If NCAA student athletes were paid for play, a sports student could take fewer per semester because they would have the money to stay in college longer and pay for more classes later on in the future. Taking fewer classes while in season would help a lot; the student-athlete would be able to focus more on classes and the sport. Although this sounds desirable, signing up for less classes delays one's time in college. This can affect a student's career path if they delay taking classes all for the love of his/her sport. NCAA student-athletes should be paid because they sacrifice so much time for their school and sport. .
The NCAA generates around eleven billion dollars a year, and most of this profit is given to the head coaches, (The NCAA Budget: Where the Money Goes). At Lindenwood we have over twenty different NCAA sports; imagine the profit our school makes just from these different sports. With no doubt some of the money should go to the coaches and the athletic department that keeps our sports successful, but why not also pay the student-athletes? The majority of the athletes here are not on full rides and even if some players are there are still other essences they have to cover: books, food, housing, and personal needs. Most of a student-athlete's time is taken by their sport and school work making no time to get a job. With a job most of the athletes will have money to spend on books and food, meaning they would not have to rely on their parents or any loans. Also, a good amount of college athletes do not come from a wealthy background; eight-six percent of student athletes come from poverty and very low-income families. Half of the student-athletes play a sport because it is the only way of getting a degree in college, and for the other half it is their way into the professional leagues, (Should College Athletes Be Paid?). Giving NCAA athletes a salary would be a positive effect on their lives because they would be working for the money they would need to pay for personal expenses or any extra college needs.
