Sport labor migration, globalization and dual-career : case study of international student-athletes in University of Colorado at Boulder

Abstract

Sport, education, labor migration and globalization are all current areas of research worldwide. The U.S. has a unique system of making the dual-career option possible by having the college sport league organized by the non-profit association National Collegiate Athletic Association. The labor migration has increased in the past years. The primary research question in this study is, in which ways sport labor migration, globalization and dual-career are illustrated in the case study school of University of Colorado at Boulder by concentrating on the international student-athletes. The purpose of this study is to find out more in detail the numbers of international student-athletes in CU, in which sports they have been mostly involved in, and how the numbers of athletes have changed over the years. In addition some of the reasons why international student-athletes choose to go to the university in the U.S., the impacts of globalizations, the possibility for dual-career and the positive and negative effects of international student-athletes are discussed. This is a case study. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were used. Document analyses were completed by investigating the athletic player rosters of CU to find out the exact numbers of international student-athletes in each sport, the years they have attended and the nationalities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to find out more in-depth information from the school’s point of view about the international student-athletes reasons to come to CU, the impact of globalization, and some of the changes happened over the past 20 years. The results revealed that there are certain sports, which have been more favored by international student-athletes over the history. The location of Colorado attracts many northern European nationalities as well as Canadians, additionally certain sports for i.e. tennis and skiing are popular among international student-athletes. The overall results proved that the amounts have been increasing in the 21st century. As the interviews revealed globalization, the increased sport labor migration and seeking for dual-career option are all important aspects in college sports. International student-athletes are attracted by the dual-career option, the impacts of globalization and improved technology have made the communication easier, and people tend to have easier time moving to another country than before.