Essay On Should Student Athletes Be Paid

A growing debate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association is whether or not student athletes should be paid. The controversy began in 2011 after three hundred coaches and athletes signed a petition to pay college-level athletes, and since then other athletes have made several more arguments. The NCAA has rightfully denied all of the requests, saying they include too much. To pay student athletes could be hugely expensive for colleges, especially because they would not only pay for each athlete’s degree and equipment, but also provide a salary and give bonuses revenue for tournaments. Moreover, college athletes should not be paid because there is not enough money, it takes away a student’s focus from schoolwork, and not every athlete is guaranteed a professional career after graduating; however it is argued that it they are already paid in a way.

Villanova University has twenty-two sports teams, and according to a study done by the National College Players Association, each athlete could make up to $500,000 a year. These teams vary in size and there could be dozens of athletes on just one team. To put this into perspective, Villanova could easily pay millions of extra dollars for each team just to fund their athletes. On top of that, Villanova’s financial assistance office reports that the school offers about 160 million dollars in scholarships and grants every year, excluding all loans. College budgets are tight, and any extra expenses, like paying athletes, may cause them to offer less scholarships. This would be not fair to hard-working students who cannot afford college and rely on scholarships and aid. Unfortunately, athletes focus more on performance than on academics, and scholarship money may go to