Bachelor Sport Studies

My name is Thomas Krasonis, and I am an 18year old student from Greece.

I am currently studying in the Netherlands in order to get a degree in sport studies with hopes of becoming an agent/manager of athletes. In the beginning of the year I was accepted at Hanze university of applied sciences that is located in Groningen. I am a professional Greek racing driver with participation in many Top-tier European and world championships both in karting and in car racing. I chose this study because of my love for sports and my passion which is helping other reach their goals and follow their dreams. I really think that I made the right choice when I enrolled in these studies and I hope that I can finish them without any delay.

What did your development and learning process look like regarding this learning outcome?

To what extent do you manage this learning outcome? (STARR or reflection model of Gibbs of must be traceable).
What shows that you have achieved this competence?

• The student develops sportsmanship and a professional attitude through reflection and critical monitoring of developments in the field as a knowledge worker (LO11).

S (situation): The first time in my life where I understood what working as a professional is like, was when my class from the University was given the task to split into teams and organize a mini event for a specific target audience (Event Management Block 1.1) which in my case was for my international classmates.

T (task): The task sounded simple but in reality what we actually had to do in order to execute a complete event was much more complicated. We had to pay attention to even the slightest detail so that we could avoid mistakes that would make me and my team look unprofessional.

A (action): Together with my team we created an action plan that included every necessary action that needed to be done in order for us to succeed. It was not easy since for the first time in my life I had to pay attention for so many things and to be honest it was not easy.

R (result): The result was not perfect but satisfying. We managed to execute the event successfully with all of the participant being extremely pleased with the way we handled some setbacks that we faced on the day of the event. In the end we were just happy that all of the participants enjoyed our sport day!

• The student can indicate on the basis of (international) developments in the discipline of the sportsman in which further personal development is desirable and possible (LO11).

S (situation): While I and my classmates were on a field trip at the international racing circuit of Assen, we observed the preparations that need to be made in order to execute an event of such caliber. It was then when I realized that I need to develop many things if I wish to be at the same level as the organizers.

T (task): The task was quite simple. To learn everything you can possibly learn from the lesson of Event management in order to broaden my horizons so that I am able to evolve into a more complete and sophisticated sports professional.

A (action): I tried to follow the lessons of our sport event teacher as much as possible and I studied a lot in order to pass my exam.

R (result): I managed to pass with a 6.3 which was not perfect but satisfying for the effort that I put into the whole process.

•  The student examines his/her own sport identity and develops self-management skills, resilience, drive, eagerness to learn, the ability to work intercultural and a standard about who he/she wants to be as a sports professional (LO 12).

S (situation): Through the coaching lessons I was given the task of creating my own personal development plan and my own website regarding my student and sport career.

T (task): The purpose of this “exercise” was for each individual to search within himself in order to identify strengths and weaknesses equally so that a development plan can be created with the sole purpose of creating a more complete sport identity.

A (action): I made a list with all my achievements and I started reviewing my career which was a satisfying experience since I got to remember all of the things that made me love the world of sports.

R (result): After the task was finished I felt more complete in terms of my identity and I had a more clear idea in my mind regarding my future as a sport professional.

•  The student is able to compile and execute his own professional personal development plan on the basis of collected information from others for the short and long term in sport (training) world (LO12).

S (situation): On the second block I had the opportunity to coach for the first time in my life through the lesson of Sport & Technical framework.

T (task): The task was so that I and a partner would organize a training session for the rest of our classmates based on what we have learned in the lesson, including a warm up, briefing and everything that a complete training needs.

A (action): After proper preparation I acquired all the necessary items and equipment needed in order to perform my training and I put in work all of my knowledge that I gained through the lessons of this course.

R (result): The result was a successful training that gave me the chance to test my personal development as a sports professional in reality. I was satisfied with my performance and the course was extremely useful, although there are still many things to learn.

• The student develops sportsmanship and a professional attitude through reflection and critical monitoring of developments in the field as a knowledge worker (LO11).

S (situation): In this year our biggest task was the one regarding the internship that we had to do. The idea was to work as an intern in a sport organization and after research and observation come up with a plan to tackle said organizations issues and provide them with a solution.

