What Is an Athletic Trainer?
An athletic trainer is someone who assists others in preventing and treating injuries. They aid people of all ages, and study the ways of avoidance, evaluation, and treatment. When someone experiences and injury, it is physical trainer who can offer the most support.
Their job is to help you recover and get back in to top shape. They can offer wisdom on how to avoid injuries and prescribe devices that can assist you in doing so. These are not fitness workers we are talking about – those that help people work towards becoming as physically fit as possible. Athletic trainers work for licensed physicians and the amount of supervision they receive is dependent upon the working environment.
The topic of discussion can also determine the amount of communication that needs to take place. When issues are less extreme there really isn’t a need for a supervisor’s opinion. Sometimes athletic trainers are looked to take part in meetings with an athletic director to go over purchasing, budgets, and any other issue regarding business.
How to Become an Athletic Trainer
In order to become an athletic trainer, you will need to earn a bachelor’s degree. These programs, which can be offered in schools and clinical arenas, familiarize students with the following subjects – physiology, nutrition, and biomechanics.
Before you can become an official athletic trainer, you will need to become certified, and this involves passing an examination. There are both written questions and practical applications involved in this process. However, the qualifications of this position go further as the majority of athletic trainers not only have a bachelor’s degree, but a master’s. Part of the advantage of receiving this high level of education is that it allows an athletic trainer to venture into teaching or other career options.
When you become an athletic trainer, you will quickly discover that you are thrown into many situations where you are interacting with all different types of people. With all of this communication and instruction, it is important for you have strong social skills. You need to know how to explain a situation in more than one way. You also should be familiar with how to disagree with a client as opposed to a parent – there is a difference.
Athletic Trainer Career Outlook & Salary
In 2004, there were 15,000 employed athletic trainers in the United States. While many athletics training jobs involve sports, there are those that work in environments that have no relation to sports.
Almost a third of all athletic trainers can be found in the arena of health care. These men and women work in hospitals and various health care offices. Another group of athletic trainers are employed to work inside educational institutions. This variety gives you options when it comes to choosing what to do with your career.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of athletic trainers is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2014. Job growth will be concerted in health care environments – hospitals and other health care services. However, growth in sports-related positions is a slower pace, because many sports clubs and schools currently have this position on staff. This should influence you to start your career search in the prosperous health care industry.
