Best business careers for student athletes

Being a student athlete in college teaches young adults a number of valuable life skills, including discipline, time management, teamwork and so much more. These are all skills that go on to serve student athletes far after their collegiate careers. Here are some of the best business careers for student athletes to pursue.

Business Consultants

As an athlete you are constantly challenged to grow, adapt and improve. You become used to playing new competitors each week when you are in season, and you have to analyze new scenarios to figure out how to triumph. For this reason, many student athletes thrive as business consultants. They work with clients and businesses to take a look at problems and issues in their companies, and then help provide strategic solutions for growth. Student athletes are natural problem solvers, so business consulting is a great career path for them.

Sales Representative

Through playing a sport in college, student athletes learn to be resilient; they learn not to give up when presented with challenges. For this reason, many student athletes find themselves naturally drawn to the world of sales, where they can use their skills to help a company or independent organization grow their customer base and win business. The thrill of winning a new deal is similar to the thrill of winning a game, a match or a race, and many student athletes find that they enjoy this career path for that reason.

Financial Advisor

Another great job for student athletes is the role of Financial Advisor. Similar to a Sales Representative, Financial Advisors may be responsible for acquiring new clients, often through cold calling, which requires major resilience, as well as a competitive spirit. Rejection is always a tough obstacle, but the natural aptitudes of student athletes help them to persevere and succeed in this type of career. Especially when they are put up against peers and colleagues who may not have the same level of conviction and perseverance, former student athletes tend to fare very well in the financial sphere.

Supply Chain Manager

Many sports, such as football, basketball and lacrosse require a high-level understanding of logistics, and the skill of being able to adapt systems as they develop. For this reason, many student athletes in these sports and other do very well in the logistics field. A very popular job in the field is the job of Supply Chain Manager. Supply Chain Managers are responsible for communicating, transporting, planning, and managing inventory, which are all job duties that complement the natural skillset of many student athletes. This is also becoming a very popular post-grad field of study, so there is an opportunity for student athletes to continue their education in this field to build a solid career.

As you can see, there are a number of business careers available to student athletes, as well as those who possess some of the major skills that student athletes hone during their time in school. Student athletes can use their natural and gained skillsets to thrive in the workplace and beyond.