By: Michael Miller

College can be daunting, but for some, choosing a college major can be the scariest part.

Despite popular belief, choosing a major in college does not determine one’s entire future.  Many people major in one subject, but find themselves working in a completely different field.  Still choosing a major can feel like you planning an entire life.

Many career-minded students—as are many of us in West Windsor-Plainsboro—choose job-related majors such as Nursing, Biology, and Engineering. These jobs are perceived as the secure because they are in high demand.  However, other more abstract or artistic majors such as Philosophy, Dance, and Language Studies (Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, etc) have become exceedingly more popular and useful in the career world.  So, is it such a stretch for students to sign up for Football or Tennis as their college major?

Perhaps not. And yet, there is no such thing as a Tennis or Football major.  The absence of the option to major in a sport as opposed to the arts or the humanities—has become a point of controversy, and newspapers like The Washington Post, TIME Magazine, and The New York Times have all written articles debating the validity, and apparent demand, of a college major in sports.

The biggest argument against sports as a major is that there is no economic value or future for someone majoring in sports.  But the belief that there are no jobs for a sports major is simply untrue, for a major in sports could lead to a career in a professional sports team or even in a career analyzing sports.  Arguing that a passion for sports is a path to unemployment does an injustice to young, inspired athletes.

Not only should students be able to explore the creative and professional possibilities that a sports major has to offer, but colleges would also gain from it financially. College athletes produce a huge amount of revenue for schools. According to Investopedia, a lone men’s basketball season creates a revenue of, on average, $788,000 per school every year.  An article from The Washington Post stated that college athletics increase a school’s overall graduation rate. Colleges have everything to gain from adding a soccer or a hockey major.

Even though there are no sports majors, there are many classes based on sports—there is even a course based on turf grass.  However, all of these classes fall under the category of Management which, according to College Majors 101, focuses on “the workings of the stadium, concessions, ticketing, marketing, equipment, turf management and every other aspect of the sports or venues you serve.”

At this point, though, despite the nationwide demand, the only thing a passionate sports-lover can do is train to join a college team and maybe take up a major in accounting or creative writing.