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Student athlete vs assistant coach

The differences between student athletes and assistant coaches can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a student athlete and an assistant coach. Additionally, a student athlete has an average salary of $45,705, which is higher than the $43,838 average annual salary of an assistant coach.

The top three skills for a student athlete include NCAA, teamwork and GPA. The most important skills for an assistant coach are CPR, NCAA, and player development.

Student athlete vs assistant coach overview

Student AthleteAssistant Coach
Yearly salary$45,705$43,838
Hourly rate$21.97$21.08
Growth rate20%20%
Number of jobs9,76214,724
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 84%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age3636
Years of experience66

What does a student athlete do?

A student-athlete competes in various sporting events to represent a school or institution. Most student-athletes are under scholarships and receive an allowance, either from the school or a particular organization. Their responsibility primarily revolves around attending rigorous training and practices, abiding by the university's policies, displaying good sportsmanship, all while maintaining a standard academic grade. Moreover, a student-athlete may also participate in various workshops, represent the school in public gatherings, and become a professional athlete after graduation.

What does an assistant coach do?

An assistant coach's role is to provide administrative and organizational support to a coach and team of athletes. Most of the tasks will depend upon the coach's directions. However, their responsibilities primarily revolve around arranging schedules of team events and practices, responding to calls and inquiries, producing and organizing documentation, and taking part in the recruitment and budgeting process of the team. It is also an assistant coach's responsibility to keep records of all players and personnel involved, including data and progress reports.

Student athlete vs assistant coach salary

Student athletes and assistant coaches have different pay scales, as shown below.

Student AthleteAssistant Coach
Average salary$45,705$43,838
Salary rangeBetween $26,000 And $77,000Between $30,000 And $63,000
Highest paying CityNew York, NYBoston, MA
Highest paying stateNew YorkMassachusetts
Best paying companyUMass LowellThe Branson School
Best paying industryEducationEducation

Differences between student athlete and assistant coach education

There are a few differences between a student athlete and an assistant coach in terms of educational background:

Student AthleteAssistant Coach
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 84%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common majorBusinessKinesiology
Most common collegeNorthwestern UniversityNorthwestern University

Student athlete vs assistant coach demographics

Here are the differences between student athletes' and assistant coaches' demographics:

Student AthleteAssistant Coach
Average age3636
Gender ratioMale, 58.1% Female, 41.9%Male, 62.5% Female, 37.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 5.4% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 5.4% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between student athlete and assistant coach duties and responsibilities

Student athlete example responsibilities.

  • Manage class schedule of all assign athletes and ensure that the student-athlete is maintaining the proper GPA.
  • Achieve national swimming championship honors.
  • Achieve all-conference honors junior and senior years
  • Initiate and manage community service, sportsmanship, nutritional and official NCAA programming for student-athletes
  • Provide championship and campus information for ACC website.
  • Oversee study hall, Champs/life skills, SAAC, and academic recovery programs.
  • Show more

Assistant coach example responsibilities.

  • Plan practices, lead JV games and practices, assist with varsity practices and workouts
  • Lead the boys and girls teams to strong sectional outcomes, which lead their qualification for the state championship meet.
  • Instruct competitive youth soccer players in basic skill development
  • Train to use see CPR certify
  • Mentor to kids on the team
  • Certify in safety management and CPR.
  • Show more

Student athlete vs assistant coach skills

Common student athlete skills
  • NCAA, 21%
  • Teamwork, 8%
  • GPA, 7%
  • Championship, 5%
  • Soccer, 5%
  • Leadership, 4%
Common assistant coach skills
  • CPR, 15%
  • NCAA, 13%
  • Player Development, 7%
  • Assist Head, 6%
  • Soccer, 6%
  • Volleyball, 5%

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