Indiana University Athletics
IU Quantifies the Full Value of an Athletics Scholarship
10/1/2014 12:00:00 AM | General
Cost of Scholarship (PDF) 
“What seems to have been lost in the public debate about whether student-athletes should be paid above the cost of attending college is an understanding of the true value of an athletics scholarship and the college degree it makes possible,” said Glass. “We conservatively estimate that the four year total value of a full IU athletics scholarship to an out of state student-athlete is nearly a quarter of a million dollars. Moreover, recent studies show that college graduates will earn nearly twice as much as those who don’t have degrees and that the gap is widening.”
For an out of state student-athlete, the four year total value of a full athletics scholarship is estimated to be $240,274. For an in-state student-athlete, that estimate is $135,766.
These total estimates include direct value, such as tuition and fees, room and board, and books. They also include indirect value from goods and services sometimes not thought of when considering the full value of a scholarship.
The annual value of those “indirect” items includes $1,775 for academic services such as advisors, tutors, and learning specialists; $952 for food and nutrition over and above that provided as part of the student-athletes “board”; $810 for medical services over and above those associated with treating an athletics related injury; $446 for leadership and life skills training; $680 ($2,075 out-of-state) for summer school, 5th year aid and other extended aid access; $1,550 for computer labs and other technology; and $1,373 for apparel and gear.
Not included in the calculation of indirect value are the following expenditures even though they also benefit student-athletes: team travel; medical treatment for an athletics related injury; athletics department administration; strength and conditioning training; coaches salaries; facility construction financing and maintenance; and equipment. While these expenditures also benefit the student-athlete, in an effort to err on the conservative side of the overall value calculation they were not included because they are related primarily to the student-athlete’s role as an athlete rather than as a student.
At Indiana University, all monies associated with the operation of the department, including athletics scholarships, are generated by the department itself without any special university subsidy, taxpayer money or student fees.
The IU Athletic Department, through its “Varsity Club”, annually raises the funds to cover the costs of athletic scholarships. Last year alone the Varsity Club raised over $16 million to fund student-athlete scholarships, money that goes right back to the university to fund the educations of our student-athletes.
What these student-athletes gain from the availability of a college education due to an athletics scholarship is a leg up on the competition. According to U.S. News and World Report, college graduates will earn about $1 million more in their lifetime than persons who have a high school degree.
According to the Economic Policy Institute as reported by the New York Times, Americans with college degrees made nearly 100% more an hour on average in 2013 than people without a degree, up from 89% five years earlier, 85% a decade earlier, and 64% in the early 1980’s.
Athletic scholarships, next to the G.I. Bill, are the second largest single source of college scholarships in the U.S. More than 150,000 student-athletes receive $2.7 billion in athletic scholarships each year from NCAA member colleges and universities.
Media Contact: Jeremy Gray, jfgray@indiana.edu, (812) 855-7410
