The collective barriers seen to Connecticut athletic
trainers can be summed up into the following chal-
lenge categories as seen in the preliminary report of 
the task force to study the shortage of athletic trainers 
in the state:
Challenge 1: Education of Stakeholders
Value and role of athletic trainers: It's essential to
increase awareness about the value and scope of
athletic trainers' work, both within the sports
medicine field, current emerging employment
centers and to the public. This includes better
communication about the structure and
responsibilities of the profession.
Outreach to prospective students: To attract future
athletic trainers and develop the much-needed
pipeline of future athletic training professionals,
there needs to be targeted education on what the
profession entails, reaching students early in their
high school and early college academic careers to
foster interest.
Recruiting efforts for the master’s level athletic
training programs in Connecticut. The state of
Connecticut has four universities offering a
Master’s in Athletic Training (Central Connecticut
State University, Sacred Heart University,
Southern Connecticut State University, and the
University of Connecticut) focusing on recruiting
students early in their academic careers will assist
in growing the student enrollment of each of these
athletic training programs. It should be a goal to
retain as many graduates as possible within
Connecticut for employment.
Challenge 2: Financial
As many students face after college graduation,
athletic training students face significant student
debt and financial strain due to loan payments, the
costs of maintaining Connecticut licensure,
national board certification, malpractice insurance,
and professional association memberships (e.g.,
NATA). The shift to the required master’s degree
has added, at minimum, one additional year of
education for the students at the graduate level.
Graduate degrees carry different levels of federal
financial aid often resulting in additional student
loans. Athletic training students graduating with the 
master’s degree owe an average of $86,000, with 
loan debt affecting minority graduates at a higher 
rate. Addressing these financial barriers is critical for 
the retention of practicing professionals.
Additionally, the average salary of an athletic
trainer is well below that of what it should be as
compared to other healthcare providers.
Challenge 3: Retention of Practicing 
Professionals
Supporting current athletic trainers through
mentoring, professional development, and
financial incentives is crucial to retaining them in
the field. The state of Connecticut can play a
major role in efforts to retain athletic trainers in
our state.
Challenge 4: Mentorship
There is a need for increased funding for
workshops and incentive programs such as loan
forgiveness or state-based return-to-work
programs to alleviate financial burdens and
encourage long-term careers in athletic training.
Each year there are a number of athletic trainers
in the state of Connecticut that receive local and
national acknowledgment for life-saving skill deliv-
ery or management in a life saving event. Throughout 
the process of the task force studying the shortage of 
athletic trainers, parents of student-athletes have 
come forward sharing in moments where an athletic 
trainer made a life-saving impact for their son or 
daughter, coaches have expressed their gratitude for 
having an athletic trainer in crucial decision making 
moments, health care providers have enlightened the 
continuing education and collaboration athletic 
trainers bring to daily and emergency scenarios, 
companies have showcased the financial cost saving 
implications of having an athletic trainer on staff, 
students and patients have shared the impact an 
athletic trainer had on their lives.
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