Sports Related Career Question

[Silky Smooth]

Ive been thinking about what type of career i would like to be in. I said i love sports(mostly basketball) so something with sports would be great. Then i said maybe sports management but im not really familiar with it. Also the chances i can get to the NBA and be a GM of a team is very slim. Then i thought of being a sports writer but my family told me money wise its not a great idea so i said ok i will make it my minor in college. Im really stuck on this. I would like it if some of my fellow posters would help me out. Thanks.

 

[Lee]

Here is always a refreshing and rewarding sports career.

 

[BlueSeats626]

Working in Public or Media Relations for a professional sports team would be pretty cool.

 

[Rimage]

You can always break into it with sales and PR...those are mostly the jobs that are readily available. I tried to get into the production aspect. It is hard. Not a whole lot jobs and they don't really open up and there are a lot of qualified people who apply to them.

Sports therapy is another area you could try if you just want to be about sports.

 

[crazedcav333]

1. If you love sports journalism than stick with it. It's a tough, competitive, and non-lucrative position but if that's what you love to do - give it a try. I've been in the lower end of it for some time - granted, no HS or college degree makes it a wee bit difficult to move up. However you can begin building your resume asap.

Try to find a local paper, maybe one that focuses on local colleges or high schools - one that is issued weekly would be a VERY good decision. Less stress, more time to learn how to WRITE instead of just going on instincts, you have more leeway, etc. You won't make really any money doing this, but if you can find a weekly paper that only requires an article or maybe two a week, a second job is doable. Also note the paper you write for doesn't always mean you're better/worse than other papers - you can read stuff from the ABJ or even the Plain Dealer, and I work with guys who routinely write better stuff than some of these higher end people.

The other way would be to start writing for a site like this, writing game recaps, previews, or opinionated columns.

All this to build your resume - some colleges could accept a portfolio for a scholarship and some can't - a buddy of mine got 20,000 dollars for an art scholarship (Now granted he's quite gifted, that is WAY out of the league to shoot for), so I'm guessing you could, but that depends on the school. So the resume would be for after getting a Journalism degree, you'd be able to show that you had articles published in a paper, and/or had articles "published" online. Save them all, put them into book format.

You said you talked with your parents. Now some people just can't afford it because of competition, not that many good spots, and now with the financial crisis who knows, but if you think you would love to pursue sports journalism - the idea that not only could someone get paid to do something they truly love, but THAT'S how their make a living - is practically a joke in my eyes.

2. What about sports medicine or a personal trainer? Most schools have Athletic Training as a major (I think...) so that's definitely an option.

 

[Silky Smooth]

1. If you love sports journalism than stick with it. It's a tough, competitive, and non-lucrative position but if that's what you love to do - give it a try. I've been in the lower end of it for some time - granted, no HS or college degree makes it a wee bit difficult to move up. However you can begin building your resume asap.

Try to find a local paper, maybe one that focuses on local colleges or high schools - one that is issued weekly would be a VERY good decision. Less stress, more time to learn how to WRITE instead of just going on instincts, you have more leeway, etc. You won't make really any money doing this, but if you can find a weekly paper that only requires an article or maybe two a week, a second job is doable. Also note the paper you write for doesn't always mean you're better/worse than other papers - you can read stuff from the ABJ or even the Plain Dealer, and I work with guys who routinely write better stuff than some of these higher end people.

The other way would be to start writing for a site like this, writing game recaps, previews, or opinionated columns.

All this to build your resume - some colleges could accept a portfolio for a scholarship and some can't - a buddy of mine got 20,000 dollars for an art scholarship (Now granted he's quite gifted, that is WAY out of the league to shoot for), so I'm guessing you could, but that depends on the school. So the resume would be for after getting a Journalism degree, you'd be able to show that you had articles published in a paper, and/or had articles "published" online. Save them all, put them into book format.

You said you talked with your parents. Now some people just can't afford it because of competition, not that many good spots, and now with the financial crisis who knows, but if you think you would love to pursue sports journalism - the idea that not only could someone get paid to do something they truly love, but THAT'S how their make a living - is practically a joke in my eyes.

