Navigating the "Brawn Drain": Canadian Student-Athlete Experiences in the U.S. and Canada

Abstract

There is an abundance of research on athletic scholarships and the experiences of college athletes (Duderstadt, 2000; Herbert, 2004; Miller & Kerr, 2002; Paskey, 2000; Sack & Staurowsky, 1998; Schofield, 2000; Shulman & Bowen, 2001). However, since much of this work has focused on the U.S. context, there is a scarcity of literature pertaining to the experiences of Canadian student-athletes. This study explores what is known as the "brawn drain"—the apparent movement of Canadian student-athletes to the U.S.--and compares their experiences with those who remain in Canada. In- depth, open-ended interviews with Canadian student-athletes at U.S. universities revealed that on the one hand, these athletes endured arduous training regimes, an increased pressure to perform athletically, and a higher value placed on athletic performance that at times compromised their academic priorities. On the other hand, interviewees noted their satisfaction with superior training facilities and the opportunity to continue to compete at a high level, benefits that they felt were not available in Canada. Our analysis is contextualized within the recent debates among and beyond Canadian Interuniversity Sport on the possibility of raising the annual cap on athletic scholarships in Canada (Paskey, 2000).