ATHLETE CAREER DEVELOPMENT
STUDENT-ATHLETE CAREER FORUM
One of the most important aspects of student-athlete development at the collegiate level is career development & exploration. The goal is to always prepare student-athletes for what comes after they retire from the playing field.
In my position at Wichita State Athletics, I had the opportunity to co-lead and organize the Fall 2019 Student-Athlete Exclusive Career Forum. By using on-campus department resources and connections, we were created an excellent experience for student-athletes to connect with local & international employers.
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Student-athletes were able to visit different stations to learn about career-development-related topics including a Resume Workshop, Mock Interview Practice with employers, Q & A sessions on Job and Interview Searching, Graduate School Information Sessions, and more!
Video Production by Marcus Wright, Digital Media Coordinator, Wichita State Athletics
Student-Athletes had the opportunity to have a professional headshot taken by a photographer for their LinkedIn profile.
Below is a tweet summarizing the guest employers that students were able to connect with during the Fall 2019 Student-Athlete Career Forum.
Each student-athlete received a pad-folio for the evening packed with a notepad, suggested questions and conversation starters for employers, and a 'Thank You" notecard to write to an employer for attending the event and helping with their career development growth.
ATHLETE CAREER EXPLORATION & INTEREST MENTORING
Through my various experiences working with student-athletes, I have developed a proficient skillset in mentorship. At Wichita State, I had the responsibility to conduct yearly 'Career Meetings' with student-athletes across different sports teams. Because each student-athlete is starting at a different place when it comes to their career development, I recognized that it was important that I get to know the athlete from all aspects of their identity. ​This can be a challenge for many college athletes being that often their perceived personal identity stops at the sport that they have dedicated a majority of their time to. I really enjoyed being able to walk through different opportunities with them that highlight unique parts of their identity and interests. Eventually, this would allow room to introduce student-athletes to career paths and internship suggestions that they otherwise may not have considered.
Taking small pockets of time that a student-athlete has leftover from their 24 hours in a day, and using that to work in these career development opportunities is extremely important. We acknowledge the unique time constraint that a student-athlete has, but we don't let that be a roadblock to adding resume builders to their 'bag of experiences'. The most important skills that I have learned while mentoring student-athletes are working with a set of circumstances and time constraints, being creative with available opportunities, and piecing the puzzle together to maximize the experience of each individual.
Video Production by Marcus Wright, Digital Media Coordinator, Wichita State Athletics