Juggling classes, work, hobbies and a social life are the pressures every college student faces, but for a student-athlete, those challenges are just part of the story.

A day in the life of a student-athlete is busy, with early practices, late practices, games and school. Managing it all becomes a balancing act, a routine Cyclone football player and senior in finance Seth Zehr knows all too well.

During football season in the fall, Zehr is at practice from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Three days a week, he lifts weights for an hour. School gets squeezed in between the hours of 8 a.m. and 2 p.m.

“[Time] is precious as a student-athlete because your days are so consumed by school and your sport that you don’t have much of it,” Zehr said.

Lisa Kriener, senior in art and design, is another athlete who finds balancing her time between school and sports challenging. As a member of the ISU women’s basketball team, she spends a lot of time perfecting her craft.

During basketball season, Kriener arrives at practice an hour early to get taped or do treatment, sometimes earlier if she wants to watch individual game film. The team’s actual practice is about two and a half to three hours, and Kriener stays after practice six days a week for treatment.

In total, Kriener said she spends about 30 to 35 hours a week on basketball.

“[Basketball] is like a job,” Kriener said. “You don’t only think about basketball on the court, there’s a lot of extra baggage that goes home with you.”

While some sports may be more demanding than others, finding time for school for any athlete proves challenging. For some student-athletes, the amount of time spent in the gym pales in comparison to the amount of time spent on academics.

Charlotte Ljungkrantz, junior in aerospace engineering and member of the ISU women’s tennis team, said she spends the bulk of her time focusing on her highly detailed and intense major.

While there are 168 hours in a week, Ljungkrantz said she spends nearly 50 to 60 hours on school. The hard work seems to have paid off, as Ljungkrantz boasts a 3.94 GPA and aspires to work for NASA.

Because school and sports take up a substantial amount of time for a student-athlete, there are often time conflicts when the two overlap.

Ljungkrantz said her school and practice schedules have conflicted the entire spring season. The tennis team practices hitting from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. daily, which conflicts with her school schedule every day except for Thursday. To compensate for the time she misses, Ljungkrantz said she hits with someone between her morning and afternoon classes or early in the morning.

“I try to plan my days and work well,” she said. “That usually means I don’t sleep much.”

According to the National Survey of Student Engagement, only 11 percent of full-time students spend 25 hours per week preparing for class. Two-fifths spend 10 hours or less on class preparation per week, a far cry from what most student-athletes put in.

The survey also found 25 percent of students spend 16 hours or more relaxing or socializing per week, while 8 percent spend more than 25 hours per week.

Not so for student-athletes. Adding to the challenge of school and sports is trying to fit in a social life.

Building and maintaining relationships is a part of college, and can be difficult when someone has all the responsibilities that come along with being a student and an athlete.

Ardith Johnson, senior in apparel merchandising, design and production and a track team member, said some things take precedence over others.

“I have to have the time management thing down,” Johnson said. “I have to make sure what needs to get done gets done and that I have my priorities straight.”

Depending on the sport, the athlete and his or her ultimate motivation, priorities are different. Some of the more demanding sports, such as basketball and football, require more attention and dedication.

“School is always higher on the list.” Johnson said. “I am not going to be a professional athlete, so I need to do well in classes for my future.

“I also need to remember that track is another huge reason that I am at Iowa State, so I have to give it my attention and focus. [Track] comes in a close second to school.”

Deciphering priorities is a challenge for student athletes who find their sport and their academic endeavors equally important.

When trying to figure out which is more important, some student-athletes are forced to leave out time for themselves.

“It’s hard to find time for a social life,” said ISU football player and junior in mechanical engineering Shawn Moorehead. “But I make sure I find time to go out and have a good time with my friends.”