issues/Volume 2028/Issue203/wong.pdf

39
references

• Mensch, James Mitchell, Murray. (2008) Choosing
  a Career in Athletic Training Exploring the
  Perceptions of Potential Recruits. Journal of
  Athletic Training Jan/Feb 2008, Vol. 43, No. 1,
  pp. 70-79. Retrieved from http//www.ncbi.nlm.nih
  .gov/pmc/articles/PMC2231402/
• Zioiko, Lynn Jennings, Marianne. (1988-1989).
  Student-Athletes, Athlete Agents and Five Year
  Eligibility An Environment of Contractual
  Interference, Trade Restraint and High-Stake
  Payments. 66 U. Det. L. Rev. 179. Retrieved
  from
• http//heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handlehein
  .journals/udetmr66div18idpage