2. What about sports medicine or a personal trainer? Most schools have Athletic Training as a major (I think...) so that's definitely an option.

Im going to write some previews for the cavs this year on here. That should help right? Im just trying to find out as much as i can. Keep the info coming. Please and thank you.

 

[-Akronite-]

Im going to write some previews for the cavs this year on here. That should help right? Im just trying to find out as much as i can. Keep the info coming. Please and thank you.

Certainly can't hurt... how old are you?

If you are interested in writing as a whole you can try to wedge yourself into the crowd as a journalist and hopefully gain a sports niche.

If it's basically anything sports related there are lots of jobs outside of an NBA GM to be filled in sports management.

Being 16, I don't have a lot of advice, just very general knowledge.

 

[Silky Smooth]

Certainly can't hurt... how old are you?

If you are interested in writing as a whole you can try to wedge yourself into the crowd as a journalist and hopefully gain a sports niche.

If it's basically anything sports related there are lots of jobs outside of an NBA GM to be filled in sports management.

Being 16, I don't have a lot of advice, just very general knowledge.

Im 17 turning 18 in Nov. Im in my senior year in high school. This is why im trying to get some help and more info on this. All i know is i love basketball and would really love to have a job basketball related that paid really good.

 

[Silky Smooth]

Actually i wonder if Wine & Gold would be able to help.

 

[crazedcav333]

Anything helps, if you could inject some tidbits, like "Keys to the game," or stuff like that, that would be great. Also try to write some game recaps or columns, or both to try to see what you like to do more.

Basically anything you post online as an article (game previews could count, that's an abstract way and that would be good to have a variety), save it, print it out, you can show a portfolio to either an admissions directer or after college to give you some more credibility/experience. Also note the site - this, dawgbones.com, and theclevelandfan.com (other sites I write) get much more run than my own newspapers website. So noting the traffic the article gets is a great selling point.

Now if you do live in Cleveland, you probably will have a harder time finding a smaller newspaper, as I live in Suburbia paradise with newspapers everywhere you look. If basketball is the one true sport you could write about, the time is now because High School basketball starts up pretty soon (Go Bulldogs!), so I'd look around. If you're a 3 or more sport guy, you'll have the opportunity to do that until the minute you head to college.

Does your school have a newspaper? That's always the thing you'd like on a resume. I'm not sure if most schools do this, but if you have a knack for editing, some schools give you credit for writing for the newspaper twice, once as a writer and once as an editor.

Also one thing I forgot - I love sports journalism and everything it offers, but for anyone interested in majoring in journalism, I would highly recommend a back up plan. There aren't many great spots and with the financial mess who knows.

 

[crazedcav333]

Senior year - not much time eh? One thing that might help would be to write something for the Cavs, and have an English teacher critique it for you.

Ok so it's only basketball...definitely try to find a small high school paper and ask if they'd like some help with coverage on girls or boys basketball - just a game recap and an interview.

By the way have you looked into any schools? Obviously OU and Kent are the front runners, but any others?

 

[Mac]

If you major in sports management in college, that degree is going to lead you to like running a gym or doing sports marketing. I had that as my dual major, but I dropped it because it is too narrow. I have had internship offers from the Aeros and the Indians, but they do not pay. The Cavs and Browns are a little tougher because there are thousands of people applying for the limited spots..gotta know somebody really.

 

[KingSimba]

im a freshaman right now and i wanna get a job as a sports journalist as well. i just want a job that i will enjoy im not looking for the money although i may have to but anyways jouranlism is something i have always liked. but alot of you are saying that just majoring in that in college is not good. what else would be good to do in college thats sports related

 

[GilbertForPres]

I know that this is really unlikely, but what about being a player agent. Does anyone know what to do for that?

 

[The Oi]

You can always break into it with sales and PR

Don't know much about the PR aspect but +1 on the sales part. I can't tell you how amazing sales is for networking.

Just a matter of whether you'd be at all interested in sales. If you are, I'd be happy to offer you advice on how to use it to network but otherwise...these guys may offer better advice.