An athletic trainer is responsible for personally training a professional athlete. The job covers a variety of tasks, from supervising the athlete’s training sessions and preventing injury, to giving diet and nutrition advice, to accompanying the athlete on professional events and treating their injuries and giving them direct advice related to the competition. An athletic trainer may also serve as a sort of manager for the athlete, taking responsibilities such as ordering supplies and keeping track of various aspects of the athlete’s progress.
An athletic trainer needs to be very experienced in the sport they’re training, preferrably coming from a professional background and/or formal education. Athletic trainers may work with one or more athletes depending on various conditions, such as the type of sport being practiced, the level of experience the athlete has, and the league they’re being trained for. In general, athletic trainers that work with higher-level athletes may work with only one client on a permanent basis. On the other hand, athletic trainers may be employed by various institutions such as schools and colleges, or sports clubs.
As an athletic trainer, one can earn between $32,000 – $42,000 annually. The median annual salary is around $35,000, and the benefits and bonuses are rather low compared to other jobs. There’s been a tendency for improvement in the annual salary for athletic trainers, as around 2006-2007 it was substantially lower, around $25,000 annually.