Why I Got My Masters Degree Online While Playing in A Foreign Country

(YES guys, it's possible! It isn't easy, but it sure is possible!)

by Gabi KOEVA (Bulgarian National Team & Besiktas Pro Volleyball Player)

Elite Sport Students Mentor | Gabi KOEVA @ Besiktas (Pro Team in Turkey)

Let me start from long ago...

So there I was, at the age of 13, just having had that conversation with my parents about how I need to choose what I want to do with my life - Whether I should continue studying in the language profiled school I was currently in or I should take a different path and go to a sports profile school to play volleyball more seriously.

I was so upset that they won't give me any directions, won't tell me what their opinion is that I started crying (Yeah, I'm a girl, so what?). All they would say was:

“If you stay in the language profile school you’ll probably have serious lessons and less time to play volleyball. You’ll most likely grow taller than all your classmates (my father is 205cm tall, my mother 180, both former basketball players) and feel a little bit awkward...just have that in mind.

On the other hand in the sports profile school you will practice twice daily but there’s a chance you get things done a lot easier during the rest of the classes and you might as well not study so hard. The good news is you will be around other tall kids like you, both boys and girls, and you’ll feel more comfortable. It’s your decision what to make, it’s your future and you have to choose it, we won’t make that choice for you!”

— -My Parents

I said, "Okay, thanks, you helped a lot! I knew those things already!!!" Here is where my older brother (he graduated from that same language profiled high school I was in) comes in the room, sees me crying and first thing he says is: "I know lots of people graduated from that sports school. They are dumb as (you fill in the blank)..... If you go there you'll make a HUGE mistake!"

So what was I supposed to do? Standing there on the crossroad of the biggest decision in my life so far... I was terrified! It was all up to me and I would have to except the consequences of my choice. What I did was decide to follow my passion for volleyball. Also, along with that to prove my brother wrong and make my parents proud! I enrolled in the sports school and since my grades were always excellent earlier I didn't want that to change either.

I was going to morning practice, then lessons in school, then evening practice. After that I would go home to study, rest and prepare for the next busy day. You can say that I pretty much had no social life until the age of 16-17, except for on the weekends. I was a little bit of a geek in the eyes of my friends, classmates and teammates but that never stopped me. It upset me, of course, but never stopped me! I graduated with a national diploma (Bragging rights: ...in Bulgaria this means I had straight excellent final grades throughout all of the 12 years of high school, in all subjects I'd studied). Don't ask me how that happened, I failed exams and tests, but I somehow made it work but the end of every year and had an excellent (A).

Finishing high school only meant one thing - time to enroll in an university. By that time, I was already playing in Sofia (capital of Bulgaria). I had won the national volleyball championship of Bulgaria (twice) and with that gold medal in hand the most reasonable thing to do was to enroll in the National Sports Academy (NSA) and begin my education to become a coach. (Editor's note: RIGHT?!) I studied there for 2 years and before my 4th semester was over I went to play abroad in Switzerland for Volero Zurich and I couldn't find any solution to continue my education in NSA from distance.

THE PROBLEM

What most athletes do in that situation is say, "I'll finish it when I come back to Bulgaria, maybe in 10-15 years when I quit professional volleyball...". So I waited. I had one "empty" year during my first season in Zurich and I started feeling as if my brain was slowing down. I didn't know what to do with my free time, so mostly I was watching TV series and movies, wasting time and keeping my head busy with something. I'm sure it sounds familiar to some of you who are reading this.

THE SOLUTION

So I made a decision - I had to find a way to study something before my brain becomes too rusty. I did some research online about universities allowing satellite education. The idea came from a teammate of mine that was studying at a Serbian university from distance. I thought maybe we have those in Bulgaria also and I just didn't know about them. And I was right! I found what I was looking for and after the season was over I took the necessary exams and enrolled in an university where I would eventually get my major and master in BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

It's not easy as I mentioned in the beginning. You'll have tons of books to read all by yourself, a lot of cases and paperworks to write, a lot of problems to solve and let's not forget plenty of dead-ends to keep up with! It can be stressful but the best feeling is the feeling of accomplishment when you do well on an exam, test, colloquium or submit paperwork and see the (positive) response of your professor!

Let's be honest here!...

We live in a modern society, we have computers, smartphones, tablets, internet and with that unlimited access to tons and tons of information! If you want to find satellite study options in your area you have the tools to do it. (Editor note: Also called distance learning, e-learning and/or Massive-Open-Online-Courses (MOOCs)) Even more, if you are reading this, it means you have already at disposition some kind of an electronic device and internet. It also means you have made the first step (or you were just curious how I got my degree :)), in both cases, THANK YOU for your time and attention!

