Is college coaching as a career worth it?

follow your passion and you won't have to ask that question......if you have to ask it, it probaby is not worth it.

Does being a decorated runner help the chances of an individual getting a good coaching gig? At what time range would it become a factor?

bump

RuKiddingMe! wrote:

if you have to ask it, it probaby is not worth it.

this

I have been coaching collegiately for 32 years. I chose long ago to devote myself to this and this only, because it's what I love to do and I know it's what I am here for, and I wanted to put all of myself into it. because of this I chose to remain unmarried and without kids because the kids I coach, I consider to be "my" kids and, to some extent, my family. I realize this is not the case with all coaches, some find that balance between marriage, having a "life" outside of there job, having children, and everything else, but I am not the personality to be able to evenly split myself like that. Do I regret it? Sometimes I wonder what might've been, but I don't regret it. This is what I love to do, and while there are negatives, every now and then you find one of those kids that has "it" and will do anything for you and there team and sets a great example and you can just tell that they eat up everything that you say and want nothing more than to get better and better as athletes and people. And that makes the less appealing aspects worth it. To me anyway. It's lonely at times in a weird way, feeling like you are responsible for everyone, sometimes feeling like you have no help, and sometimes being awake at all hours worrying about this or that, but I don't think I'd have had it any other way. Thats my two cent's worth.

Thanks a lot "Oldvet". If you don't mind me asking, have you always coached at the same level in college, have you had to move much, or coach multiple events, etc. Did you start coaching at the college level right out of undergrad or what route did you take? Thanks for your input!

bump

I was hoping to take this career route, but a few things kept me away.

1) The nomadic lifestyle. You will have to take small gigs and move around a lot an assistant coach, grad assit, etc..

2) That means moving your wife. In my situation my wife makes really good money. I can't pack her off to Podunk U for a $50,000 coaching gig and have her give up six figures.

3) Breaking into the biz w/o a big name and good times appears to be quite difficult.

4) It helps to be a woman or minority

5) With budget cuts and title IX, Men's XC and Track appears to be a dying sport collegiately.

6) I dont see many folks that have a gig giving it up. Because people that do this have a PASSION for it, they are lifers.

.

used to coach for 11 years at the d1 then d2 levels. i loved the COACHING aspects and had some great girls and guys who were a joy to coach. unfotunately it seemed my time working w/ the truly motivated ones was always inhibited by all the other junk (drama, chasing recruits, budget cuts, all sorts of things). got out of it, now i coach a small group of up and coming elite men and women. tough choice then, but best one i ever made.

i should add that i don't have two nickles to rub together, but it's well worth my time.

[quote]wouldacoulda wrote:

2) That means moving your wife. In my situation my wife makes really good money. I can't pack her off to Podunk U for a $50,000 coaching gig and have her give up six figures.

Just so you are clear as to where you would start, 50k would be after a few years at a small/mid major D-I making 25-32k. If you stood out-could get athletes to national meets/produce points/All Americans AND you interviewed well/sold the hell out of yourself, you might make it to a "bigger" program and move up to the 45-55k range. There, if you kept your job long enough/ showed you were worth keeping around, you would slowly build up cost of living increases till you were a 60-70k earner. By this time, you would have been in it 10-15 years, and it would be time for you to start looking to land a head coaching gig. IF you were very accomplished/networked the right way by this time, you MIGHT get a head coaching job at a "major" and might be in the 90-100k pay range, if not, you might still land at a mid major, which would be a lateral move, i.e. pay might be the same/slightly more/ less, but you would be in charge-finally! The flipside is, you might also find yourself as a lifetime assistant- and yes they are out there, they just seem to never land a head coaching job-even though after awhile they will get desperate and apply/interview in any division. Just my perspective, but I am out of the game now, so take it as you will.

I went straight into a head coach position at a very small naia school starting out. I had been a volunteer coach there for three years while i was finishing my degree and the head coach retired the year i graduated and let me take over. Got lucky there I guess. since then i moved to coach a d1 team that was cut a few years into my tenure there due to budget issues, then i went back to naia. like another poster said it's a "nomadic" lifestyle, although i was fortunate that the schools i coached at were all fairly close to each other state-wise. since i wasn't married i didn't have to many ties holding me to the places i was in outside of the institution i was working at.

bump

interesting perspectives on this thraed

Probably one of the things that a lot of people don't understand is that the actual "coaching" is less then 25% of the job at the college level. You spend a lot of your time dealing with administrative issues like NCAA compliance, insurance/health-related issues/ recruiting, budgets, planning travel, and putting out in-house fires. Plus every situation is different depending on the kind of school you work for, the staff, the level of competition, facilities, etc.

But one thing is for sure, you will generally have to start at the bottom either as a volunteer or a GA. You will have to scrape by financially and in the process learn a lot of the in's and out's of the college system, make connections, etc. and be willing to go anywhere there is an opportunity to get your foot in the door. You really have to want to pursue it because you will deal with stuff you never imagined especially if you coach both genders at the same time.

However, there are a lot of very gratifying moments along the way, especially when you see a young person grow in front of your eyes over 4-5 years and go on to contribute to society. Sure, just like anything there are pros and cons, but in life it comes down to what you are willing to sacrifice. You give up some things to gain others.

You will probably not make much money along the way and you really need to marry someone who is like-minded in regards to understanding what you do for a vocation and why you do it, because you won't keep normal hours and there will be times when it seems crazy to put up with some things.

But if you really want to pursue it, then it can be a good vocation. Just depends what you feel called to and what you are you passionate about pursuing.

It's worth it if you have a passion for it. You have to be willing to make very little money at first. It's important to network. The more people you know the better chance you have at getting an interview with a school. Most job openings will have 50 plus applicants so you have to have more than a solid resume. Dont be afraid to get out there and talk to people. I know in my situation I work 10-12 hours a day 5 days a week not counting traveling and meets and love every minute of it.

runner for a burned out coach wrote:

OP assuming that your

"you're"

a college coach now, if you have to ask

"ask,"

you probably dont

"don't"

have passion for it. It probably shows and your athletes are probably miserable running for you. You should quit before you make them all hate running

runner for a burned out coach wrote:

And beleive

"believe"

me

"me,"

they will, it

"will. It"

rubs off.