Sports Facility Managers

If you aren't actively involved with a sport as a participant, you can get involved with sports administration and management by volunteering for positions with your own high school teams. Any and all experience helps, beginning with organizing and managing the equipment for a football team, for example, all the way up to working as a team statistician. You can also work with their local booster club to sponsor events that promote athletics within the school district. These activities demonstrate your interest and devotion and may help you in the future by providing you with an edge when searching for an internship.

Part-time or summer jobs as ushers, vendors, ball boys or girls, for example, not only provide firsthand experience for both high school and college students, but can lead to other contacts and opportunities.

College students interested in sports facility management can often locate valuable internships through contacts they have developed from part-time jobs, but the career services offices in undergraduate or graduate programs in business administration and facility management are also good places to consult for information on internships. The professional leagues and associations for specific sports, the National Hockey League, the National Football League, and the National Basketball Association, for example, all offer summer internships. Competition for positions with these organizations is keen, so interested students should send for application materials well in advance, study them, and apply early.

Professional organizations within the field also sponsor opportunities to learn on the job. The International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) offers internships to qualified students. Typically, participating facilities that serve as sites for IAVM internships are responsible for the selection of their interns. While some of these facilities aren't specifically geared toward sporting events, much of the management skills and responsibilities are shared and will provide you with a wonderful opportunity to learn firsthand.