How to Develop and Administer a College Recreational Sports Graduate Administrative Assistant Research Program

Strategies to teach young college recreational sports (CRS) professionals how to conduct research and to increase conducted and reported research within the CRS field need to be developed and shared within the profession. The product of these strategies will help to ensure data-driven decision making in CRS. The purpose of this article is to share the strategy used to develop and administer a Graduate Administrative Assistant (GAA) research program. It is hoped that the program will be replicated in other CRS departments because of the research experience that GAAs receive and the increased research in CRS. There are certain elements that make a CRS GAA research program work. First, the GAA needs to be aware of the research requirement before signing the GAA contract. Ongoing communication between the GAA and research mentor is necessary for the continual progress of the project. Before starting the research project, the GAA is required to write a research proposal. The proposal provides a step-by-step plan on how to administer the research project and includes the following sections: introduction, methodology, analysis of data, significance of study, budget, and timeline. Achievable research goals or purposes are established up front and from the research proposal. In addition, project tasks are placed on a timeline. Finally, flexibility is required on the mentor's part to adjust expectations, allow more time for teaching research skills, or assist with parts of the project that do not provide significant GAA learning. The capstone of the GAA research experience is the research symposium. The GAAs present their research to a captive audience of CRS professionals and invited guests. The CRS GAA research program provides the GAA with practical research experience and scholarly achievement while providing the CRS profession with new knowledge.