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Lindsey Wilson University Professor to Study Why College Student-Athletes are Attractive to Prospective Employers

Grant from the Commission on Sport Management Accreditation to fund Courtney Carter's research on college student-athletes.

by Duane Bonifer

COLUMBIA, Ky. (07/21/2026) — A Lindsey Wilson University professor has received a grant to study what makes former college student-athletes attractive to prospective employers.

Lindsey Wilson professor of sport performance Courtney Carter has received a grant from the Commission on Sport Management Accreditation to learn why some companies and organizations have initiatives to hire former college student-athletes.

She will also explore what those groups think should be included in a strong sport performance curriculum. Lindsey Wilson is beginning a sport performance major this fall, making it the second school in the country and the first in Kentucky to offer the major.

The Commission on Sport Management Accreditation, known as COSMA, is a specialized accrediting body that promotes and recognizes excellence in sport management education.

"Through conversations with recruiting managers at companies that have initiatives to hire former student-athletes -- companies such as Deloitte, Ernst & Young, Nike and Northwestern Mutual -- I hope to learn what makes those graduates especially attractive to them," said Carter, who is also coordinator of Lindsey Wilson's sport performance program. "I'm curious to know if those companies value student-athletes the same way and how they differentiate between a former student-athlete and a college graduate who did not participate in sports when it comes to the hiring process."

And because sport performance is a relatively new major in higher education, Carter also aims to learn what those companies and organizations think should be included in a sport performance curriculum in order to put the graduates of those programs in a strong position in the job market when they graduate. She also wants to learn how graduates can distinguish their knowledge, skills and abilities in the hiring process.

"I plan to discuss with them whether they think there are certain classes that need to be included in the curriculum, and if there are certain skills or rubrics that they would like to see included in a major," said Carter, who is one of the founding members of the national Sports Major Collective, which advocates for the sport performance major.

Sport performance is an emerging academic discipline that transforms the athletic experience into a rigorous form of academic study by giving student-athletes a way to turn competition into deeper learning.

Carter said her study will take about six months, and she plans to present some of her early findings at the next COSMA conference, scheduled for early 2027.

Lindsey Wilson University is a vibrant liberal arts university in Columbia, Kentucky. Founded in 1903 and affiliated with The United Methodist Church, the mission of Lindsey Wilson is to serve the educational needs of students by providing a living-learning environment within an atmosphere of active caring and Christian concern where every student, every day, learns and grows and feels like a real human being. Lindsey Wilson offers 30 undergraduate majors, five graduate programs and a doctoral program. The university's 29 intercollegiate varsity athletic teams have won more than 120 team and individual national championships.

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Lindsey Wilson University professor of sport performance Courtney Carter has received a grant from the Commission on Sport Management Accreditation to study why companies and organizations have initiatives to hire former college student-athletes.

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