Not only an athlete: a curriculum for athletes at NCAA institutions

Jamie Sawchuk
Wed, 22 Apr 2026 17:43:08 PDT

Despite there being plenty of research regarding identity, athletic identity, and athlete transition, there is limited research on assisting athletes with blending their athletic identity with other roles in their life. Most retired athletes have difficulties letting go of their athletic identity, creating a new non-athletic identity and getting a job. Olympic committees, professional sport organizations, and collegiate athletics have created different transition programs for their athletes to aid them in transitioning to their life upon athletic retirement by helping them realize skills learned from sport are transferrable into the workforce and other areas of life. Researchers have found that athletes should not let go of their athletic identity; but rather learn to blend their athletic identity with their other identities. The following examines the extent to which student-athletes identify with their athletic identity, athletic retirement symptoms, and current athlete transition programs. The end product is a four year curriculum geared towards college level student-athletes.