Athletics | Job Family Group


The Athletics job family group supports the University’s mission through the delivery of competitive sports programs and innovative recreation and wellness offerings. These roles span coaching, training, recreational sports, strength and conditioning, equipment management, and specialized athletic administration. Together, they foster excellence in athletic performance, student well-being, and community engagement through dynamic, inclusive programming.

If you'd like assistance in charting your career path, Career Navigation is here to provide guidance and support. 

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Explore Job Families

Job Family is a specialty area within a broader field of work. It groups together roles that require similar skill sets, knowledge, and abilities. While a Job Family Group covers a wide professional category—like Athletics—a Job Family narrows it down to a specific focus, such as Coaching. This structure helps clarify the types of work being done and supports clearer career development pathways.

  • Athletics Academic Support

    These roles are responsible for interacting with coaches, faculty and student athletes to facilitate balance between academic performance and athletic commitments. May assist in tutoring, advising and connecting the student athlete to academic resources to meet their education goals, while helping the athlete to maintaining eligibility for participation in athletic activities in accordance with all rules and regulations.

  • Coaching

    Positions in this sub-family are responsible for leading and managing student athletes in university sports programs. In accordance with program strategy and regulations, Coaches participate in recruitment, develop game day strategies, train athletes and foster teamwork, both on and off the field. 

  • Equipment and Facilities

    These roles focus on managing and maintaining the equipment and facilities used in sports and athletic activities.  Support athletes and teams by providing high-quality equipment, maintaining safe and operational facilities, and ensuring a well-organized environment for training and competition.

  • Recreation Programs

    Positions in this subfamily are responsible for designing and delivering recreational programs (intramural and club sports) that meet the needs of the community, including organizing leagues, tournaments, events and securing participation. 

  • Sports Program Operations

    Positions in this sub-family are responsible for the management and administration and logistical support of athletic programs.  Employees may schedule games, manage budgets, coordinate travel, and assist with compliance and regulations.

  • Strength and Conditioning

    Employees in this subfamily are responsible for planning, designing and implementing training programs that maximize the athletic performance potential of student athletes. Key responsibilities include the design and implementation of routines that improve athletic performance in areas such as strength, speed, agility, and endurance while preventing injuries.

Understanding Career Journeys Framework

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Job Framework Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is a career stream?

    A career stream is a category in the Career Journeys Job Framework that describes the general type of responsibilities a position has. It reflects the nature of the work—such as professional, clinical, operational, managerial, or executive—and helps clarify the kind of contribution the role makes to the University. Career streams, combined with job families, help employees understand how their work fits into the organization and identify potential paths for growth, whether within the same stream or by moving to another.

    Career Streams in Career Journeys Job Framework Include:

    • Professional
    • Management
    • Operations and Service 
    • Clinical Professional
    • Clinical Technician 
    • Senior Administrator
    • Executive
    • Athletics
  • Am I able to change career streams?

    Yes — you can move from one career stream to another if your job responsibilities change and align with the new stream.

    For example, someone in the Operations and Service stream could move into the Professional stream by gaining the necessary education, training, or experience, or into the Management stream by taking on people-leadership responsibilities. Career streams aren’t fixed for life—they’re a way of describing your current role, not limiting your future opportunities

  • Will I have to become a manager to get to the top of my career stream?

    No — you don’t have to become a manager to reach the top of your career stream.

    In Career Journeys, each stream has its own progression path. For example, in the Professional or Clinical Professional streams, you can advance in roles in a higher "level" that carry significant increases in influence, responsibility, and compensation without managing people.

    Management is just one type of career stream, not the “top” of all streams. You can build a high-level career without shifting into people leadership—unless that’s the direction you want to go.

  • What is a level?

    Levels reflect the typical knowledge, skills, and experience needed for roles at that stage. Within a career stream, several different jobs may share the same level, and not every level will always have an active position in every stream.

  • How is level/career level determined?

    The differences between career levels are determined based on the scope/complexity of the position. Specifically, this means the jobs within a job family will differ in level based on duty and responsibility differences between profiles.  Factors include the nature and scope of influence, the level of autonomy the position has to make decisions at various levels of impact, the nature of communication and audience, supervisory responsibilities and number/type of teams, and the level of expertise needed to fulfill position responsibilities. 

  • Can I change job family groups or job families?

    Yes — you can move to a different job family group or job family if you apply for and are selected for a position in that area.

    For example:

    • You might move from the Information Technology job family group into Finance if you gain relevant skills or education and are hired into a finance role.

    • Or you could shift from the Digital Media job family to Graphic Design within the Communications job family group if your work focus changes.

    It’s not an automatic change — it happens when your role and responsibilities align with the requirements of the new job family group or job family, and you successfully secure that position through UVA’s traditional hiring process.

  • What if my job responsibilities cross more than one job family group or job family?

    If most of a position’s responsibilities fall within one functional area, the position is assigned to the matching job family group or job family. If the work is more evenly spread across different areas, the job family group or job family is chosen based on which set of duties would be most important to highlight when recruiting for the role.

  • What is the difference between job profile and business title?

    • Business Title is how you present your role day-to-day.
    • Job Profile is how UVA classifies your role within the Job Framework for consistency and career planning.
  • Are faculty and student positions included in the Job Framework?

    Faculty and student positions are not included in the Career Journeys Job Framework. However, they still receive a unique job profile and can use Career Journeys to explore jobs that are part of the framework.

    Other positions not included are: Classified Staff, Temporary Employees, Professional Research Staff, Graduate Research Assistants (GRAs), Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs), Student Workers, Residents and House Staff, UVA Physicians Group, and UVA Community Health.

  • I supervise one person. Why isn’t my position in the management stream?

    To be classified in the management stream, a job’s main focus needs to be leading people. In most cases, this means supervising at least two team members and overseeing a distinct department as a core part of the role.

  • I’m looking to better understand my job classification—how should I proceed?

    We welcome all employees to take some time to explore the Career Journeys Job Framework and get familiar with its key concepts before requesting more information or changes to their job profile. For example, it is good to know that your job profile title may not always match the business title you use every day, and supervising one employee does not automatically place a role in the management stream before reaching out.

    You can learn more about your job profile and how it relates to other roles by reviewing the Job Framework resources on this page and on the training webpage. If, after doing so, you’d still like to know more about your classification, please email the HR Solution Center with a brief description of your questions and any relevant details. Our HR team will review your message and connect you with the right person to guide you through the next steps for understanding—or, if appropriate, reevaluating—your job profile.

  • What if I have another question that hasn't been answered?

    If you have more questions, there are plenty of resources to help. Your manager is a great first stop, and you can also email the HR Solution Center for assistance. If your questions are about your personal career path, consider scheduling a meeting with Career Navigation.

    Learn More about Career Navigation

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