T (task): The detailed task was to create a product that would improve the organization in as many different areas as possible from internal issues such as difficulty in communication between the different departments and also the psychology of the workers as well.

A (action): After I searched for a place to do my internship I managed to secure a place in the Marketing team of Peristeri B.C. which is a professional basketball club in the first division of Greek basketball while also competing in the Basketball Champions league. I was welcomed instantly into a very warm and friendly office with professionals of the field surrounding me. I started doing my research and after many weeks of being there I couldn’t identify a major issue in the organization, therefore I came up with a small and compact product. An advanced information sheet which is a 4 paged leaflet with images and a small amount of text with the goal of passing a message or an idea to its reader easily and without exhausting or boring them. I included images from the glory days of the club and strong inspirational quotes with the goal of improving their morale and passion while they remain a member/employee of the club.

R (result): The result was satisfying, and I was happy to hear the positive remarks of the people of the organization after I gave them my product. I would gladly do something similar again not only for the experience but for pleasure as well since I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of a professional sports team.

• The student can indicate on the basis of (international) developments in the discipline of the sportsman in which further personal development is desirable and possible (LO11).

S (situation): After I finished my time in Peristeri B.C. I had to complete the other half of the internship course which was a report that had to show a detailed description of my time in the club and through professional models that I have been taught in the university which improvements happened and what solutions I gave to the organization

T (task): This was not an easy task since the assessment form was long complex and the end product had to be perfect. The paper had to contain all kinds of details, proof of my actions while being there and professional level writing as well.

A (action): I began doing my report and in the end I had managed to create a more less 12thousand words document with what I though was a sufficient and professional work. I included everything from weekly documentation of my time in the club to the actual product that I had to create for the task.

R (result): Unfortunately my work seemed to be not enough and I did not get the desired grade that was in my mind. This made me realize that the more I am progressing as a student in the university the harder and stricter the teachers will become. This was frustrating in the beginning but I understood that it is the only way for me to develop a more complete and all around professional attitude that will later on help me become the sports professional that I wish.

•  The student examines his/her own sport identity and develops self-management skills, resilience, drive, eagerness to learn, the ability to work intercultural and a standard about who he/she wants to be as a sports professional (LO 12).

S (situation): For the second year I had to create an accountability report again using the same method as year one. Through reading the old one I was able to identify personal differences and improvements that happened during this time.

T (task): The purpose of this is through the learning outcomes to get a very good idea regarding your personal development and potential in the field of sports and academic studies, as well as creating a professional identity.

A (action): I can easily say that this learning outcome was the hardest due to the covid pandemic. In the beginning everything seemed without a meaning and not being able to be in the Netherlands in order to study and meet with my classmates and friends held me back. But I can safely say that through the internship and the other tasks of year two I was able to rethink the situation and decided that there is no reason to give up. No matter the problems me being in this university is a great opportunity to learn and develop and that is why I worked in order to keep improving and developing my sports professional status.

R (result): I am satisfied with myself, I realized that I am getting better and that doing universities work comes easier, but the university became harder equally, which is a good thing because only like this a student, in this case me can keep evolving.

•  The student is able to compile and execute his own professional personal development plan on the basis of collected information from others for the short and long term in sport (training) world (LO12).

S (situation): In the first year my biggest issue was my professional attitude regarding deadlines and being a reliable person to work with. It was the most important thing for me to change.

T (task): As soon as the year started along with my internship I participated in a lesson called European Vital cities were me and a team of fellow students had to work to create a detailed report on how we can improve the city of Kiel.

A (action): I immediately explained to my team that I want to prove myself as a worthy member and promised them that I will do a very professional job. The team leader split the tasks and everybody performed incredible thus giving us the top grade of the class in this project and the highest that I have ever gotten which was a 9.5 out of 10.

R (result): I was extremely happy to see that after all this time in the university I finally was a valuable asset in a team and with good cooperation me and my classmates performed at the best level possible. For the long term I am looking to improve even more and keep up this effort because I was extremely happy when I saw my work get rewarded and I would like to continue like this. I was also very glad that all of my team was proud of my work as well and now they consider me as a valuable asset in group projects.