Today, I’ll be taking you on a little journey as to why athletic scholarships are an integral part of many universities success. Scholarships are quite a large part of the life of any high school athlete who wishes to sign on and obtain a sports scholarship with a University. According to Unigo, “In 2018 to 2019, U.S. colleges with varsity athletic programs awarded almost $4.1 billion in athletic scholarships. The aim of athletic scholarships is to offset the costs of a college degree. They also help schools recruit talent for their sports teams” (Unigo).
Student athletes have spent years and years of their lives strengthening their playing skills and many of them seek to attend college as a student athlete. I personally have friends who have practiced a sport since they were as young as six or seven which means they’ve often been playing for well over ten years. For many of these students, college would not be a possibility without the scholarships they receive as a result of their sports. However, the individual is not the only one to lose something in this circumstance. As mentioned in my previous post, the university benefits greatly from college athletic programs, and admission as well as popularity would certainly lower for many colleges who thrive off their athletic programs if they didn’t offer any scholarships. 
According to the NCAA, more than 180,000 student athletes (out of 8 million high school athletes) are awarded with athletic scholarships every year to various colleges. Getting accepted into a university with an athletic scholarship is an accomplishment to anyone who achieves it, and it brings great joy into the lives of those athletes. Generally, people play sports because they love them, and they want to be involved. I can’t imagine how great it must feel to practice and work your butt off for years of your life only to finally realize that it paid off and helped you get a scholarship to a college where you get to continue playing the sport you love! I have never personally been in this situation before, but I have played many sports before, and I have seen the joy of my friends being accepted with athletic scholarships. If athletic scholarships did not exist, a great amount of joy and hard work would be lost. 
As coachesclipboard states, “Many student-athletes come from low-income households or, sadly, no household at all. For some, an athletic scholarship means the difference between success or homelessness. The economic imbalance isn’t easy to discuss and assisting new generations with equalization is a priority for academic and athletic programs” (Daren). Athletic scholarships create a competitive nature that urges even young athletes to strive for their best in order to obtain a scholarship that not many receive.
In my opinion, it would be unwise for any university who relies on their athletic programs in any way to stop offering scholarships that were previously offered. This could result in losses financially, numerically, or even in a school’s reputation.
Sources:
The Importance of Athletic Scholarships – by Sarah Daren
Picture links:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportsengine.com%2Farticle%2F5-things-you-need-know-about-athletic-scholarships&psig=AOvVaw30h6gZvpH4iBglczPQKNg9&ust=1613699293604000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCNC2vfKo8u4CFQAAAAAdAAAAABA3
i really enjoyed reading about the college scholarships. I also have friends that are extremely talented athletically. One of the, specifically received a lot of money to go to a very prestigious school. Without this support, the school is far too difficult for anyone, regardless of socioeconomic status. I think the prices of these schools are ridiculously high, and a lot of people cannot attend schools that they deserve to attend. Although these scholarships do provide some support, I still think it is unfair to everyone. Even for the athletes with hefty scholarships, if they decide that they don’t want to continue playing the sport, they aren’t allowed to because of their scholarship agreement. In this way, the money is detrimental in that it forces athletes to continue playing even if they don’t like it. Overall, great job with this post!
I could just imagine an athletic scholarship being something of dream for avid athlete students who have essentially dedicated the majority of their lives to their craft. On the flip side, universities do indeed benefit greatly from providing scholarships since the students’ caliber of both athletic and academic success is essentially the foundation of the school’s own reputation success. If I took the athletic route, earning a scholarship on my athletic achievement would really hit differently given the amount of passion that not just me, but all aspiring professionals have. Great civics post!
I really enjoyed reading this post! I have a few friends both here at PSU and back home who are student athletes, and I have seen how much joy that accomplishment brings them.
I really like that you tackled this topic. It is very relevant in todays day and age to say the least, I made one of my posts about financial aid and how schools do not give enough money so I think scholarships are essential to counteract that. People probably don’t realize how much a scholarship can change a persons life!