For Joaquín Mones Pritsch, the Master’s Programme in Responsible Management and Business of Sport (RESPO) has been both a professional and personal experience. Returning to academia after more than a decade, he adapted to a new learning environment while continuing his long-time passion for sports. Through determination and an open mind, he gained a broader understanding of the global realities of sport, sustainability, and managerial ethics — exploring not only what is done in sports management, but why and whether it should be. Along the way, he also found a strong sense of belonging in the Finnish academic and sports community.
When I started my studies, I soon realised that many of my classmates were ten years younger than me. I knew I was rejoining the academic field after a 12-year hiatus; Moodle, AI and online lessons were not an everyday occurrence in my previous student experience.
As there were no related master’s degrees on the topic, I learned most of what I knew about sports management on my own, after a short course in Uruguay at the YMCA. Volunteering, as a Club Captain, starting my own business and dealing with national, regional and Federative Sport bureaucracies gave me valuable experience in the field.
Gaining insights into sports, sustainability, and personal growth with RESPO
After my arrival I was so in awe of how well organized the Finnish Education System and JYU in particular were, that I didn’t worry about the contents of my courses. Everything was extremely clear, and there was always someone willing to explain whenever I had any doubts or concerns. Everyone made me feel genuinely welcome, and before long I was fully immersed in the academic world.
I gained a wider perspective on the reality of world sports, and on sustainability and managerial theories.
At the beginning of my studies, I started to worry that most courses seemed too theoretical and far removed from everyday applications that I could really use, thinking for instance about how I run my own rowing club back in Uruguay. But then I realised that I was not learning to improve the manager I was, but to broaden my perspective towards the future. I gained a wider perspective on the reality of world sports, and on sustainability and managerial theories. The Ethics courses really helped me realise a deeper purpose, thinking not about what we do, but why we do what we do and whether we should.
After living in a culturally homogeneous country, in a region where everyone speaks the same language, courses on Intercultural Communication made me aware not only of the diversity of the world and my own work environments, but also of my own experience and my place in the world as a foreigner joining a new country, with a strange language.
Starting my sports career journey in Jyväskylä
The language barrier was a major concern, even though I devoted myself 100% to the Finnish Courses at JYU (and to city-provided courses in the evening), but then I realised I could use being a foreign student as an advantage. I joined the local rowing club, started a Student Division and recruited a crew from fellow students. We raced and grew the group throughout the year. Recently, that experience allowed me to apply and secure an internship position in Ski-Jyväskylä, with the goal of recruiting international inhabitants of the city to join the Club and race in the Ski-Marathon.
I joined the local rowing club, started a Student Division and recruited a crew from fellow students.
Although my Finnish is still rough, I can make myself understood, and even if I need further clarification in English after some meetings, I feel that I am slowly integrating into the Finnish sports scene. Exposing myself to uncomfortable situations is meant to be sooner or later, so I would rather start now. This internship will be the place where I not only apply everything I learned back in Uruguay and in JYU, but also gain the first strong position in my CV that will lead me to further opportunities in the country.
Read more: Master's Degree Programme in Responsible Management and Business of Sport
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