Sports in College

Competing in sports during high school is such a huge part of many student's lives.  The hours of time that you dedicate to practice, the effort you put forth during games, and the friendships you have made through your involvement all combine together to make this one of the more significant areas of these four years.  It can be hard to imagine life without your sport, but the statistics are not encouraging - most high school athletes do not continue on to compete in college at the varsity level. But please don't let that news frustrate you because you can always find a different level of involvement so that athletics can continue to be a part of your life.  For example, most colleges offer a variety of ways that students can meet their athletic goals such as through club and intramural options.

Club sports are often competitive and frequently include tryouts.  They frequently will compete against other colleges and travel in season.  It is less intense of a time commitment than varsity sports at the college level, but still a rigorous athletic commitment.

Intramural sports are more about having fun.  Depending on the college, there may be different levels of intensity available for you to choose from on intramurals or they may have just one level for the sport. In addition to different levels of competitiveness of the teams, they may have some options that will be guys only, girls only, or mixed participation so you will find a lot of different intramural options.  This provides a great way to meet new people and to even have fun doing sports you have never tried before.  I also love that on many campuses there may be fun and creative intramural opportunities such as intertube water polo, quidditch, and broom-ball.

The biggest reminder that I have for you is that if you can't imagine your life without sports, please remember that there are always ways to find opportunities to meet those needs in your life.  If, for some reason, your college doesn't have the sport you love, maybe you will find a new sport to enjoy.  Or you may start to explore what adult leagues may be available that you could join in the community.  For example, if you are a hockey player, you might not be able to find club or intramural hockey at your campus, but there are adult hockey leagues that you could join.  

That leads me to the point that you may be thinking ahead to adjusting to life without sports after college... and so, as I just mentioned you can pursue adult leagues in the community, but if sports are really important to you it is worth considering how you can take those skills and aspects that you love and tie them into your career choices.  For example, if you are a highly competitive person who loves working on a team toward achieving a common goal, then hopefully you will work to find a job that will allow you to work cooperatively towards common goals in a competitive environment.  If you are someone who needs the physical activity to burn off stress or to help you focus, then hopefully you will consider either a job that has physical variety or you will make working out a primary commitment in your daily life.

For now, if you are finding yourself struggling with the idea of your competitive athletic career ending during high school, always feel free to come and talk to me as I know that this is a big adjustment.