Abstract:
The objective of this study was to explore how student-athletes experience their dual careers (academics and netball) within a tertiary education setting. This was achieved by investigating their experiences through an ecological model that comprises of the student-athlete (individual) at its core, a Micro-system and a Macro-system. The five participants were purposively selected and required to be bona fide students. All five of the participants represented their country nationally, either at age group level or for the main national team. As a sample their academic year of study spanned from 1st year to honours or 4th year respectively. The participants were asked to map out their environment according to the model which then informed how they gave a written account (narrative) of their student-athlete experiences in relation to the past, present and future. A metaphor was then provided by the participants to describe their stories. These written accounts were then used to formulate the semi-structured interview questions that were used. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and then analyzed using a thematic analysis. The findings of the study provided a holistic and comprehensive understanding of how the participants experienced their dual careers within their milieus. It was found that the participants of this study all had difficulty with finding and maintaining balance. In addition to this the study uncovers the factors within their environment that add to or detract from balance. Among the key findings of this study was that all of the participants were aware of and affected by matters related to finances, whether it be the expectations around bursaries and the financial strain placed on parents and family members should these expectations fail to be met. The participants felt their options for free and safe expression of their concerns was limited and they desired a safe space to do so. Despite these challenges another key finding showed that there was an inherent belief that it is possible to succeed as a student-athlete, but success was also largely dependent on the support from family and the ability to function autonomously between the academic and sporting spheres.
