Athletic Director Career Overview

Duties and Responsibilities of an Athletic Director

Athletic directors most often work for a secondary or postsecondary educational institution. The visibility of the organization will often determine the level of experience and education necessary for the position. Athletic directors work a standard 40-hour week, but will quite often have to make appearances at after-hours events.

The director manages every aspect of the athletic department, but the job can be boiled down to four basic obligations -- to ensure competitive success, rules compliance, fiscal accountability and student athletes academic success. From budgetary oversight to the enforcement of the department's core values, the director will often find themselves involved in matters not entirely related to athletics. The director will be responsible for game preparation, game management, scheduling, publishing of events, coordination of presentation of awards, among other duties. Many times the directorship will be a secondary job function assigned to an assistant principal or other administrator. One can see examples of the breadth of responsibility in these CareerBuilder.com job listings.

• 'Assists the principal (or designee) in the evaluation and assignment of all coaches. Assists the coaches in making all athletic schedules...certifies the eligibility of all athletes...responsible for developing, submitting, and supervising the athletic budget...' --Jesuit High School, Sacramento
• 'The successful candidate must have a bachelor's degree and previous experience in athletic administration or a minimum of three years experience as Varsity head coach. Other qualifications include strong leadership and management and skills as well as strong oral and written communication skills.' --St. Louis School

Job Requirements

To become an athletic director requires earning a bachelor's degree in an area, such as health, fitness or education and a master's degree in athletic administration or in education specializing in leadership in intercollegiate athletics. Some university master's programs are geared towards preparing the student to work in a university or college setting by offering courses in college organization structure (fundraising, public relations, strategic planning and financial management). The North American Society for Sport Management lists schools that offer programs in sport management, both within the U.S. and internationally, on its website. Many athletic directors start out as athletic trainers who are required to have a bachelor's degree from an athletic training program that is accredited and certified by BOC -- Board of Certification. 46 states in the U.S. require that athletic trainers be licensed. In addition, voluntary certification may be obtained from the American College of Sports Medicine. In other instances, an athletic director may be employed as an assistant principal, which may require teaching credentials. In addition, potential athletic directors should be in good shape, have excellent writing skills, be a good public speaker, know the regulations and the profession and have experience in administrative athletics (i.e. volunteer with sports teams). The requirements are broad, as can be seen in these Monster.com job postings.

• ' Beverly Public Schools need a strong leader who possesses a minimum of master's degree or equivalent; certification in Massachusetts as supervisor/director or principal/assistant principal...five years teaching/administrative experience at the High School (HS) level...' --Beverly Public School
• 'Minimum of one year's experience in a supervisory or department head role. Minimum of five years experience in club and/or fitness industry; college degree in fitness, health or recreation-related field. A master's degree in related field preferred, but not required. ' -Westlake Club

Industry Growth and Salary Outlook

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, high school and entry-level athletic directors will experience good job prospects. Those looking to work at the university or college level will see slower job growth. NATA's 2005 Athletic Training Survey found that athletic directors in general earned $48,285 per year. An athletic director taking an entry-level position may earn between $24,000 and $25,000 per year while someone with a master's and experience may pull in between $50,000 and $60,000 per year. Salaries depend on size of the school, the district and or funding provided by the alumni association.