Essay Why College Athletes Should Not Be Paid

A major issue that resides within the sphere of college athletics is whether college athletes should or should not be paid while they are attending school. College athletes work hard every day to meet the scholarly standards of their universities. They also strive to keep their level of play at its peak. These college athletes need to be awarded and credited for their achievements. This problem often leads to athletes making poor judgments in accepting money from boosters and others that are willing to help them. This not only inevitably leads to consequences for the athlete, but also for their athletic department as well.
The role of the college athlete is to find a way to balance not only their education, but also their commitment to a sport. …show more content…
This argument is deeply flawed. Yes, there are athletes who receive scholarships that pay their full tuition, but there are also athletes that receive no financial assistance from the school they attend. A $20,000 scholarship a year for a college athlete may seem like enough to survive off of, but it really only covers the basics of what a student has to pay. “A scholarship will cover the expenses of university fees, tuition, housing, a meal-plan and the textbooks they will need to participate in their classes” (Sack, 2008). It is also important to note that students who receive academic scholarships are able to use the funds that are left over towards anything they would like, while those students who receive athletic scholarships cannot. The amount they receive must only go towards educational expenses. Some athletic players may receive assistance from the government in the form of Pell Grants, but this is only if they come from low-income families. With this argument in place, it is assumed that because college athletes receive scholarships towards their education, a college degree is a form of payment in itself. Realistically, bachelor degrees values are becoming less significant within the