Student Athlete Pay Essay

Despite a less time demanding schedule, professional athletes are paid while student athletes are not. However, student athletes are often compensated through scholarships. But, is a scholarship a fair way to compensate these students for their service to the university? This topic has piqued my interest because of the dedication I have to sports and education. Through countless hours of studying and many sleepless nights, I have successfully been able to maintain a 4.0 grade point average since the letter grading system was introduced in the seventh grade. Along with grades, I was deeply involved in athletics as well; competing in football and basketball throughout my time at Jenks High School. I know first hand how challenging it can be …show more content…
My research will begin on google where I will expand my overall background knowledge on athlete pay. While searching the internet, I will make note of anything that seems unclear. Following my internet browsing session, I will explore peer reviewed articles, journals, and books to answer questions such as “how does a scholarship compare with the salary that a player would receive?”, “how do college coaches feel about their players getting paid?”, and “how would the overall economy be impacted?”. The answers to these questions will allow me to analyze how athlete pay affects the lives of student athletes and coaches, the economy, and the rest of society. Besides just researching the benefits and consequences of paying student athletes, I also plan to consider the funding. While it is easy for the public to say “college athletes deserve to be paid”, where would the funds come from? How would they be raised? I also plan on staying clear of sources that appear to have a major bias to the topic. Sources written by sports enthusiasts, such as Sports Illustrated, have a higher chance of containing a biased opinion. I will take the position of the writer into consideration to eliminate bias in my