I have been considering going back to school to become a Certified Athletic Trainer (not certified personal trainer). Anybody out there in this line of work? I am interested in job availability, working conditions, pay, and advancement potential. Thanks in advance for any response.
anybody?
I am and as soon as I get a chance later tonight, I’ll answer any questions for you.
I worked as a graduate assistant athletic trainer while gettin my masters in sports medicine. I had a job in a PT clinic before I finished with my masters program. The pay is ok, not lucrative but at the same time I don’t have to worry about paying the bills. I work in a PT clinic 30 hours a week, at a YMCA as outreach 10 hours a week doing injury evals and rehab. I also cover a local high school’s football and basketballs games on the side. And I teach a night class from the University which I graduated from.
Any thing else you want to know just ask.
Get your degree in anatomy/kines. then get a CSCS from NSCA then PES from NASM.ATC’s are good for taping up feet…
If you only had a clue what you are talking about…
[quote]mastemah wrote:
Get your degree in anatomy/kines. then get a CSCS from NSCA then PES from NASM.ATC’s are good for taping up feet…[/quote]
Sorry, this is one thing that gets me pissed, the misconception of what the profession is all about. Most people think that taping ankles is all there is to it. To become a certified athletic trainer you have to take the same classes as a kines/anatomy major. Plus you have to take additional classes in injury evaluation, physical rehabilitation, ect.
Sure, taping ankles and such is a part of the job, IF you work in the athletics setting, but it is a very small part. I know athletic trainers who been working as athletic trainers and they may tape 10 ankles a year, while working full time in the profession.
Oh, I also have my CSCS, as do many athletic trainers.
If you have any more questions you can just pm me and I’ll answer any questions I didn’t answer.
[quote]jtd72 wrote:
I have been considering going back to school to become a Certified Athletic Trainer (not certified personal trainer). Anybody out there in this line of work? I am interested in job availability, working conditions, pay, and advancement potential. Thanks in advance for any response.[/quote]
I’m also an ATC, CSCS, USAW Level I coach. I work in a physical therapy clinic with directing rehab programs being my primary duty. I agree that comments like mastermah’s are ignorant and uneducated. Ask the countless athletes I have managed on the field, then rehabed post surgery, and finally returned to their sport, if all I do is tape ankles. I don’t know about the PES, but the CSCS does not show that you know how the manage and evaluate an injury. Also I think the dual ATC-CSCS, is all you need. The PES is a little redundent. Unfortunately, the compensation for a typical ATC will not reflect your education or knowledge level. But if you are getting it this line of work for the money your doing it for the wrong reasons. Sports medicine in its essence is a service profession.
I went through a NATA program, and was turned off by the hours and the responsibility. At many schools you are the only one. There may be no money for equipment. Of course, you have to be available after practices and games, Saturdays too. A lot is involved. I give a lot of credit to athletic trainers. However, I personally did not have the dedication needed to be one. Perhaps another route such as a PT clinic would be better.
ckeller14,
Where did you go to school and what part of NC do you work?
I am also an ATC, CSCS. I would agree with the thoughts of Navin, Crow and ckeller. This profession is truly not about money but if you find a setting that appeals to you it can be a rewarding profession and you can earn a modestly comfortable wage. I also strongly disagree with the statement about “good for taping up your feet” as that is an ingonrant remark.
If you are going back to school make sure you are enrolling in a school with an accredited athletic training program (by CAAHEP)because that is the only way you can get certified.
The are typically 4 different setting in which ATC’s are employed.
A sports medicine clinic where the ATC will generaly direct rehabiliation programs and may do some out reach to local high schools, sports clubs. Pay for this type of job is generally $30-$40k per year.
A college or high school where the ATC will do be involved in prevention, evaluation, treatment, and rehabiliation of athletic injuries. As well as a lot of administrative type of work. Depending on the number of ATC’s on staff and if you are the head ATC or an assistant ATC will determine your workload and your pay (note: working more hours rarely will influence your pay). Pay for this type of job is usually $25k-$65k for college. $35-$65k for high school (usually combined with a teaching job and you would be ATC after school for athletics) .
An ATC in professional sports are also involved in the same duties as the college/HS ATC but some times to differing degree. For example, some teams may refer the injury rehabiliation out to a PT. And because of the finances involved with an injured player the injury evaulatoin skills do not have to be as sharp as every injury is x-rayed and MRI and sent straight to an orthopedist. The money in pro sports is sometimes better but the hours can be long and the worek is generally not as glamorous as it may seem. Pay is generally $30-$100k. Sometimes you could get bonuses if your team made playoffs or won championship.
