Stressfully Yours

Stress is a dangerous part of life. It can shorten one’s life span as well as cause emotional and physical problems. College student athletes are one of the leading groups in feeling overly stressed. Although student athletes have more stressors, they are least likely to drop out of school.

College is a stressful time for students; in an ideal situation, one should spend three hours outside of class for every course they are in. At the University of Nevada, Reno, a typical student takes 12–15 credits (or 4–5 classes) per semester; therefore, one is expected to spend about 15 hours outside of class for studying. The recommended hours of sleep for a young adult are about 7–9. So, with 168 hours in a week it is expected for a student to spend 30 hours studying, 56 hours sleeping, 22 hours eating, 10 hours in class, 20 hours for personal hygiene and cleaning, and 30 hours for a personal life. Student athletes on the other hand must also fit into their schedule around 30 hours for practice and games.

Zack Souza, 4th string catcher in baseball for the University of Nevada, Reno, admits he feels stressed while juggling baseball and schoolwork.

“I constantly stress over emailing professors to make sure they know I will be absent so points will not be taken away from me, making sure I grab notes from someone, making sure I study with someone who is in class so I know what is happening, making sure I turn in work early or on time, and making sure I stay on pace with the class and not fall behind,” he said.

Student athletes feel more stressed than a typical student. The added stress of time management and classes is a huge factor of feeling more stressed. Sophia Blair, sophomore at the University of Nevada, Reno and cross-country runner is affected by the stress as well.

“The traveling sucks the energy out of me and it is hard to keep up in class. However, I knew what I was getting myself into this year since it is my second year,” she said.

The University of Nevada, Reno has a 54 percent overall graduation rate (collegemeasures.org), which records all student types. The University of Nevada, Reno’s athletic graduation rate is 79 percent, a 25 percent difference. Although student athletes must deal with time management, practice, grades, etc., they are more likely to succeed.

Souza strives to succeed in school and in baseball because he feels lucky to be on the team in the first place.

“Someone else would kill to be in my spot and I am thankful about that. I am thankful that I am living my dream. I never give up. I represent my team, my school, and people who play my sport,” he said.

Though sports are hard to play while in college, they teach valuable lessons for life. The University of Nevada, Reno has an exceptional athletic program and athletes.

“I keep moving forward. No two moments will ever be the same so I enjoy them because in a blink of an eye it can all be gone,” Souza said.