Impact of athletics on University academics

[jimdahl]

There has been some discussion here, more when NDSU was transitioning than lately, about the effect of higher-level athletics on academics at a school.

Schools Score Big When Sports Teams Win

Until recently, evidence about the "Flutie Effect"

[Stromer]

I think there is definitely a connection between higher enrollments and high level athletic sucess. National TV exposure for athletics is way more successful than advertising for gathering interest in a school. Activities at universities are huge draws. It isn't always about academics, no matter what some anti-D1 people would say. You can get similar educations at many universities. The prestige for most univeristies comes from sports sucess (exceptions being Ivy schools). Moving up should only help schools. One can look at the amount of small schools in D1 as evidence for this.

[Shawn-O]

The president to the south had it right six years ago. The one to the north, not so much.

[gjw007]

The president to the south had it right six years ago. The one to the north, not so much.

I'm not convinced about that. I'm on record as believing that both UND and NDSU should have made the move in the 1970s so I'm not opposed to the move. The key to article is that the school has to be successful and if so, it benefits from the exposure. How many schools are successful? Does going to the 'Big Dance' once every 25 years count as success? Chapman may have been right but I don't believe it is because of the jist of the article. He may have correctly evaluated NDSU's ability to make the move and clearly was less reluctant that UND's President to make the move. I also think that the full evaluation of the move cannot be made during the honeymoon period but only after a significant period of time such as 20 years to allow for both positive and negative results.

An interesting comparison would be to list some of the universities that are highly desired. Most people would argue that the Ivy League would fit in this category but would any argue that any of them are sports powers? Clearly there is something else that drives the desire to be at these schools. At the end of the day, it is the academics of the school that drive enrollment. Would you rather go to Harvard or Michigan/Ohio State/etc? The later may be sports power but a degree from Harvard will give you a head start in your career. I would rather go to Harvard.

Whether to upgrade the sports department shouldn't be a quick, off-the-cuff reaction simply for the so-called prestige of being a D1A school or having the school score scroll on ESPN. If done poorly, the extra funds to the sports department will be a drain from the academics leaving the school with a poor athletic department and a deteriorating academic standard. There shouldn't be any denying that a successful sports program will help a university and that the publicity from that success can help draw students.

[Stromer]

An interesting comparison would be to list some of the universities that are highly desired. Most people would argue that the Ivy League would fit in this category but would any argue that any of them are sports powers? Clearly there is something else that drives the desire to be at these schools. At the end of the day, it is the academics of the school that drive enrollment. Would you rather go to Harvard or Michigan/Ohio State/etc? The later may be sports power but a degree from Harvard will give you a head start in your career. I would rather go to Harvard.

The Ivy schools are the exception. They have been talked about for so long that everyone knows that the Ivy schools are supposed to have the best education in the country and the world. Thus they are so well known that sports don't affect enrollment or prestige. There are also plenty of small private schools that are supposed to have the best liberal arts educations as well. Enrollments are not usually very big at these schools. Now look at schools such as Duke, Stanford, and Northwestern. Without the sucess in athletics and the exposure of major conferences, I doubt they would be as highly thought of as they are. They would be closer to the level of great private schools that nobody knows the name of. Bottom line, people need to recognize the school if it going to help you. While the education in major public universities might not be as good as some other lesser known schools, a degree from a major public school will help you out more. Concordia and NDSU might provide equal education but getting a degree from NDSU would make more sense.

[gjw007]

The Ivy schools are the exception. They have been talked about for so long that everyone knows that the Ivy schools are supposed to have the best education in the country and the world. Thus they are so well known that sports don't affect enrollment or prestige. There are also plenty of small private schools that are supposed to have the best liberal arts educations as well. Enrollments are not usually very big at these schools. Now look at schools such as Duke, Stanford, and Northwestern. Without the sucess in athletics and the exposure of major conferences, I doubt they would be as highly thought of as they are. They would be closer to the level of great private schools that nobody knows the name of. Bottom line, people need to recognize the school if it going to help you. While the education in major public universities might not be as good as some other lesser known schools, a degree from a major public school will help you out more. Concordia and NDSU might provide equal education but getting a degree from NDSU would make more sense.

You actually make my point; students don't go to Stanford, Duke, or Northwestern because of the athletics but because of the academics. Athletics doesn't gain them students but their academic recognition does. This again, can be seen by the tougher standards to get into these schools. Other than Duke's success in basketball, none of these schools is a sports power. When Northwest began to have success in football, I think most people, especially the alumni, were surprised. Is a degree from NDSU more valuable than Concordia because they have a successful football team or is the academics considered, by some measure, to be better (more complete). Likewise, many people would argue that a degree from the University of Minnesota is more valuable than a degree from NDSU or UND (for the same reason as your comparison between NDSU and Concordia) and Minnesota is not exactly a sports power except in hockey. The Ivy League schools have the recognition because of the high standards to get in and the prestige. There are numerous examples as well such as John Hopkins. UND has this to a degree in aviation.

I do think that success in sports and the exposure helps but when looking for a school, I believe there are other primary factors. The exposure of the sports team might bring it to the attention of potential students but it wouldn't be the first factor in deciding on a school. At the end of the day, the success of schools like the Ivy League, Duke, Northwestern, John Hopkins, etc. have been because of the success of the graduates from these schools and this success has been recognized by students who wish to also become successful in a specific field and thus choose a school with high standards and a record of successful graduates.

[Sal Atticum]

An interesting book to read on this topic is "Beer and Circus" by Murray Sperber.