Looking for a Tennis Career Beyond the Court? Check out SDSU’s Online Professional Tennis Management Master’s Degree

By Karen Ronney, Editor SanDiegoTennisNews.com

Got a 5, 10, or 15-year career plan? Are you considering a future career in tennis beyond the grind of oncourt teaching? Consider joining the online Master’s Degree in Professional Tennis Management (PTM) by USTA-U and San Diego State University.

There are two main reasons to move forward and sign up for the PTM Master’s Program before March 30. The first is there are an unprecedented number of scholarships and grants now available that will make this degree affordable. The second is thanks to the unexpected time off from the COVID-19 health situation, you have the time to check it out and apply for financial aid as well as admittance into SDSU, which closes on June 1, 2020.

The PTM Master’s Degree is a great addition to a four-year Bachelor’s Degree as well as years of experiences as a teaching professional. I speak from experience. After over 30 years on the court, I was a graduate of the first USTA/SDSU Professional Tennis Management Cohort on December 6, 2019.

It was 18 months of amazing classes led by real world professors and instructors, who have their proverbial fingers on the pulse of the PTM and Hospitality & Tourism Industries. Fantastic course content included the theory of leadership, organizational management, finance, marketing, analytics and a Capstone project of your choice instead of writing a Master’s Thesis.

For me, the PTM program took a 1-2 hours of homework in the evenings Monday-Friday. Anything leftover was finished on weekends. Assignments were due online typically at 10 pm on Sundays. The SDSU professors really took an interest in each student’s progress. Also, sometimes crazy life events happened, and if you need some extra time, it’s not a problem.

Bottom line, SDSU’s PTM program changed my life by providing a great education and relevant class content that resulted in possibility thinking. It could do the same for you. Don’t wait. Here’s how to get started:

1. Apply for the USTA Foundation Professional Tennis Management Scholarship. The deadline is fast approaching on March, 30, 2020 at 11:59 Eastern Time. The award amount is $10,000.

Qualifications include:

Undergraduate degree: 3.0 GPA or better
4.0 or higher NTRP
GRE Score (Any score will be accepted.)
Experience with USTA Programs such as National Jr. Tennis & Learning (NJTL), Junior Team Tennis etc…

The recipients of the Professional Tennis Management College Scholarship are eligible to receive $2,500 per year for a total of up to $10,000 to cover costs of tuition, room and board and educational materials. The scholarship will be paid directly to the college or university in which the student is enrolled and is disbursed annually based on the recipient’s standing with his/her college.

Students with focus areas in hospitality, sports management and exercise science will find that the PTM program enhances their education and provides much added value to their degree. After completing the PTM program, students can pursue careers in tennis event and facility management, technology, marketing, and business. There are more opportunities to work in the tennis industry than ever before. For more general information about the SDSU’s PTM Master’s Program CLICK HERE.

2. There are additional PTM Scholarships and Grants are available through SDSU channels so be sure and check them out. Contact Candy Flynn.