By: Miani Stafford
The majority of our college students are learning how to manage money and their studies at the same time. For student-athletes, they must learn this skill quicker than others, as they are receiving the benefits and responsibilities of their athletic scholarship. Through NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness), brand sponsors, civic engagement and heightened expectations, being a student-athlete can be mentally and physically taxing.
Studies suggest that athletes with more financial knowledge are more confident with money management and decision-making. Still, Rubin tells us that they tend to have less knowledge than non-athlete students due to the lack of resources within their department that build upon their working knowledge. Like refunds or tax returns, receiving any kind of large, lump sum of money can be overwhelming and requires responsibility, knowledge of budgeting, and discipline for future financial stability. Many times, these athletes are seeing more cash flow than ever before and given little resources to understand the best ways to manage it. Financial literacy is a major topic within this area of students and must be given more light.
I spoke with Kyra Wood, a Division 1 athlete on the Syracuse University Women’s Basketball Team, and Anwar Sparrow, a Division 1 athlete on the Syracuse University Men’s Football Team, to discuss their take on financial literacy as a student-athlete.