Dual Sport Athlete + Engineer Major

I am so thankful for the opportunity to play both Field Hockey and Lacrosse in college while earning a Bachelor of Science in Engineering. While it has been a challenging experience being a duel-sport athlete and completing a time-intensive major, it is one of the most rewarding experiences and more doable than I thought it would be.

When I started looking at colleges, I knew I wanted to play field hockey and get an engineering degree (I did not plan on playing lacrosse at first). I knew I should look for a DIII school where academics were prioritized, and thankfully I found a college that had both engineering and field hockey. When I arrived and played my first season of field hockey, I loved it! My team was amazing, and I also really enjoyed the rigor of being in season and completing my engineering classes. Doing both gave my day a lot of structure and forced me to be on top of my work. I appreciated the challenge of it.

Later, I considered joining the lacrosse team. I had played in high school, but I had never considered playing in college. One of my teammates from field hockey played on both teams. I would not have thought this was possible, but I saw her thrive as she played field hockey in the fall and lacrosse in the spring. She told me that she had " Two families on campus." I really appreciated this and asked the coach if I could walk on for my sophomore year. I knew that my technical skills were not as strong in lacrosse, and I had skipped a year of playing, but the coach said that my athletic abilities were strong and allowed me to join.

Now, I am a member of both teams, and I love getting to play two seasons every year! I thought this would be extremely overwhelming, but with a disciplined schedule and planning ahead, it is very possible to play two sports while doing well in classes. On top of this, I am still able to do a work-study job and be a part of a lab.

There are a few things that I am intentional about in order to make this work. First, I leave my breaks as actual breaks. For example, over summer break, I intentionally do jobs that are fun. Second, I make a structured calendar and say no to things that are not important to me. Finally, I communicate a lot with my professors. It can be scary to talk to a professor or go to office hours at first, but this can be one of the most helpful things. There are some professors who I would go to every week during office hours to get help on assignments. Since I knew them better, it also felt easier to ask for extensions on busy weeks.

If I were talking to a student who is thinking about doing two sports or doing a major that they think is too difficult, I would encourage them to go for it! My experience has been amazing, and with some intentionality, it is more than possible!