Sports Management Major

<p>And there's the UMass spam.</p>

<p>How is that spam A2? UMass has a top SM program...</p>

<p>That's true, and it's already been mentioned in this thread. The post was written like one a website that advertises it's program would do so. Who else would speak about Princeton Review's Student satisfaction ratings in talking about a business school and it's quality? </p>

<p>The post only informs us about UMass from a poster who only speaks about UMass, and shows no information or facts about why UMass is good in the program, and brings forward no points that haven't already been stated. It's just worthless spam.</p>

<p>A2--
That is one of the departments with which I work, so am very familiar with it. It is HIGHLY competitive. We will only enroll approx 80 students this fall and they are all outstanding. I know because I have seen their application files. I also field questions from prospective students, and we draw from an international base ... many are referred to us from professionals in the field. This is not spam ... just talk with folks who work in the field and my opinion will be verified (in fact, it has already been verified by other posters). If you look at my postings, you will know I am here on my own time and do not uniformly promote UMass. However, this is a top notch program and it deserves a good word from someone familiar with the program. Should I not share what I know simply because I work at a given institution?</p>

<p>As for jobs after graduation, the best students sometimes have difficulty transitioning from the top of the academic "heap" to entry-level positions. However, the reality is that, for some professions in particular, starting salary is not the best part of the job ... but doing what you love offsets that financial factor ... until you can work your way up in the profession.</p>

<p>So were you the one who rejected me? Gee, thanks!</p>

<p>to the OP
S is a SM major just finished with his first year at University of South Carolina.He was guided to apply there by a professor at U Miami (who have the major) the prof listed the top 4 as UMass,U S. Carolina,U Oregon and U Central Florida.
S applied to and was accepted directly into the major at U Michigan (yes you can do it with Honors) UMass (yes again with Honors) UFlorida (with Honors)
UMiami (with Honors) and USC(with Honors and a huge scholarship).All schools gave him scholarships,based on his stats and NMF status.He didnt apply to Oregon b/c he felt it was just too far away,but it seems like an outstanding program (we're on the east coast).
He has loved his first year and had great experiences and great teachers.He worked at a University Sports Business conference,took classes with Industry professionals and just finished a 2 week May semester course called Professional Stadium Management,where they travelled up and down the East Coast to major and minor league stadiums for games and conferences.He is active in the department Sports Management majors club and in the program board at the University that brings in speakers,bands,comics,etc. where he hopes to get experience booking acts and negotiating contracts.During last summer and this,he works for a local minor league baseball team ,in the ticket office.He got that job on his own during his senior year in HS.Before that,he worked for a local roler hockey rink as a scorekeeper.
Yes, he is aware that starting salaries are very low and you work long hard hours for that low pay.But the arc of promotions is fast and theres lots of vertical movement IF you can tough out the initial phase of low pay.And theres so many ways to work the major,working a sports team is not the only way.S is getting interested in the venue/event side of the business.
When you look for a program,make sure it includes business courses,or make sure you minor in business.S has to take 2 terms of accounting,computer business classes,economics,marketing,management,calculus,etc.His program requires a practicum after the junior year (summer) and an Internship during the senior year.Make sure its a program that emphasizes practical experience,and not just working for the sports teams on campus.
If you want more info on his program,or what we learned when applying,just PM me.
A2Wolves and S went through the process at the same time and both know ALOT!!
Hope you had a good year A2.</p>

<p>U Michigan (with Honors) UMass (with Honors) UFlorida (with Honors)</p>

<p>wow.....What I would give to have been in that situation....I hope he likes it at SCar, but giving up UMass, Mich and UF? Ouchies.</p>

<p>giving up UF was no problem,their program doesnt even compare,though their Honors program is top notch.UMass, he loved the dept on the visit,UMich was tough to give up,but he leaned towards the warm weather and lack of recc of the Mich program by the Miami professor .UMass lost out due to lack of big time sports besides hockey, and the scholarship USC offered him along with the perks of the Honors program there(if you want to check it out,google McNair scholarship at U of South Carolina)..also, you can see UMass's physical facilities have suffered compared to other state University flagships,I guess due to lack of state funding( although the depts facilities in the school of Business were top notch).</p>

<p>Hey everybody.<br>
I'm a freshman at the University of Nebraska Lincoln. I am currently a buisness finance major with a minor in management. I have recently started looking into the sports management field and realized that UNL does not offer a SM undergrad degree. After reading this thread though, it seems like it might be a better idea to get a UG degree is business administration/management to keep my options open but still be able to pursue a career in sports. Are there SM graduate programs? What do you think about majoring in business as a UG and applying for an SM graduate program? This thread has been very helpful and if anyone has any more info on SM i would love to hear from you via pm.<br>
Thanks,
Drew</p>

<p>I know San Diego State has an MBA program in Sports Management. </p>

<p><a href="http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/%7Ecba/sports/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~cba/sports/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>There are very few good MBA programs in sports management. I remember reading 3 different articles that had these 5 programs mentioned as the top 5 in the field, as they offered an MBA (not a MS) and had at least 15 credits in sport-oriented courses.</p>

<ul>
<li>Oregon</li>
<li>UMass</li>
<li>Ohio University (not Ohio State)</li>
<li>U Central Florida</li>
<li>Arizona State U</li>
</ul>

<p>These are the 5 I would recommend to anyone looking into grad schools for Sport Management</p>

<p>hey guys I am new to the site sorry for bringing back up a really old thread I found it on google when I searched Sports Management. I am starting to look at schools and I want to major in Sports Management. Are schools like Oregon, and UMass hard to get into out of state because I really like those schools from what I have read.</p>

