Providing Medical Care to Male Sports Teams: Attractors to Employment for Female Athletic Trainers

An abstract of a study by Pike et al investigating experiences of female athletic trainers seeking employment with male sport teams within the Division I setting is presented. Factors that played a role in females gaining employment with male sports teams included pre-existing professional relationships, prior experience with a male sport, and perseverance. A majority of participants identified prior experience and familiarity with members of the sports medicine team as catalysts to obtaining their position. Only four female athletic trainers in our sample were hired directly to their current positions through traditional application procedures. Participants were attracted to their current positions for two primary reasons. The first attractor was environment and competition level of the Division I collegiate setting in its entirety, not just the sport itself. The second attractor was the location of the university. The reasons female athletic trainers pursue positions with male sports teams are multifactorial.