preview

Should College Athletes Be Paid Essay

Decent Essays

Why College Athletes Should Not Be Paid Many believe that college athletes should not be paid. The main debate against compensating college athletes is that they are at the university for educational purposes and playing sports is a benefit. The NCAA states, “Student-athletes are students first and athletes second. They are not university employees who are paid for their labor” (McCauley 10). Universities get all the financial benefits of the money earned from sports played from things such as team jerseys, sports passes and tickets, etc. Many argue that it is only fair to give a portion of the profit to the players that earned the money. It is very important when arguing for or against paying college athletes to not take into fairness, but to hold …show more content…

These amateurs sign a contract forbidding them from receiving any kind of monetary compensation as a college athlete. In short words, they cannot receive any direct funds or sponsorships. The NCAA believes that through scholarships, grants, and financial aid, college athletes are more than able to cover the costs of their tuition, living/traveling expenses (Green 6). Also, playing sports in college leads to future opportunities upon graduation. Essentially, college athletes are paid through scholarships and promotions and in return they represent their school through with their athletic talent. According to Institute for College Access & Success, in the state of Pennsylvania, 71 percent of students leave a public four-year institution or private non-profit four-year institution in debt. The average debt is $32,528 (McCauley 6). That is an enormous burden for kids who may, or may not have a job awaiting them upon graduation. When you look at it that way, plenty of college students would be happy to play a sport for four years if it meant they did not have to take on that financial hardship (McCauley

Get Access