Now if you want to get your education done while playing professional sports...
GO and research what the options are!

I wish to all of you to stay focused on your goals and to be BOLD!
Hugs,
Gabi Koeva

5 Questions You Should Ask A Professional Athlete!

Elite Sport Students Mentor | Gabi KOEVA (BUL)

“If I had the chance when I was younger to ask a professional athlete something I would probably ask... ”

— Gabi KOEVA (Bulgarian National Volleyball Team)

1. I'm wondering, should I start playing professional sports or should I focus on my education?

What I would say now looking back to the path I chose is that these two things can be both done, you don't need to make a choice! There are plenty of possibilities. When I was playing in Zurich I had a coach - Tom Hogan, former USA national team assistant coach and currently @ Denver State University (ex-coach @ Colorado State University) volleyball team - who wanted me to join his team in Colorado, meanwhile educating myself there. I didn't go anyways, since I had already started my education in Bulgaria and I managed to keep up with studying and playing abroad, but in my opinion college sports provide the perfect balance between those two things. You will be able to play college volleyball (or any other sport) and get an education. Once you get your degree you can focus on playing professionally.

My journey didn't include going to the USA, but I made it work somehow, thanks to technology and the opportunity to get online classes in some private universities in Europe. It wasn't easy, I'm not going to say it was. I had to make a lot of sacrifices, spend a lot of time on reading and writing paper works and projects, but after all I'm proud that I was able to do my major and my master in Business Administration and along with that to play professional volleyball in Europe.

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2. How important is nutrition for an athlete?

Nutrition plays a key role in professional sports. It does in life in general, we all know eating healthy is good for us. But when playing as a pro, we really need to take care of what we give to our bodies, since we need to recover well and be in an optimal condition for next practice or game.

The truth is nutrients affect us in long term, meaning it's not enough to eat good a couple of days pre-game. Our bodies work on long term frames - 48hrs/72hrs/weekly and in that context an athlete's diet should be consistent and must include proteins, carbohydrates and healthy fats. I eat 5 times per day for example and I am trying to make heather choices with my food, I prefer cooking at home and when I eat out every once in a while I still try to stay on track with the right nutrients.

If you have been eating unhealthy so far but still able to perform good imagine how much better can you feel and how much could you improve you performance by eating better!!! Don't sabotage yourself by not doing the best you can, because professional sports only last so long and you will be looking back thinking "What could I have done better?".

P.S. We all have a "cheat day" every once in a while of course. Treating yourself with your favorite not so healthy foods can be an awesome stress relief, but let's try to not exaggerate with it!

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3. What should I focus on to get better?

Every one of us has his strong and weak points. I'm pretty sure we are all aware of our owns. If you're not really sure you can always talk to your coach or an older, more experienced teammate to help you with that. Next thing to do is work on your weak spots every chance you get - while lifting, during ball practice, even at home or in your free time by visualizing what you need to to and how you are doing it! It might sound funny at first, but mental practices play a very important in high level sports, since at that point everyone knows how to play, but the once with stronger mindset in the crucial moments are able to win!

Another thing I would advice "younger me" to do is to find a role model, someone to really look up to as an athlete, man or woman, doesn't matter. Try to study their moves and how they play and act on the court. It could be even more than one person, just find those athletes that inspire you to strive for greatness!

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4. How important is weight lifting in sports?

From what I have learned weight lifting can be as important as ball practices, especially when we no longer need to learn how to pass the ball, we are professional athletes, aren't we. But lifting can help you improve dramatically your performance by boosting your physical abilities to another level!

Of course no one ever said you can become Superman or Wonder Woman overnight :) but it is something you must be consistent with, along with your diet, since weight lifting, as nutrition, also works in longer terms. Your fitness program should consider preparation, in-season and out-season workouts of course, but even more you must realize that lifting doesn't just make you better in few months.

In order to see the real benefit form it, you must have patience. It takes years to build muscle and improve physical qualities!

5. What about recovery?

Recovery is one of the most important things for your body, alongside with your diet and fitness. Recovering well means sleeping enough, taking care of your body, having massage on regular basis and etc.

Sleep is probably the most crucial part. A lot of athletes don't get enough sleep and it always affects their performance, no exception! Though "enough sleep" for one can be 6 hours and for another 10, I feel best after a good 8 hour sleep, preferably going to bed earlier and waking up earlier. For me it's never the same 8 hours if I go to sleep at 2am or at 11pm for example. Night sleep is the key!

Other important things for me are getting a good full body massage at least a couple of times per week. During the week I would also go swimming 2 or 3 times, making 20-30 laps since it's very good for you back and shoulders (joints that suffer the most form volleyball), I would go to sauna and steam bath as well when I have time.