The last settiung in which a ATC is employed is a indutrial setting where the ATC will be involved with evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation of injuries sustained on the job - often repetitive stress/overuse injuries. Pay is usually good and hours are traditional 40 per week. Pay is usually similar to sports medicine clinic $30-$40k.
Many ATC’s are also CSCS and this can make for interesting busness opportunities with some who’s insurance is finished paying for their injury rehab then and ATC with these credentials can kind of be “rehabilitation extender” and continue working with this type of patient on a cash pay basis - similar to how a personal trainer would operate. The obvious difference being the difference in knowledge base. (I’m ont saying some personal trainers are not extremely knowledgable).
Hope this helps jtd72.
I want to piggy back off Gastrocnemius’s post. Everything he said his 100% correct (and well written I might add), but I want to add the requirements to sit for the NATABOC. He is correct that you need to earn to degree from an accredited program, while in doing so fulfill 800 hours of internship under the direction of an ATC. Maybe Gastroc can correct me, but I think half of those hours need to be with a collision sport (football, hockey). The candidate needs to be First Aid/CPR certified. Once all these prerec. are completed he or she may sit for the certfication exam. This is a three part examination (written, oral, and simulation). This was by far the toughest test I’ve ever passed, the CSCS exam is a cake walk in comparison. The person may have to pass a state licensure exam if his state requires it also (I practice in California, so I do not). After recieveing the certification, the ATC will have to complete 80 CEU every three years to retain the certification. I hope this answers more of your questions.
Thanks to everyone for their response. One more question…
I am currently 32 and hold a BA in a completely different field. I would be 35 by the time I finished the degree. I know this is late in the game to get started, but is it too late?
One of my best friends was almost 30 when he came back to school to do it, so I say if it is something you really think you might like to do, then go for it.
I am currently in school for Physical Therapy while working at a gym (among other places). To echo the comments so far, there are very few people who can tell the difference between the jobs a PT and an AT have.
Even more disturbing is that many people cannot tell the difference between a personal trainer and a physical therapist. I have had people tell me that the only difference between an Physical Therapist and a Personal Trainer is that one knows the body a little better.
THAT gets me going…
I’m currently in school to become a Certified Athletic Trainer. I’m not going to lie, it is a lot of work, but if you truely enjoy it all it is very mcuh worth it. Everybody has pretty much covered all of the bases on what to look for, but i just want to stress finding a univeristy that has an accreditted program. Go to www.nata.org to find a list of accreditted programs.
There are a lot of different universities you can look at to get your degree. I currently attend the University of Central Florida, which is located in Orlando, with about 1 year left in the program here before I get my degree and can take the NATA exam. UCF is a Division 1 school with a total student population of about 35,000-40,000. Definately get a lot of experience with a lot of different equipment and tools. They also have several head athletic trainers that each have their own sport to cover, so you can get a lot of specific help from different ATCs.
On a different perspective, I spent my freshman year at Central Connecticut State University studying Athletic Training as well, which has a total student population of 10,000. It still had an amazing program and a lot of amazing stuff for a smaller Div.1 school. The reason I transfered was that I just didn’t personally feel in place at the school and felt like I was missing some of the “college experience”.
Gastroc covered all the different settings you can get into very well. I’d recommend visiting the school you are thinking of attending and just seeing how they run things and the environment. Definately an awesome that you are going to go back to school to pursue something you enjoy doing. Wish you the best of luck and keep us updated.
Thanks once again for the information, it has been most helpful and I truly appreciate it. Another question…what does the job market look like? Will I searching for job for months? If this is something that I am willing to invest myself into then I will be willing to search for a good job. I would just like to know what I am in for.
The job market will really be as open as you make it. I’ve talked to a couple different ATC’s that got jobs in the industrial setting by proposing situations and reasons why an ATC would benefit their company. You just have to be able to market yourself as a necessity.
I really don’t have any numbers to back up any specific openings, but I know a lot more high schools are moving towards hiring an ATC. But if you do go the high school route, you will more than likely be expected to teach as well, and they will pay you to be a teacher and will receive a stipen(sp?) for the athletic training.
I have been most interested in the high school route. In fact I have been debating between ATC or school teacher. Mixing the two sounds like a great solution.
To all those who offered advice…Thank you. I am now enrolled in a ATC program at Georgia Collge & State University. I have a few core classes left to take and I will be fully into my ATC classes. Human Ant. starts in the Spring and I can’t wait. Once again…thanks for your help.