Career Options in Physical Education, Sports and Allied Areas-
There are many job opportunities and open career options with broader choices in Physical Education. A sports career in India, which was considered less lucrative in the past, has now become one of the options for students. Sometimes the students take interest in this profession merely for adventure and a tension free life. Individuals, who demonstrate peak performance in sports and physical education, follow a set of mental processes that allow them to produce excellent results consistently. These performance strategies translate into a specific set of mental skills. By learning these skills, effectiveness and performance can be enhanced. There are key strategies that lead to high performance in the field of sports—through the training of mental practices, individuals can accelerate their development and improve their performance. Self confidence is one important key to success. For example, physical education programme helps to boost one’s self confidence. To make a career in physical education, one should start by setting modest goals that are meaningful but attainable. Some of the options given here are broad areas that are often selected by the students undergoing various physical education courses as a choice with higher success rate.
1) Teaching or Coaching
Career in sports has been mainly focused on teaching and coaching in schools, colleges, and universities. Teachers are involved in teaching and organising physical activity programmes based on theory and practical syllabi of health and physical education, extramural and preparation of teams. Coaches are potentially sportspersons or players with talent in fundamentals, techniques, and rules of competitive sports or games. Coaches are responsible for overall preparation, and performance of teams. Coaches are also employed in government run centres, sporting clubs, holiday resorts, etc., for special sports. Some may also be self-employed in their own sports training centres.
2) Health, Sports and other Related Careers
Nowadays, the interest of youth in health and particularly fitness has been increasing. The demands for specialists therefore, in health-related career have also increased. The major career categories in health are-
Physical fitness instructor: These are better known as gym or aerobics instructors. They supervise people in games, fitness clubs, sports centre, health clubs, etc. They prepare the routine of exercise according to age, gender and level of fitness of the person. Instructors make sure that the equipment are correctly set up. They work in consultation with the dieticians, physiologists, psychologists, doctors, etc.
Dietician: They plan the diet for a player or a team so that they eat proper and balanced food according to their physical work. In the present time, dieticians are considered important part of modern spa, and beauty parlours and also in hospitals and health centres.
Sports Medicine Physician: The sports related injuries are different in nature. Sport Medicine Physician can give better treatment to sportsperson after understanding the seriousness of sports related injuries. A good sportsperson can become a better physician. It is the duty of the sports medicine physician to cure the sportsperson so as to enable him/her to come back in the mainstream. There is thus, a tremendous scope for this sports career.
3) Sports Administration Related Careers
An administrator in sports can be a Sports Director, Sports Officer, Head of Department, General Manager, Executive Director, Supervisor, etc. The areas that they take care of are related to finance, scheduling equipment, facilities, public relations, and many more. They also undertake the responsibility of implementing curriculum, monitoring staff, office, managing sports information, scholarship and promotion, supervision of coaches and various competitions, organising conferences, etc. An administrator must have leadership qualities, should be well organised, willing to accept responsibilities, hard working and honest.
4) Performance Related Careers
Performance related careers in sports are of two types, one is professional performers in sports, and second is sports officials. The sports performers play as an individual or in team for organisations on contract or on pay-roll basis either for a specified period, or otherwise. Sports officials like, referee, umpire, judges, etc., officiate the match or tournament on contract or on pay-roll basis either for a specified period or otherwise. Every sportsperson wants to be a professional performer but only a few succeed in earning a living. The dream of every sports person is to be a professional performer like Dhyan Chand, Milkha Singh, Sachin Tendulkar, Mary Kom, Vishwanathan Anand, Mahesh Bhupati, Sakshi Malik, etc. For officiating, no educational qualification or degree is required, only a written and practical examination conducted by the state and national sport organisation of a specific sport has to be cleared.
5) Communication Related Careers
A wide range of career opportunities are available in sports communication as variety in the means and methods of communication are the demands of the society. Sports communication includes sports writer, sports editor, sports publisher, sports photographer, painter/ artist, broadcaster, sports information director, sports statisticians, etc.
Sports Writers: There is a separate section devoted to sports in all the newspapers, magazines, periodicals, bulletins, etc. For writing these sections, sports writers are required. The job of sports writer is to cover the stories related to the vast world of sports on the basis of performance, team selection, policies, management, results, and other related matters to write sports column.
Sports Publishers: Sports Publishers are responsible for all the publication units including the quality, content, sales and promotion of books, etc. As there are various textbooks, coaching books, sports magazines, audio-visual material, journals, periodicals, etc., so publication also has reputed value as a career in sports.
Photography: As the scope of photography in sports is not very vast, people may opt for it as a part-time/full-time career in sports. Individuals with artistic ability, skill and experience in painting and drawing sports events can choose this profession.
T.V. or Radio Reporters: Sports are a valuable section on broadcast and telecast. Sports events are broadcasted and telecasted to be heard on every radio-station and can be seen on T.V. channels respectively. Because of high demands of sports, provision of special T.V. sports channels are there. The duties of broadcasters are to present sports programmes on T.V. or radio live from the stadium or playfield. They also present commentary summaries, reviews and sports news on T.V. and radio. Sometimes they anchor special sports programmes, do interactions or take interviews of sports personalities.
6) Sales and Management Related Careers
This profession includes sports marketing executives, sports events managers and sports competition organisation associated with sports equipment, material, etc. The ability to interact with customers and to convince them that the product or event is suitable to their needs, is the base for becoming a successful sports manager. Knowledge of the product and organisation of various types of tournament and championship are pre-requisite for these jobs. This job involves high responsibility and alertness, so long hours in the service are required. Physical education also helps in opting for other careers such as defence, para-force, and police service, etc.