<p>Advice from other sports management majors would be great to thanks.</p>

<p>All I know is that U of Oregon is not super hard to get into OOS, since quite a few CA students choose to go there. I've heard it jokingly (but affectionately) referred to as "UC-Eugene."</p>

<p>As a sports management major, you'll likely have unpaid internships. Could make it hard to afford OOS tuition or "networking events" during the school year.</p>

<p>The North American Society of Sports Management (NASSM) maintains a list of sports management programs and those that meet their standards. Sport</a> Management Programs: United States | North American Society for Sport Management</p>

<p>thanks guys and if I want to be a sports management major, should I look at bigger universities and state schools or does it not matter? my parents want me to look at medium sized schools nothing too big and I want to go to a sort of bigger university just because it seems like it looks better on your transcript getting a Sports Management degree at a bigger school idk correct me if I'm wrong.</p>

<p>anyone here a former or majors in Sports Management?</p>

<p>I'm only familiar with the major because it was a backup major. Most programs seem to put great importance on experiential learning. I would think it's about taking advantage of opportunities, not the name on your degree.</p>

<p>I don't understand what you meant there lol.</p>

<p>What schools should you look at?</p>

<p>Sports is ultimately a networking industry, it's who you know not the degree of the GPA that will land you a job. Because of this, the best schools to go to are NOT the one's that have the most prestige (the big schools you're talking about) rather the one's that have the largest alumni networks. UMass and Ohio are the two oldest programs and have the most graduates in the field. When looking at schools, ask how long they've been in existence, try and get placement statistics, talk to students about their job offers, etc.</p>

<p>About the major</p>

<p>Sports a difficult and frustrating industry. It's very hard to break in because essentially anyone can learn and do the work with any degree. Getting a degree in sports management isn't making you skilled, as very few programs are actually doing work that sports organizations do, rather most of the learning is theory-based.</p>

<p>If you think that Sports Management is the degree to become a scout for the NY Knicks, it's not. Rather it's a fun undergraduate major to do because sports appeal to so many and your material is the same as many business students. You'll see this in programs that have business minors, certificates, and dual-majors/degrees.</p>

<p>I find faults with the major because I don't think the material being taught is relevant to the work in the field, I don't think the people teaching the material are high quality rather just athletic department retreads, and sports teams don't see any value to a sports management degree because there is no specific skill set assigned to the degree that something like a Journalism or Accounting degree provides.</p>

<p>About the jobs</p>

<p>Most (scratch that, all of 'em) internships are un-paid, it's simple supply and demand. All jobs are seen as desirable, and there are tons of those who want them, so they don't need to pay people to work for them. You HAVE to get internship/volunteer experience if you ever want to work in the industry, otherwise you will never develop connections that will lead you to jobs. There is no entry-level, all positions want experience and you get that through volunteering/internships.</p>

<p>Most jobs (about 90% with pro sports teams) are in sales, where you work based on commission. Many learn after a few weeks/months on the job that it isn't the industry for them and quickly exit, because if you can't produce revenue for a club you won't get hired. Tons of SM programs place students in business rather than sports because that's where the jobs and the pay are. </p>

<p>Another thing I am finding ever so frequent with internships/jobs is that local candidates are STRONGLY preferred. Organizations don't even look at your application sometimes if your address is not local. Because of this, universities that aren't near professional sports teams and don't have connections with them sometimes may not be in the best interest. Florida State students (who have an accredited SM program at all levels) will have a much more difficult time getting internships than Miami students students because of location. Rice is starting a good program in Houston because of proximity to the Houston teams.</p>

<p>A good example of this is looking at the placement of the Arizona State MBA in Sports Business program. The MBA is a desirable degree for the industry, and ASU has arguably the best program. In 2006, they had 9 graduates, and the starting salaries were a median of $70,000. 5 of the 9 took jobs outside of sports. The 4 that took jobs in sports weren't for glamorous organizations, rather at the Central Hockey League, Athlete's Performance, the Harlem Globetrotters, and the University of Maryland.</p>

<p>Would I recommend this major?</p>

<p>I'm not sure. I am a Sports Management major, I think it's fun that when I do my homework I am doing business work related to sports. I like going to class with like-minded individuals who share the same interests. </p>

<p>However, I don't like the quality of my professors, most are doctoral students who are more concerned with their dissertation than teaching us useful skills. I don't like the curriculum, the material is in no way affiliated with work you do with a sports team. Also my classmates are not those who are driven and focused on academics.</p>

<p>Job placement is TOUGH, it's all networking and most of the positions are in sales. It really isn't fun working in sales, cold-calling clients and trying to get them to buy stuff, dealing with "no" everyday. Working for a sports team doesn't make it much better.</p>

<p>thanks a lot that helped a lot, couple more questions, what school do you go to for SM and what are you doing now? I am pursuing sports management because I love sports, and I just am a huge sports nut in general, I have been my whole life, I just know a lot about sports and want to pursue a career in sports not related to playing.</p>

<p>I go to Indiana University and will be graduating in December.</p>

<p>If you are big on sports, realize that much of your work will be business-related, not much to do with sports. You don't make any personnel decisions, you don't have much to do with the team at all, rather the team is your product and you work on trying to sell it.</p>

<p>There's other departments, Media Relations, Compliance, Marketing, Academics, Video, Operations, Development, Facilities, Equipment, but if you want to work in PRO sports, all of the jobs are in Sales.</p>