Health Club Owners and Managers

To be able to understand and meet the requirements of a health club career, you should be familiar with sports and fitness. Join a sports team while in high school, as either a team member or a manager. Any and all experience helps, whether you're a star player, an equipment manager, or the team's statistician. You can also work with a local booster club to sponsor events that promote sports and fitness within your school district. These activities demonstrate your interest and devotion to sports and fitness and may help in the future by providing you with an edge when searching for a job.

Be sure to visit a health club, whether it is a small gym in your school or a large club in your neighborhood. While visiting, take some mental notes about the size and roles of the club's staff. Do you notice a manager on duty? How many pieces of exercise equipment are available? Is the club clean? If possible, ask a staff member about his or her job and how to get started in the industry. Visit a local health club and ask if you can work out as a guest for a small fee. This will allow you to experience a club firsthand.

College students interested in sports facility management may be able to locate valuable internships through contacts they have developed from part-time jobs, but the career service offices in undergraduate or graduate programs in business administration and facility management are also good places to find information on internships.

Join student business organizations—such as Junior Achievement (https://jausa.ja.org), DECA (www.deca.org), Future Business Leaders of America (https://www.fbla.org), and Business Professionals of America (http://bpa.org) to learn more about the business world and participate in activities that develop your leadership, managerial, and financial management skills.