Delaware Sports Blitz is excited to announce a new series we will be doing called Behind the Sports.
The Behind the Sports series is looking at men and women who prepare athletes for their best on and off the court ( SIDs, AD, educators, trainers and etc.). The series will also be looking at different careers in the sports field from media, operating an arena, tickets sales, public relations and etc.
This week we will be featuring Goldey-Beacom College’s Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance and Athletic Operations which is Jeremy Benoit. Benoit has had the title of Athletic Director for Compliance and Athletic Operations since 2015 at Goldey-Beacom. Before Benoit worked in college athletics, he was a college athlete himself and played four years of Division III college football. Playing in college athletics is where Benoit really found the passion to want to work in college athletics and help other student athletes get ready for life after athletics.
Name the job and a brief summary of what it entails?
Benoit: I am the Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance and Athletic Operations. It is a long title that basically means I do it all. My main responsibilities are in NCAA rules compliance, but I also play a fairly major role in budget analysis, personnel, student-athlete experience, community service, event management, and a whole host of other things.
How long have you been in this area of work?
Benoit: I started as a full-time athletic administrator in 2015 when I took the position of Compliance Specialist here at Goldey-Beacom. My role in the department has evolved over the last three years to encompass the other areas I mentioned.
What interested you to get in this area of work?
Benoit: I played four years of Division III college football and really fell in love with the experience that I had as a student-athlete. I really wanted to be able to help other people have the same experience I had to get them ready for life after college. To get started, I took an internship my senior year with the Athletic Director at the College, and then she ended up offering me a Graduate Assistant position which allowed me to stay at the College for another two years while I worked for her and they paid for my Master’s Degree. During those two years, my love for the profession grew even more and I applied to every job I could find in collegiate athletics until I landed at Goldey-Beacom.
What is the most rewarding part of the job?
Benoit: The most rewarding part of the job is seeing where “our kids” go once they leave us. People see collegiate athletics as a great opportunity to keep playing a sport and maybe earn some scholarship money. But the reality of this industry is that we are preparing young men and women to go out into the world and make it great. The ability to do that does not come just from playing their sport. It comes from joining or creating student organizations; getting involved on campus; organizing community service efforts; building personal relationships and professional networks; going to class every day and competing for grades; learning other life skills like nutrition and personal finances; and, yes, competing in their sport. I love seeing are kids win championships, but what makes me the most proud is seeing them go on to do great things in the world after GBC.
What are some of the challenges of the job?
Benoit: There are many challenges that come with this job, but there are only two that are honestly worth mentioning. One is the challenge of showing outside parties the value of athletics to the institution besides just playing the sport – there are many other reasons why collegiate athletics exists and they are all vital to the institution. The other challenge is work-life balance. I am a very student-centered administrator, I typically end up working an outlandish number of hours because there are things that need to get done for the good of our kids and they just don’t fit into a 40-hour work week. The fortunate piece of that “challenge” is that it is easy to overcome when your reason for doing it is palpable. I do not go to work every day to clock in and clock out and get paid – I do it to positively impact the lives of the students. They make it a lot easier.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to work in this job or field?
Benoit: Whether geographically or professionally, don’t limit yourself. This field is far too competitive to pick a particular region of the country or section of the industry in which to take a job. When I was first applying to full-time positions, I had two years of experience and a Master’s Degree. I applied to over 80 jobs all over the country in every section of the industry imaginable, and only got about a dozen calls back. Of those dozen, I had less than five interviews and only three actual offers. Apply for anything and everything. And when you finally get that full-time job, don’t just show up and do the minimum – push yourself to the limit and help as much as you can in as many areas as you can. You won’t regret it.
Goldey-Beacom Athletics Compliance Information: Click Here
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