Sophomore Student-Athletes\u27 Perceptions of Athletic Academic Support Services

Student-athletes\u27 are faced with a unique set of challenges to balance both athletic and academic responsibilities. Many colleges and universities have provided their student-athletes with support services to help assist them in achieving academic success. This study focused on sophomore student-athletes perceptions of their institution\u27s resources and their identity as a collegiate athlete. Chickering and Reisser\u27s (1993) theory of identity development was used to better understand the new experiences and development of student-athletes\u27 during their transition from freshman to sophomore year. The results of the present study indicated that without the athletic academic support services, student-athletes felt they would not do well in their courses and/or not graduate from the institution. The daily routine of going to class, practice, and working on homework requires that student-athletes\u27 have time management skills to earn high achievement in each aspect of their collegiate experience. Athletic academic support services help to monitor student-athletes progress towards degree and athletic eligibility. The services provided will vary based on resources to adequately staff and maintain the athletic academic center