At first, the reason I chose to pursue the Doctor of Athletic Training (DAT) program at A.T. Still University (ATSU) three years ago was because, at the time, I felt that I was at a stagnant point in my career as an athletic trainer. I graduated from my undergrad at California State University, Northridge, in 2012, started working immediately, and have been working ever since. I have mainly worked in the collegiate setting, primarily with baseball athletes.

Before moving to San Antonio, TX, I had already started to struggle with feelings of burnout and disdain for the profession. Being overworked, underpaid, and underappreciated had caused me to move around to different jobs, and I moved to Texas with the hope of a fresh start and a cheaper cost of living.

At first, it was good. I enjoyed my time in a new state and working with a great group of coworkers, but it didn’t last long. After only about a year, the high stress and anxiety COVID created brought me back to the same struggling mental state that made me question whether I even wanted to continue being an athletic trainer.

During one of the winter breaks from the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), I went back home to see my family for the holidays and introduce them to my then-girlfriend, who would eventually become my wife. While back in California, I met up with one of my old professors and mentors and asked him simply if I should take a suture certification course or get my CSCS just to broaden my skills. My mentor asked me what my future plans were with my career: stay or leave the profession, and what would any new certification really do for me in the long run? Eventually, after I mentioned that maybe I wanted to go into teaching, he told me that if I was going to change fields, why not just get a doctorate so I could at least have a stronger resume.

At first, I said that I would think about it, but in my head, I was telling myself that I didn't want to go back to school, and I really didn't want to go into massive student debt just to pay for it. I actually got really lucky with one of my previous jobs and made enough money to pay back all my student loans. However, after talking with my future wife, who also happens to be a PhD professor at the medical school in San Antonio, she agreed with my mentor and encouraged me to get my doctorate.

Just like when I looked at where I should go to get my Master’s, I typed into Google, "athletic training doctorate program," had a bunch pop up, and just closed my laptop because I didn't want to think about it. Luckily, and just by happenstance, the next week when I was back at UTSA, I mentioned to one of my professor friends, Dr. Nydia Cabra, that I was maybe looking into getting a DAT and maybe going into teaching. She was super happy for me because she had finished her doctorate a little while back at ATSU, loved the program, and highly recommended it to me because it offered multiple discipline tracks, including an education component.

After that, I did a little research and saw that the course ATSU provided looked very interesting and that they had an orthopedic and rehab track that, at the time, I thought would allow me to at least keep improving my clinical skills in case the teaching thing didn’t work out. So I filled out my application, wrote up my personal statement, got my letters of recommendation, and applied.

And here I am, about five years later, with just two semesters left before I graduate. Luckily, the teaching thing did work out, and I actually got a great opportunity to become a professor at UTSA. Again, it was thanks to Dr. Cabra, who kept praising me to the department chair so that they would consider me for any open teaching position. Funny as it may be, the position ended up being hers, since Dr. Cabra moved on to another professor position at Texas State University.

Starting the DAT program was scary and has been stressful, especially early on when I really didn't know if it would even help my career path. But I have learned a lot, and all of the professors are great and super encouraging, which made the entire process a little less stressful. I know that it will all be worth it in the end.