NSLC Sports Management Program
Do you love sports and want to learn more about careers in the field? The National Student Leadership Conference offers a summer program where you will learn more about the exciting, behind-the-scenes roles in finance, marketing and communications (among others).
“Join fellow athletes, sports fans, and promoters as you explore how to turn your passion for sports into a viable career off-the-field. Star athletes don’t gain fame and fortune accidentally and big-time sporting events don’t just happen. It’s extremely hard work, and you’ll see why as you get an insider’s view of the twists and turns of the sports world at the National Student Leadership Conference on Sports Management.”
How do I get started? Click here.
How do I expand this narrative arc? If your narrative arc includes sports, and you want to show that you’re more than just a great athlete or super fan, think about expanding and deepening both with one of these opportunities:
Spend part of your summer attending The New York Times Summer Academy - Sports, in which you’ll learn more about the intersection of sports and business
Alternatively, look at Georgetown’s Sports Management Academy.
Check out Wharton’s intensive Moneyball Academy summer program for teens interested in the world of sports business
Create public art on a local basketball court with Project Backboard
Help your school establish a better concussion protocol with Heads Up
Start a fundraiser for a sports team in a nearby low income community with Support Youth Sports
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT SUMMER PROGRAMS: College admissions officers are very adept at identifying “resume padders”: expensive, one-off programs paid for by your parents which do not mesh with your narrative arc. Therefore, make sure any summer program or course you consider falls into one (or more) of these four buckets:
Highly selective/competitive
Totally unique + linked to your narrative arc
Evidence of adulthood (long hours, multi-year commitment or simply hard work)
A jumping off point or expansion for an authentic narrative arc.
If none of the above apply, a program could still have value to you if it allows you to test a potential interest. However, if it does not end up being a jumping off point for further interests, then you may not want to mention it in your high school resume