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To Pay or Not To Pay

Schools, coaches, and the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) all benefit tremendously from college athletic programs; the school benefits by improving its reputation, the coaches get more money, as does the NCAA. What about the athletes themselves? They often don’t get a single penny of this massive profit system. As a result, over the years, it has been argued that college athletes deserve to be paid. However, the suggestion has inspired much controversy. Although many people are proponents for college athlete compensation, we strongly disagree for many reasons. Some of these reasons include that the students already receive scholarship money, there is an unfair advantage to those who invest more time in other activities or academics, and if the athletes do end up getting paid, they would have to cut funds in other areas.

College athletes should not be paid because they often already receive the money that they need to pay for their school expenses. This money covers tuition, fees, room, board and textbooks, according to the National Collegiate Athletic Association website. The average value of a full, in-state public school scholarship is $15,000 a year, according to the website. The scholarships awarded to outstanding student athletes are valuable in countless ways. Without them, many would not be able to pursue their academic or athletic goals. Although the athletes worked very hard, they should not be paid any additional sum. Athletic scholarships serve as their compensation and a fair one at that. Essentially they receive a free education and in return they represent the school in a certain sport. College athletes don’t have to worry about student loans, paying for textbooks, and the cost of on-campus living, and meal plans. This helps them to save thousands of dollars, so this should definitely be more than enough. The individuals who receive these scholarships are exceptionally talented and work very hard to earn the funding that is already awarded to them. So why would the athletes need more money than the money that they have already earned?

Why wouldn’t the people who focus on academics be paid if we allow college athletes to be paid? Those who focus on their academics rather than athletics deserve to be acknowledged for their works and efforts just as much as those who focus on athletics. However, student athletes are not professional athletes who should be paid salaries and incentives for a career in sports. They are still students receiving access to a college education through their participation in sports for which they earn scholarships to pay for their school needs. Collegiate sports are not a profession; it is the students’ vehicle to a higher education degree. This access is contingent upon continued enrollment, participation in the sport for which they received the scholarship, and academic eligibility. However, we would like to propose the idea of allowing the NCAA Student Assistance Fund to be able to help those student-athletes who have unusual needs in excess of the usual cost of attendance. These should be addressed on a case-by-case basis.

If we were to allow college athletes to be paid, colleges would be forced to take funds from other areas of the school and invest more in the athletics program. It would be unfair if the school were to take out the funding from the educational program and focus it all in the athletic program. If this were to happen at this rate, the classroom environments would suffer from a lack of resources. This is bad for a college because students go to school in order to learn and focus on their academics. Nobody would want to study at that college if they focus all of their funding on their athletic program rather than their educational program.

College is a place for people to obtain a degree and help jumpstart their “real world” career aspirations. Whether people want to capitalize on that opportunity or not is on them. However it is not a place for athletes to get paid to play sports. That’s why the professional level exists, and college athletes are not professionals. Being a student should always come first in the world of a student-athlete.

An article from “Reuters,” posted on April 30th, 2015, stated that “53 percent (of Americans) believe college football should be paid a small salary for playing a game. Many Americans believe that college athletes in the United States should get paid for playing a sport for their college. With evidence collected from online sources such as “Smartasset” and “Reuters,” it can be supported that college athletes work too diligently on their sport and don’t have time to work a job outside of school, which justifies paying college athletes for their dedication to their sports.

One reason why college athletes should get paid is because they risk their health or even life by playing highly competitive, physical sports such as football and soccer. Even though some sports might not seem as dangerous, any injuries are the college’s responsibility. An online article from the website “Smartasset” states that Louisville player Kevin Ware got badly injured on his lower right leg when playing football in the 2013 NCAA tournament. He was not paid for this injury, but he successfully recovered and returned to practicing. Although some injuries heal, some can lead to permanent health issues. In either case, the sacrifice that an athlete makes for the school’s pride and profit from sports should be compensated.

Athletes in college help the college get a great amount of money by playing their games. Their extremely hard work and their devoted time should be repaid by the college body in order to make it fair for them. Michael Wilbon, a journalist, discovered that a vast amount of money made by the National Collegiate Athletic Association was not being given to the players. This unfair action shows how the colleges profited off of their students, who put in all of the word to succeed and weren’t justly compensated for that work.

College athletes also provide a vital source of school spirit, which creates a good reputation for the college. The spirit embodied by these athletes inspire future college students to want to attend the college. Since the student athletes are representing the school positively, the colleges should regularly pay them for their dedication to lighten up the college environment and represent their scholarly peers.

