Internship: Sport Science Institute: Health, Safety and Performance

General position summary: The NCAA Sport Science Institute intern will join a collaborative, interdisciplinary team and contribute to initiatives that support SSI’smission to provide expert support to NCAA schools in their effort to protect and enhance the mental and physical health, safety and performance of college student-athletes.

Although the role is nonclinical and does not involve direct research, it offers exposure to credentialed professionals, including athletic trainers and the chief medical officer, as well as opportunities to contribute to projects across SSI’s three service lines (development, health promotion and sports medicine) and to gain insight into how research- and data informed decisions shape evidence- and consensus-based guidance for the NCAA membership. This internship is housed within and supervised by the health, safety and performance service lines, which encompass both health promotion and sports medicine.

The health, safety and performance service lines provide strategic direction, operational oversight and subject matter expertise on a broad range of topics impacting student-athlete well-being, including mental health, prevention and harm reduction, sleep, nutrition, concussion, cardiac care, catastrophic injury prevention, injury surveillance, anti-doping and drug testing education and other emerging health and safety topics.

Responsibilities

Health, Safety and Performance Initiatives

Support initiatives related to mental and physical health, sport injury and illness, training and performance and education and policy.

Assist with health promotion efforts, including nutrition, sleep, prevention and harm reduction strategies and mental health.

Contribute to sports medicine initiatives, including concussion, cardiac care, injury surveillance, anti-doping and drug testing education and other emerging health and safety topics.

Educational Programs and Events

Develop and update educational resources, presentations and guidance for NCAA member schools and other stakeholder audiences.

Coordinate logistics and contribute to the execution of SSI events, including summits, advisory group meetings and NCAA Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CSMAS) committee meetings.

Support educational outreach and strategic communications for NCAA member schools and partner organizations.

Project Management and Collaboration

Maintain project tools, shared resources and internal databases.

Assist with data collection and tracking and program planning.

Collaborate with internal NCAA departments and external partners on strategic initiatives.

Support additional projects that advance the Sport Science Institute’s mission.

Essential duties:

Contribute to the planning and execution of initiatives that support the Association’s health, safety and performance strategic priorities: mental and physical health, sport injury and illness, training and performance and education and policy.

Support health promotion initiatives related to mental health and well-being, prevention and harm reduction strategies, sleep, nutrition, sexual and interpersonal violence prevention and other emerging health promotion topics. 

Assist with sports medicine projects focused on concussion, cardiac care, sickle cell trait, catastrophic injury prevention, injury surveillance, anti-doping and drugtesting education and other emerging sport-related health and safety topics.

Support SSI staff in the oversight of essential data collection programs, including the NCAA Injury Surveillance Program, Catastrophic Injury Reporting Mandate and Annual Concussion Reporting. 

Collaborate with the SSI development intern on governance and development efforts, including committee support, process optimization and strategic communications.

Help create and refine educational materials, presentations and resources for member schools and stakeholder audiences.

Coordinate logistics and contribute to the execution of SSI events, including summits, advisory group meetings and NCAA Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports committee meetings.

Maintain and update internal databases, shared resources and project tools; contribute to data tracking and its application in program planning.

Collaborate with internal NCAA departments and external partners on projects aligned with SSI’s mission and service lines.

Responsibilities may vary based on team needs and project timelines and may include additional duties as appropriate. 

Desired knowledge, skills and abilities:

Bachelor’s degree, or master’s degree where applicable, in a health-, athletics-, or policy-related field (e.g., athletic training, health education, health promotion, higher education, public health, public policy, exercise science, epidemiology, kinesiology).

Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Familiarity with key concepts in health promotion, sports medicine, health education and healthcare policy related to student-athlete health, safety and performance.

Readiness to learn and apply data-informed decision-making, including the ability to help translate data into practical guidance and educational resources.

Demonstrated ability and willingness to collaborate effectively with interdisciplinary stakeholders, including athletic trainers, researchers, athletics administrators, health care professionals and other subject matter experts.

Experience supporting or serving on a committee within an athletics and/or academic context (e.g., NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory/Advocacy Committee).

Proficiency with Microsoft Office and interest in learning project and content management platforms such as Asana; exposure to basic data tools and analytics is a plus. 

Curiosity about the intersection of student-athlete well-being, higher education and sport, and a commitment to contributing to a collaborative team environment. 

For more information and to apply: https://www.ncaa.org/what-we-do/programs/postgraduate-internships/sport-science-institute/