Story By: Cypris Wilkinson
MONTEVALLO, Ala.— Molly Hansen, a recent graduate of the University of Montevallo, is achieving a goal that her time at UM gave her the opportunity to reach. Hansen found her love for collegiate athletics here at the University of Montevallo, and she is now shifting her focus toward a promising career in the NCAA in a different way.
During her undergraduate years, Hansen played a pivotal role in the University athletics, by leaving her mark on the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), an organization that brings students together in a leadership committee to provide insight into the student-athlete experience. Hansen’s journey began in her freshman year when curiosity led her to explore the committee’s purpose, and she became intrigued by the opportunity to serve as a liaison between the athletic department and student-athletes.
“It was amazing to see how much impact we could have as student-athletes, and I knew I wanted to do even more.”
Molly Hansen
Her dedication to the organization at Montevallo led her to bigger opportunities when a spot in national SAAC became open. She applied and ascended to the position of vice chair of the Division II National SAAC during her sophomore year.
Hansen’s impact continued to grow, and she then secured the position of head chair of the Gulf South Conference SAAC, a position she will hold until January 2024. While head chair of the Gulf South Conference, she attended many conventions all over the country, networking and making lifelong friends. She says this is one of the main reasons she fell in love with athletics in a whole new way.
“It was amazing to see how much impact we could have as student-athletes,” Hansen says, “and I knew I wanted to do even more.”
Hansen is continuing her education in accounting at the University of West Florida and is set to graduate August 2024 with a masters in accountancy. She credits her time at UM for drawing her into the world of compliance.
“I think Montevallo set me up for success because they had a lot of networking events on campus,” she says, “and it taught me how to like engage myself in a professional atmosphere and make connections with professors.”
Hansen says numerous guest speakers also helped prepare her for the real world. “There’s a lot of professional development opportunities in the Stephen College of Business.”
She says with the combination of the professional development she received through her degree program and all the opportunities and experiences through SAAC at the national level prepared her for the next chapter in her professional life.
“I’ve actually just gone through like a five month interview process for an internship with the NCAA, and I think being involved for so long with SAAC helped me a lot. I kinda already had a foot in the door and was able to make connections,” Hansen says, “but it paid off because they actually just offered me the job! ”
Hansen says her new internship will start in June, and she’s moving from Florida to the NCAA national office in Indianapolis, Indiana. She will be working with their academic and membership affairs division, working on compliance and doing waiver work or student athlete enforcement and academic enforcement.
Hansen says there is some stigma behind this kind of work, but she says it is important. “It’s rewarding work whenever it works out, and it’s something that is needed in the world of athletics.”
Hansen wants to stay in the world of sports, either in the NCAA or professional sports organizations, but her career goal is to make it back to her true passion sport of swimming. Her ultimate goal is to one day work for USA Swimming.
“I don’t have a true dream job, and I have like soft career goals. My career goal right now is working with the USA Swimming Organization in that same kind of role under the NCAA.”
Molly Hansen’s story is a testament to the relationship between academic and extracurricular experiences, illustrating how the foundation laid at Montevallo has positioned her for success in the world of collegiate athletics.
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