When athletics administrators talk about the ‘student-athlete experience’, what do we mean exactly?
Often we want to highlight the learning and growth opportunities that athletics participation provides. Others talk about the academic support operation and how these efforts contribute to student-athlete graduation and persistence rates. And many refer to student-athlete ‘satisfaction’ with their experiences as a way to measure the impact of athletics.
All of these are valid points of reference and contribute to the student-athlete experience; however, each campus must define its goals for the student-athlete experience and then develop measures to assess if the program is meeting those goals.
Regardless of what competitive level – NCAA Division I, II or III, or NAIA, or community college – the student-athlete experience must be the grounding point for athletics planning and execution. It is the foundation for building a quality, competitive and successful athletics program. There are no shortcuts, no easy fixes and no ways to circumvent a system where students must learn, grow and develop as individuals.
A positive student-athlete experience boils down to a few key components:
- athletic skills and strategy: ‘Did I develop my sport abilities, knowledge and performance as a result of my participation?’
- personal growth: ‘Did I learn skills, strategies and self awareness that transfer from athletics to other aspects of my life?’
- enhancement of the overall educational experience: ‘Did athletics participation make my time at XYZ College more enjoyable, productive and successful?’
Of course there are many variables within each of these components and therein lies the challenge of assessing the student-athlete experience, something we’ll discuss in a future article. The logical starting point for discussing your student-athlete experience is to define it: ‘What are the outcomes we want for our student-athletes?’
Each athletics department must identify its purpose, goals and annual objectives that should guide all planning and decision-making. Most athletic department mission or vision or goal statements talk about student-athletes and the experience their program provides. However, few transfer this fundamental aspect to their annual objectives. Why? Probably because it’s not easy.
Setting objectives for wins, conference finish, team g.p.a.’s and fundraising are easier because they all are quantifiable with commonly accepted measures. The often-considered intangible impacts of athletics – leadership, teamwork, coping with adversity and others – are more difficult to easily quantify, so collecting data can be challenging. Still, it is important to have this information when justifying budgets, staffing or other resource needs.
While the student-athlete experience is widely considered a fundamental piece in collegiate athletics programs, not many have clarified what that experience is or should be. Defining exactly how the athletics program will impact student-athletes is the first step to providing a quality student-athlete experience. Regular, systematic assessment will then provide on-going feedback to allow for continual improvement.