What separates college and professional athletes? The obvious answer is that professional athletes get paid for the sport they play but college students do not. In my eyes, this is strange; both groups are doing the exact same thing but college students are getting a degree while playing a sport. College athletes spend the almost the same amount of time practicing, working out, and playing games as professionals do, but college players also have to manage going to class and completing their school work. NCAA student-athletes should be paid for three main reasons: for the amount of time put into sports, the improper use and distribution of money, and the motivation to finish college. .
A huge part of being an NCAA student-athlete is going to school and getting decent grades. Achieving good grades takes a majority of a normal students time; imagine adding a full time sport, which now gives the student-athlete no time. As an NCAA athlete myself, I am an example of this. While in season I feel as if there is no room for personal time; I go straight from classes in the morning, to a two and half hour practice, then to an hour of weights. When I am finally done with field hockey related activities, I start my homework right away so I can go to bed early or at a decent time. With my schedule I am constantly bouncing around from one place to another, barely having time to stop and have a conversation with a friend or eat a whole meal without having the feeling that I need to rush somewhere else. I am constantly tired, even when I get a good nights rest, from trying to keep up with my school work and also giving one hundred percent on the field. Over the course of my season and semester, I started to feel as if my grades were slipping away just because I did not have all the time in the world to give my full attention on homework. Being a full time athlete and student is hard, but it is achievable for most when using good time management.