Good grades= disadvantage?

Insisting on sound academic standards has it's disadvantages in NCAA Div. 1 football. Notre Dame for example is a decent football team, but not a really good one. Perhaps expecting superior athletic preformance AND good grades is too much to ask...

Originally posted by bill718
Insisting on sound academic standards has it's disadvantages in NCAA Div. 1 football. Notre Dame for example is a decent football team, but not a really good one. Perhaps expecting superior athletic preformance AND good grades is too much to ask...

One of the main reasons for college is to prepare people for their chosen profession. One of the professions that someone might choose is to be a professional athlete.

If someone wants to be an engineer, most of his classes and time will be focused on that. Why shouldn't people who want to be a professional athlete be able to focus most or all of their time on that? We don't insist that students in the engineering program take classes involving sports or to pass tests of physical fitness. Why should athletes have to take classes and pass tests in stuff that doesn't relate to their chosen profession?

Originally posted by Melanerpes
One of the main reasons for college is to prepare people for their chosen profession. One of the professions that someone might choose is to be a professional athlete.

If someone wants to be an engineer, most of his classes and time will be focused on that. Why shouldn't people who want to be a professional athlete be able to focus most or all of their ...[text shortened]... have to take classes and pass tests in stuff that doesn't relate to their chosen profession?

For one thing, the vast, vast majority of them will not be able to earn a living playing professional sports. There simply aren't enough such jobs out there to accommodate more than a tiny fraction of them.

Originally posted by sh76
For one thing, the vast, vast majority of them will not be able to earn a living playing professional sports. There simply aren't enough such jobs out there to accommodate more than a tiny fraction of them.

True -- but it should be their choice to pursue whatever profession they wish. They are adults. Similarly, students can choose to take engineering classes even though they're unlikely to ever be successful in that field.

The problem is when these athletes end up being required to take a lot of classes in subjects that they have no interest in. Unsurprisingly, they often don't do well in these classes - if they bother to attend class at all. It makes both them and the college look bad.

Originally posted by Melanerpes
True -- but it should be their choice to pursue whatever profession they wish. They are adults. Similarly, students can choose to take engineering classes even though they're unlikely to ever be successful in that field.

The problem is when these athletes end up being required to take a lot of classes in subjects that they have no interest in. Unsurpri ...[text shortened]... classes - if they bother to attend class at all. It makes both them and the college look bad.

Most majors contain a fair number of courses that have nothing to do with your field. My brother was a computer engineering major but he had to take a course in "Pluralism and Diversity." He routinely got into fights with the "professor" who, among other things, told the class that the Rodney King riots were justified, and so he got a C in the class even though he got an A- or better in every other class.

Taking courses you don't want to take is part of going to college. If the athletes don't like it, they can turn pro after high school.

Originally posted by sh76
Most majors contain a fair number of courses that have nothing to do with your field. My brother was a computer engineering major but he had to take a course in "Pluralism and Diversity." He routinely got into fights with the "professor" who, among other things, told the class that the Rodney King riots were justified, and so he got a C in the class even though ...[text shortened]... t of going to college. If the athletes don't like it, they can turn pro after high school.

As for athletes choosing to turn pro out of HS, I am all for the idea. The NBA has a stupid policy now that doesn't allow that. The NBA and NFL should develop minor league systems to develop their players like baseball and hockey do. But instead they basically use the colleges as their minor league system. No one ever requires minor league baseball players to attend politically correct classes.

As far as that "Pluralism and Diversity" class. I could tell just by the name of the course that it would be a waste of time. Colleges should eliminate these "required courses" that everyone has to take. Who wants to pay expensive tuition to take classes that are mostly PC hokum.