Should Student Athletes Be Paid 
Cody Miller
Combiths
English 1106
20 April 2015
Should Student-Athletes be Paid?
Introduction
In the modern college sports era, the call for student-athletes to be paid has escalated. These athletes are now apart of a nearly billion-dollar industry in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). There are arguments for both sides. Those who believe that the athletes should be paid make the argument that schools and the NCAA are making millions of dollars off these athletes and are not being compensated for their work. Those who believe the student-athletes shouldn’t be paid see that they make upwards of $100,000 a year off scholarships and they are considered amateurs, which means that they cannot be paid.
Objective
My objective was to determine whether college athletes should be paid. I sought to discover as much as possible about the everyday life of college athletes and what they are given in scholarship compared to how much colleges and the National Collegiate Athletic Association make off of student-athletes. In addition, I aimed to examine the amount of athletes that leave college early in order to play sports professionally.
Methods
In order to gain insight into this issue, I searched Virginia Tech’s database for articles and essays pertaining to they payment of collegiate student-athletes. I read each of the articles I chose and ensured that they contained little to no bias. Many of the articles found were from credible sources such as journalists from Forbes, the Arizona Daily Star, and the Economist. Along with these articles, I also found an interview with an economist named Michael Leeds. I aimed to see his point of view and evaluation on whether colleges could afford to pay their athletes.
Results and Discussion There are many reasons why college athletes should be paid. There have been issues in collegiate sports throughout recent history regarding money. Athletes have been leaving school years early in order to begin a future in
Combiths
English 1106
20 April 2015
Should Student-Athletes be Paid?
Introduction
In the modern college sports era, the call for student-athletes to be paid has escalated. These athletes are now apart of a nearly billion-dollar industry in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). There are arguments for both sides. Those who believe that the athletes should be paid make the argument that schools and the NCAA are making millions of dollars off these athletes and are not being compensated for their work. Those who believe the student-athletes shouldn’t be paid see that they make upwards of $100,000 a year off scholarships and they are considered amateurs, which means that they cannot be paid.
Objective
My objective was to determine whether college athletes should be paid. I sought to discover as much as possible about the everyday life of college athletes and what they are given in scholarship compared to how much colleges and the National Collegiate Athletic Association make off of student-athletes. In addition, I aimed to examine the amount of athletes that leave college early in order to play sports professionally.
Methods
In order to gain insight into this issue, I searched Virginia Tech’s database for articles and essays pertaining to they payment of collegiate student-athletes. I read each of the articles I chose and ensured that they contained little to no bias. Many of the articles found were from credible sources such as journalists from Forbes, the Arizona Daily Star, and the Economist. Along with these articles, I also found an interview with an economist named Michael Leeds. I aimed to see his point of view and evaluation on whether colleges could afford to pay their athletes.
Results and Discussion There are many reasons why college athletes should be paid. There have been issues in collegiate sports throughout recent history regarding money. Athletes have been leaving school years early in order to begin a future in