I’ve always been a person who loves sports. … My dad took me to every sporting event there was”
“The mission of the association is to prepare sports management students for careers after college,” Gil said. “This includes providing information about the industry, expanding your network and providing academic preparation.”
Gil had various responsibilities as the vice president, including seeking networking opportunities through conferences, reaching out to those who are currently working and experienced in the field of sports and providing resources to help others succeed in the classroom and beyond.
Running the club wasn’t easy for Gil because of the pandemic, especially because all of the meetings had been moved online.
“I was in the club before [the pandemic] and we’d have interesting meetings,” Gil said. “[We] were able to [go] on [a] tour to Levi’s Stadium. During my time [as vice president, it] was a little bit more difficult getting people engaged [but] we were able to have guest speakers.”
The pandemic also affected Stanford’s athletic events.
“We’re honestly still being affected by [COVID-19],” Gil said. “When I first started, [it] was right before [the pandemic] so everything was kind of normal, then all [of a] sudden [it] went to nothing. There weren’t any sports really. Once sports started back up, it was [with] no fans so that was really weird to deal with.”
While there are a lot of changes and obstacles, Gil enjoys working in the sports management industry.
“It’s just a really … fast-paced industry [and] things are constantly changing,” Gil said. “The business aspect of it [is interesting].”
In her current position, Gil’s responsibilities include setting up for the events and making sure everything runs smoothly on game day.
[Every] event, we’re there,” Gil said. “Hours before the event starts, you make sure everything’s ready for the visiting team [and] for [referees and] make sure the gates are ready to open.”
“It’s a really fast paced industry and things are constantly changing. … It’s interesting”
The most rewarding part of Gil’s job is the successful football games.
“Football season was a huge thing for us because we would be there for 14 hours,” Gil said. “Having those successful events like, ‘Okay, we had a good game, nothing went wrong’ [was great]. Especially because football games [being] televised, there was no room for any error.”
Gil has gotten to where she is today by taking as many opportunities that may arise and she advises high school students to do the same.
“Just take any … volunteer opportunity [in] whatever field that may interest you,” Gil said. “[Just] networking, creating those relationships, volunteering, exploring and figuring out what you do and what you don’t like.”
Sports management is an important part of running the business side of the athletic industry. Gil plans to continue working in the field and sees herself getting a master’s degree in the future.
