ALUMNA PROFILE: CONNIE ANDUJAR
Connie Andujar on the practice field
with Jets players Leger Douzable,
Kellen Davis and Jeff Cumberland
Photo courtesy of Jose Rey | New York Jets
UK grad puts Exercise Science degree
to use as intern with New York Jets
Fresh off an internship with the New York Jets, 2014
University of Kentucky graduate Connie Andujar reflects
on her experience studying Exercise Science in the UK
College of Education’s Department of Kinesiology and
Health Promotion. Andujar is now pursuing a master’s
degree in Athletic Training from Seton Hall and plans to
have a career in collegiate athletics.
What brought you to the University of Kentucky?
Being from Ossining, NY, I didn’t know much about
Kentucky. For Christmas, my dad got tickets to see a
UCONN basketball game at Madison Square Garden
and it just so happened they were playing Kentucky.
We were just in awe at how many Kentucky fans were
there. I remember saying to my dad, “Wow, there are
more fans for a school that’s 12 hours away than for a
school that’s only two hours away.”
That was the night I decided to apply to Kentucky.
My decision was between UConn and Kentucky, so
the deciding factor was the campus visit.
It was the meeting with Dr. Steve Parker in the
College of Education that really sold us on the school.
He was the one who told me about the opportunities
working within athletics and assured me I could
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accomplish all I wanted if I came to Kentucky.
What athletic training experience did you get
during college?
By my sophomore year, I was assigned to working
with the football team. Camp by far was the hardest.
The days were long and hot, the team practiced twice
a day. Between setting up the fields, hydrating during
practice and overall maintenance of the training
room, it was a lot. Once class started, we would
have football practice in the morning, getting there
around 5:30 or 6 a.m. and then end around noon or
1 p.m., before starting classes for the day.
Home games were a lot of fun. They were all-day
events, having to arrive early to set up the locker
rooms and fields and then manage the sidelines
during the game. There were around 10 students, and
one or two students would travel to each away game.
During the middle of football season I was
switched to softball, which was incredible. It was
only me and a supervising g