Living the College Life: What Special Concerns Should I Be Aware of as a Student Athlete?

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In many aspects of their college lives, student athletes are reminded that "they're just like everyone else""they go to the same classes, they must complete the same assignments, and they live in college-operated student housing, to name three ways.

Those are true, but college athletes are not like everyone else. The other students are unlikely to be prominent representatives of the university, sometimes performing on national television. They don't legitimately miss class on occasion due to sports-related traveling. And the penalties other students face if caught drinking underage or fighting pale next to what might await a student athlete caught doing the same.

Student athletes need to be aware of these differences, because their schools certainly are.

Academic Help

For one thing, your athletic department likely offers special academic assistance to those who need it and take the time to ask for it. The academic advisers at Northwestern University check up on student athletes and make sure they're progressing like they should, says Melissa Culver, a communication studies major. In the four years that she's played basketball for Northwestern, she's gotten to know her adviser well"a connection that has helped her to succeed on and off the basketball court. "Our academic advisers really helped me a lot, not only with questions about classes and other academic things, but also as someone you could really talk to if you were homesick or had a bad practice."

 Matt Bertke went through Notre Dame's swim team adviser to get a tutor for help with an introductory chemistry class and some philosophy coursework. "It's really easy to get behind," says Matt, if you don't recognize when you might need some help. So if you think you need help, ask for it.

Avoiding Trouble

By virtue of representing their school, student athletes are held to a high standard of conduct. The stakes are high"a major misstep could result in suspension or dismissal from the team, or a scholarship withdrawal.

Lacey Boutwell, Stanford University says student athletes need to be aware of those high stakes, and consider the risk to their athletic career before doing something they'll regret. "Be careful and aware of what is going on whenever you are at a party or other event that could lead to problems," she says. Inside the classroom, Lacey cautions athletes about cheating"an infraction with serious consequences at any college. "Students need to take the same pride in their academics as they do their athletics." 

Notre Dame's Matt Bertke points out the unfair reality that if an athlete is near trouble, he may be blamed. So stay away from any potentially troublesome situation, he advises. Getting caught up in it may not just hurt you"it can hurt your team.

The Value of Perseverance

Difficult times can still find student athletes, even if they've had success in both the classroom and in their sport. Family issues, injuries, and personal concerns can arise anytime"at the very beginning of the semester, the night before a big competition, or right in the middle of finals week. When problems do surface, the students fare best when they confront them directly and aren't afraid to ask for help if they need it - a point illustrated by the experiences of three student athletes cited below.

For Melissa Culver, this meant riding out the pangs of homesickness she felt during her first semester at Chicago's Northwestern University - 1,000 miles away from home in Littleton, Colorado. But as she made time to get organized and began connecting with her teammates, the crisis abated. "Other athletes helped me to adapt and realize I was in the right place," she says.

In addition to her impressive accomplishments at the University of Wyoming, Shauna Smith faces perhaps her biggest challenge when she's not running or studying: She's the mother of a 4-year-old son. She admits that being a student, an athlete, and a mom is sometimes more than she can handle""almost to the point of having a nervous breakdown," she says. So she relies on a family support system, with her fiance

and her mother at the center of it. They show her love, support, and respect"and that makes all the difference to her. "That's the only reason I've been able to do what I have done," she says. "I wouldn't have been able to make it this far without that support I have."

At Stanford University, swimmer Lacey Boutwell has dealt with more than her share of injuries: She has suffered two dislocations of her right knee, torn tissue in her left shoulder, and two dislocated ribs, to name some of her setbacks. To bounce back, she employed a positive outlook to fuel her passion to get fully rehabilitated. She spent extra time on her rehab exercises to make up for hours she could not train with the team. And she studied to get ahead on schoolwork, ensuring she could fully devote herself to swimming once she was cleared to rejoin the team.

Her strategy has worked with resounding success: Lacey is an 11-time All-American and two-time NCAA champion.

"Dealing with an injury when you are at the peak of your career is quite difficult," says Lacey, who competes in the backstroke, butterfly, and sprint freestyle events. "You simply have to work even harder to get back. . . . Many times you work so hard to regain your strength that you end up coming back stronger than you were before."