It's a Wednesday in October, and sophomore Stephanie Viola has already had two classes: a cardio workout, a weight lifting session, and a two-hour volleyball practice. And it's only 10:30 in the morning.
There are around 800 Tufts students playing on Varsity sports teams, and - as the NCAA's advertising campaign slogan states - almost all of them will be going pro in something other than sports.
Because of this, Tufts' student-athletes must balance a schedule of classes, study time, practices, road trips, workouts, and managing the demands of academics, athletics, and social life. This essential time management poses a challenge for Jumbos on and off the field.
Juggling busy schedules is especially challenging for incoming freshmen, who must deal with the demands of athletics on top of the usual transition to life on campus. Even registering for classes, which can be an intimidating and confusing process for first-year students, is more difficult for athletes working around practice schedules.
"Time is a huge issue when you play sports in college," Viola said. "I can't have any classes between 1:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. because that's taken up by volleyball. Playing sports definitely adds an entirely different aspect to your freshman year."
Field hockey coach Tina McDavitt holds individual meetings with incoming freshman to try to help them adjust to all aspects of college life.
"I encourage them to talk to upperclassmen who've been there before," McDavitt said. "It's about finding that balance with your time, and getting used to having so much freedom. You have to decide whether to go take a nap or go to the library, and at a school like Tufts, you really need to be going to the library."
With conflicting academic and athletic schedules, finding time for socializing can be difficult.
"Socialization is hard since you have games and practices all week and tournaments on weekends," Viola said. "While other freshmen are having fun and meeting people, you're in a van driving to Maine."
But the sophomore commented on the role of the team in creating a social network for first-year athletes.
"The team becomes a really close-knit group of friends since you spend so much time together," she said. "It definitely helps you bond and feel more welcome at school."
The competitive academic atmosphere at Tufts also presents a challenge to coaches and admissions officers throughout the recruitment process. Coaches face high admissions standards in recruiting high school athletes, knowing that their future star shortstop may compete with some of the nation's brightest students for a spot in the incoming freshman class.
McDavitt said she acknowledges the challenges in finding high school athletes that meet both the academic standards of admission for Tufts and the needs of her program, one that is quickly on the rise across the NESCAC and the New England region.
"I think it's definitely challenging," she said. "Tufts has established a reputation as a school, and it's getting better and better every year. We're looking for the perfect package - great athletes who were also the top of their class coming out of high school - and that's hard to find."
But McDavitt said she relies heavily on the selling points Tufts has to offer incoming freshman during the recruitment process.
"Academics are a huge sell, as is the location," she said. "But it's really the people - the student body as a whole - that are great. There's something interesting and cool about everyone you meet, and [recruits] can come and take a tour and meet the girls on the team and get a really good feel for the school. That's the part of recruiting that's easy."
Both athletes and coaches point to the balance between athletics and all other aspects of college life that exist at Tufts.
"I love volleyball, but I didn't want it to control my life," said Viola, who chose Tufts over Div. I schools Lafayette, Lehigh, and Colgate. "I knew volleyball would be a full-time job for me at other schools; here we're playing because we're passionate about the sport, and I love it more than ever."