Some individuals may argue that colleges should not pay their athletes for only supporting their schools, such as education, which is the main point of higher education. For example, several Americans claim that student athletes already receive scholarships and other benefits in their college life. Those who disagree with the idea of paying the athletes may think that the money should not have to be paid back. Although this is true, it is clear that the athletes already got their reward for being excellent scholar athletes in high school. The scholarship is basically the reward for their high school experience; however, the money provided by the college is the reward for the active work in college, not high school[I4] . College athletes should be rewarded for their continuous efforts to hone their athletic skills in a more advanced stage of their life .

Other individuals argue that colleges should instead spend the amount of money on educational purposes such as providing better, more advanced classes and rewarding scholastic achievements over athletic ones. They may also state that colleges can spend it on improving the school campus’s facilities and appearance. However, spending money on trying to “improve” the education is not very effectivebecause students have their own choice of whether paying attention in class or not. The appearance and environment of the college does not have to be perfect, as other uses such as paying the athletes is more effective than spending money on extra materials.

Overall, many Americans, according to the website “Reuters,” agree that college athletes should get paid money for their immense effort and devotion to their sport. The athletes risk their health by exposing themselves to possible injuries and deserve a reward for working extremely hard to win a good reputation and profits for the college.

College Athletes do not need “Extra”

In Pennsylvania, 71 percent of normal non-athlete students leaving a four-year college exit with huge debt, which may lead to a bleak and financially unstable future for the normal students. Conversely, college athletes do not have to worry about typical expenses such as student loans or textbooks-a perk for bringing their talents to the fields, courts, and tracks of their universities. This juxtaposition of paid athletes and normal college scholars indicates an unfair system used by several universities, which has been discussed at great lengths by people on both sides of the debate.

Being a college athlete often comes with many additional perks as well. The typical college student is typically seen with food eaten without choice everyday, having neither the leisure nor the wealth to afford opulent gourmet food. Together with the worry of low income and burden of debt, these students often struggle financially as they try to maintain good grades and look forward towards stable jobs. Contrastingly, college athletes receive scholarships that cover their textbook, tuition, room, and board. Even if these scholarships are awarded to the prestigious and they sometimes provide a segment of these privileges, it is known that college athletes are still better off than their non-athletic counterparts. Even with all of these benefits, some schools go so far as to pay their athletes a salary to play for the school. Athletes do not have to get paid even more than these scholarships provide because that funding takes away opportunities and resources from students who may not have athletic prowess, but who have other equally valuable skills and yet are not financially rewarded for them.

The argument that supports the payment of these athletes mentions the adversity that they face as athletes; they represent their schools and should be rewarded for their hard work, practice schedules, dedication to games, and success in their sports. There are players who are so good that they should be paid. If they are that good, then they should be promoted to the professional level where they are paid, rather than sucking resources from the rest of the student body. In the NFL, talented players can earn 22.72 million dollars guaranteed and a 14.515 million signing bonus; strong college athletes have their careers to make money. While in school, nothing more than the cost of tuition and expenses should be paid, and only then to those who are truly the standouts. Each athlete should have to maintain a strong GPA in order to benefit from such scholarships.

There are many benefits for the schools to host and therefore pay these athletes. Future sports stars bring positive press and recognition to the school, and mat even attract sponsorship from, big businesses. Even if they don’t make a name in the professional arena, they have a true name for themselves, vividly showcasing their hardships of their college years. To put that as an excuse and to ask for sympathy from the university or the general public is not valid because they had a chance to grow their future in academics in case sports have failed; it is the blatant cold truth, because there are copious amount of normal scholars that fail college and the general public do not give their sympathy to them.

Supporting these college athlete fans however, is the very foundation of college athletes. They were founded on the basis that they are to be different from the non-professional; they are to represent the college that they attend and not a specific professional team. These people are supposed to be playing solely to fuel their passion for their very sport or their passion for their college, not by the motivation of being paid. It wouldn’t be recognized the same if they were to receive a paycheck, which undermines such defining moments of college sports.

In summation, college athletes should not, by fairness, be paid. Although this is mostly supported by the fact that normal college students are going to be left behind as college athletes continue without financial worry, there are reasons, including one that supports college sport lovers that they should not be paid. The passion, justice, and living situations all support this notion.