I’ll start this off by saying that being a student-athlete is difficult, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. There is a lot of time management and sacrifice that takes place. I believe it is all 100% worth it. Being a student-athlete has allowed me to grow in ways that I didn’t even know were possible. If you are a student-athlete, SHOW IT! You have so much to offer.
As collegiate athletes, we are often advised to take “the easy route”…pick a major that does not require as much time, work, or homework so that more time can be focused on practice, games, and training. I knew that competitive volleyball would end for me after my four years, so I was adamant about joining an athletic program that was at a school I loved…and thankfully I found this in the beautiful city of Seattle. I was lucky to be a part of a program that encouraged my career path in the medical field. However, this meant earlier mornings, later nights, pretty much living in the library, A LOT of time management, and minimal social life.
One of the most difficult things about being a student-athlete is the schedule. The conference my university was a part of had three teams in state, six teams out of state, and one team out of the country. Yeah…we traveled a lot. This also meant that we frequently missed school. Tests/quizzes were often taken on the road, we had to catch up on lectures on our own, communicate with classmates to see what me missed those days, and most importantly, we had to establish GREAT relationships with our professors. This was only during season, too. In the off season is when things got tricky. Mornings became earlier as we organized conditioning/weightlifting around our school schedule. I think one year we had training as early as 5:45am then went to class right after at 8am. The rest of our days were jam packed with classes and practice…then finally became time to start studying around 9pm. Next day, we repeat. I’m not going to lie, this was hard-especially during the dark winter days in Seattle. I was frequently tired and ran off of LOTS OF COFFEE. But somehow the better I learned to manage my time and organize my day, the better I did in classes. I always found that my best quarters academically were when I was the busiest…during volleyball season.
Now I know I’ve noted some of the difficult things about being a student-athlete, but one of the great things is the community that comes with it. There were many science majors across multiple sports in our athletic program. We all became a family. This was AWESOME because we were all able to learn from one another and guide each other through our journey…find people to shadow, coordinate jobs, tutoring, studying, etc. TEAMWORK was key, not only amongst our personal sports, but with one another. The community of athletics has allowed me to build lasting relationships with many friends, coaches, and professors. These are relationships that I will forever hold in my heart.
❉ What did I learn? How did I grow?
I have learned an invaluable amount from being a student-athlete.
1. Dedication/Perseverance: You learn to push yourself above and beyond your limits. You learn to set goals and push towards them. It is not only what occurs on the court, but off the court as well that separates your dedication from others. With this dedication, we see success.
2. Teamwork: Teamwork is not only important in athletics, but in daily life. Learning to work with others and finding peoples strengths is a valuable quality.
3. Leadership: You put your team above yourself. You push everyone to be the best person they can be. You learn how to communicate to each person. You learn what motivates each person. You lead not only through your words, but also with your actions. You learn how to present yourself. You don’t need to be a “captain” to be a leader.
4. Time management: All the homework, notes, tests/quizzes, practices, weights, conditioning, traveling, and so much more that you have to balance. Time management becomes your best friend (and awesome planners!). This goes along with #7 as priorities. You learn to prioritize what is important in that time and moment and what carries more value. It’s a skill we all learn to acquire…or else it almost becomes impossible to make it through.
5. Selflessness: You learn to put others before yourself. To help others grow and succeed just as much as you want to grow and succeed. You help build each other’s weaknesses into strengths.
6. Patience: You often run into conflict as an athlete. Whether its conflict with another teammate, conflict with another team, or conflict with yourself. You learn to bite your tongue and represent yourself properly. You also learn patience with your skills and abilities. It takes time to see growth in your talent. You need the patience to keep pushing yourself every day until you see the results you want.
7. Priorities: Priorities relates to many other qualities you learn from being a student-athlete. You learn to put your team above yourself (selflessness). You learn to prioritize tasks that need to be done (time management).
8. SO MUCH MORE.
❉ How did this prepare me for PA school?
I believe each quality and characteristic I have obtained above has prepared me for PA school. Dedication has allowed me to push towards achieving my dream of becoming a PA. I pushed myself in school and my experiences. I worked hard to build relationships with meaningful people. Teamwork has prepared me to work with a medical team and with one another. Leadership has allowed me to guide people and find what motivates each person and helps them be the best that they can be. Time management has prepared for the hectic and overbearing schedule of classes and studying. It has also taught me that there is also room for coffee with a friend…or a conversation with a loved one. Selflessness has allowed me to put others above myself and build compassion and understanding for my future patients. Patience has allowed me to enjoy each moment of the journey and know that it will all be worth it in the end.
❉ Did this give me an “advantage” in interviews/acceptances?
I have never been on an admissions team so I can not directly say that being an athlete has given me an “advantage” in my acceptance to PA school. I do believe that athletes carry a reputation amongst themselves of the qualities and characteristics they possess. As mentioned above, the amount I have learned in invaluable. Being a student-athlete has allowed me to grow in ways that I did not even recognize. It has provided me with stories of growth as well that I have been able to portray in my interviews and to medical programs. So, I would not say I have had an “advantage”, but if you are a student-athlete don’t be afraid to show it!
⤕I have been humbled by my experiences as a student-athlete. More often then not, my teammates show me my growth more than I even see it in myself. I was very honored to be voted as team captain of my collegiate team. My teammates also awarded me with the JoAnn Atwell Ambassador Award which is given to the student-athlete that best exemplifies leadership, selflessness, and commitment.
Side note:
KNOW YOUR SELF WORTH! We often just get labeled as just an athlete or just really good at your sport. But, know you are SO MUCH MORE! You are a leader. You are a team player. You are selfless but competitive at the same time. You are devoted to all that you do. You never give up. You push yourself to the limit. You are driven and go after what you want. What you learn from athletics is invaluable, and carries into who are beyond athletics as well. Just know, YOU ARE WORTH IT and YOU CAN DO IT. ‘
I’d like to thank everyone who has been a part of my athletic journey. You have taught me all the qualities above. You have pushed me more than I thought I could be pushes. You have left loving memories forever in my heart. You have allowed me to travel the world and serve in different countries. I am forever thankful for my athletic experiences.
S/o to all my coaches and teammates. ♥
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