Nate Herberholz
The Kinesiology Merit Fellowships are given to students from educational, cultural, or geographic backgrounds that are underrepresented in kinesiology in the United States or at the University of Michigan. These students have demonstrated a commitment to diversity in the academic, professional, or civic realm through their work experience, volunteer engagement, or leadership of student or community organizations.
Read on to learn more about Nate Herberholz, one of this year’s undergraduate fellows.
Q: What brought you to U-M?
A: My parents didn't go to college, but my dad was a huge U-M guy. So growing up, that was always a part of my life. It was always my dream school.
However, I was lucky enough to be able to continue playing baseball at a junior college out of high school, so I put U-M to the side. I figured I could play baseball, get an education for two years, and we’d go from there.
So that’s what I did. I did very well academically, and then I revisited that idea of coming to Michigan. Out of high school, the chances were not that great. But going to junior college, doing very well, I was like, ‘Man, I can make this happen.’
I applied, and it all worked out.
Q: You mentioned that neither of your parents went to college. Did you always think that you wanted to go to college in some capacity?
A: Yeah. I always wanted to go to college, and I thought I could use athletics to help me get there. I’m so grateful for my whole family’s support, even my grandparents. They’re so proud that I’m here. They have the car stickers, mugs, flags, all the merch.
Q: Playing sports at a high level gives a pretty clear reason as to why you might be interested in kinesiology as a career. But do you have anything to add about what you’d like to do with your degree?
A: That’s what I'm trying to figure out. I knew sport management was the right direction. When I had my junior college experience, I enjoyed more of the business courses, so I thought SM was a perfect blend of all my passions. I thought I’d get myself into that and take it step by step.
I actually landed an internship with Michigan football in recruiting. So I'm exploring that, seeing if I like it. And as I take different classes and get different internships, I’ll figure out what I like and what I don't like and go from there.
Q: Did you ever have aspirations to play baseball professionally? Or, was it more like a way to go to college?
A: Honestly, both. Of course, when I was super young, it’s everybody's dream to go pro if you're succeeding in your local area. But as I grew up and matured, I realized I could take myself to college, but probably anything past would be where I would hang my cleats up. But yeah, I definitely was aware that I could get myself to school and help pay for school that way.
Between academic money and athletic money, I was basically able to cover those two years at Kellogg Community College, the junior college, and then I got a scholarship from Kellogg to come to U-M. The Kinesiology Merit Fellowship is helping a bunch. But we’re scrapping it together. I took out a little bit of loans ‘cause this is my dream school, and this is where I want to be.
Q: As a first-generation college student, was there anything you felt you didn't have as much knowledge about or you needed help navigating when you first got here?
A: Yeah, I had to figure it out as I went. Like I said, my parents are super supportive. I can’t stress that enough. But they simply haven’t done it before. So the admissions process, getting here, picking classes, literally every step was all brand new, and it was different than junior college as well. So I just had to roll with it. The university has so many resources, and my girlfriend was a huge help ‘cause she went through this process two years before I did. So yeah, every step was a challenge, but it all worked out.
Q: What’s your experience at U-M been like so far?
A: I'm honestly speechless about it. Everything's worked out exactly how I wanted it to. I ended up getting that internship so that was awesome. Classes have been challenging but not too challenging. I knew they’d kick my butt, but I feel like I've been able to handle that pretty well. So yeah, it's all been working out.
Q: What has your internship entailed?
A: That was another thing that came out of the blue and just happened. I got an email from Kelli Kearly, the sport management outreach and employer engagement manager. She sends out all these mass emails, and I check everything she sends out. I saw one that Michigan football was looking for interns, so I just emailed them. About a week later, I got a response. I went through a couple of weeks of the hiring process, and I was lucky enough to land the internship.
I more or less help my boss with anything in terms of recruiting. Whether it’s looking at prospects, watching film, putting together film for coaches, helping with recruiting visits. It’s been very cool.
Q: I know you said you don't quite know what you want to do in sport management yet. Do you think that you would be most likely to end up in baseball since that's a world you know from the inside a bit better? Or are you more interested in exploring other areas?
A: I'm honestly more interested in exploring other things. I’ve been so wrapped up in baseball ever since I could play it. I even ran summer baseball camps in high school with my buddy. It's just been baseball, baseball, baseball my whole life. So it’s been nice to move on from that. Coming here, I've been very open-minded about exploring and working in anything. I've been watching hockey, golf, soccer, just paying attention and learning about them.
Q: Anything else you want to add?
A: I want to stress how much I appreciated Kellogg and my time there, ‘cause I think that really set me up for what I'm doing now. When you commit to a junior college like Kellogg Community College, everyone's like, ‘What's that?’ It's not flashy. I was excited, but I would have been probably more excited to go to flashier places. But looking back, I'm so grateful that that's what happened. I think I really needed those two years there to be able to come here.
When you commit to a junior college, everyone's like, ‘What's that?’ It's not flashy. But I'm so grateful that that's what happened. I think I really needed those two years there to be able to come here.