BJJ players with advanced degrees

I'm one of four lawyers at my school. We also have 2 2nd year med students.
 
Soon to be med-student.

Do BJJ attract more educated people than any other martial art ?
 
I've wondered the same question, as there do seem to be a lot of people with advanced degrees in BJJ. Speaking personally, I have a BA and an MA in English Literature. I'm currently working on my PhD, though I've no idea if I'll ever actually finish the damn thing (almost 7 years now...)

J Sho said:
is there anywhere that saulo himself refers to being a judge or what that entailed?
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I'm pretty sure he mentioned it in a Fightworks interview, though he didn't say what it entailed. It also says he was a judge in Jiu Jitsu University, which presumably he saw before it went to print.
 
snowolf17 said:
thanks for the input IgnorantBloke i may very well do that, im certainly not going to base the results of my study off of sherdog as it is far from scientific and will as you said almost certainly be skewed I just kinda wanted to get a feel for the type of people that train BJJ i couldn't agree more that Judo/BJJ are def a thinking man's game which is why i love the sport, there is always something more to learn and i think that most people who train BJJ enjoy learning on a very fundamental level. Perhaps i will tweak my hypothesis based on your suggestion, thank you very much.
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I think rather than looking at top BJJ players, what you need to do is find a sample that can be representitive of the average practicioner. You might find, on average, people that practice BJJ are more likely to have an advanced degree - but as you get to the top level you'll end up with people that went pro grappling very young and didn't have a chance to finish college or something, who knows. I would contact the heads of as many local clubs as you can, asking if you can go in and ask everyone at the end of a class. Then you can compare belts, people in different class (e.g. time of day). It depends what you want to find out.

As for me, I have a Bsc in mathematics, an Msc in numerical analysis (mathematics..) and have just finished my PhD in mathematics.
 
Gavanshir said:
I don't understand OP's question. Why wouldn't BJJ players have advanced degrees? It's like any other martial art, walk into any Taekwondo or Karate academy and you'll find highly educated people in there. Martial arts and schooling go hand in hand.
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Has anyone actually shown that, though? If not, you're just guessing. I too have a feeling that is true simply because in the west, for the general man martial arts is more of a middle-class endeavor. Also, I think that because (certainly in the UK) because martial arts haven't really permeated our culture at all, and it isn't given a whole lot of exposure, most people will only start training when they go to college or university and can join a club with their friends.
 
The hypothesis is a nice thought, but ultimately, it is not true. BJJ at the end of the day is still an athletic pursuit. The only correlation between advanced degrees and bjj may be that in general people with advanced degrees have more money, and thus can afford bjj.

But, unfortunately, having a college degree of even an advanced degree does not make you a better person or more dedicated in general. It just makes you more dedicated to that one thing.

I think it would be interesting to look at the percentage of individuals with advanced degrees who quit high school sports as opposed to others. I would guess that the overall percentage would be higher than the general population. My hypothesis is based in economics. They would need more time to dedicate to studies, and thus the things that they arent as good as would be shelved. Also, since people respond to rewards, people tend to stick to what they are already good at. Your yoga teacher was probably pretty flexible before she started yoga. Your math major was probably always good at math, etc.

Also, contrary to your theory that us dedicated folk are better at sticking it out and making good decisions, there is a study (never seen it, may be flawed) that says that an advanced degree increases your odds of divorce. Could be many reasons for this (more opportunity, more desirable to opposite sex, mo money mo problems, etc.)

In any event, I think your hypothesis is going to prove to be incorrect if you actually research it.

FWIW, add me to the long list of J.D.'s. That is Juris Doctor for whoever asked, also called a Doctor of Jurisprudence... It is a basic law degree.
 
armtriangle said:
The hypothesis is a nice thought, but ultimately, it is not true. BJJ at the end of the day is still an athletic pursuit. The only correlation between advanced degrees and bjj may be that in general people with advanced degrees have more money, and thus can afford bjj.

But, unfortunately, having a college degree of even an advanced degree does not make you a better person or more dedicated in general. It just makes you more dedicated to that one thing.

I think it would be interesting to look at the percentage of individuals with advanced degrees who quit high school sports as opposed to others. I would guess that the overall percentage would be higher than the general population. My hypothesis is based in economics. They would need more time to dedicate to studies, and thus the things that they arent as good as would be shelved. Also, since people respond to rewards, people tend to stick to what they are already good at. Your yoga teacher was probably pretty flexible before she started yoga. Your math major was probably always good at math, etc.

In any event, I think your hypothesis is going to prove to be incorrect if you actually research it.

FWIW, add me to the long list of J.D.'s. That is Juris Doctor for whoever asked, also called a Doctor of Jurisprudence... It is a basic law degree.
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I like how you get onto someone about making a (admittedly, rather large) leap, and yet you make one yourself. :) I'm in the beginning the process of an MD, and in high school I was varsity and captain or co-captain of volleyball, softball, and golf, and was varsity soccer. This is while I maintained a job breaking and training horses, and was training kickboxing and Jiu Jitsu congruently. Plus 11 AP classes between sophomore and senior year, and a 4.08 GPA at the end of it. High school is easy, you only have to quit those sports if you really don't care.

I figured I'd update the thread, or my post since I moved from undergraduate to post grad. First off, it was awesome to find out I'm not half as smart as I thought I was, hahaha. I train 2-3 times a week (it was more before Gross Anatomy started, but that eats up your afternoon hours), when I do have time for BJJ it's very difficult to find the energy. I would much rather, and I get a much better training session, if I rest one day and train well the next rather than training two days irritated and tired. I'd love to dedicate more time to the gym but I want to do this MD thing right, I'm trying to study my ass off, and I sure know as a patient I would prefer a doctor who studied rather than trained BJJ, so I see it as a responsibility.
 
BS in Computer Science and Mathematics, half way through my MS in Electrical Engineering and taking my CCIE in May.
 
BS in Electrical Engineering. Half way to MS in Engineering Management.
 
I have a PhD and a law degree.



snowolf17 said:
hey all im working on an assignment for school and wanted to ask, how many of you have advanced degrees/in the process of obtaining an advanced degree or degrees beyond a bachelors degree things like MD degrees lawyers, PAs, physical therapists, MBAs etc im conducting a study and my hypothesis is that many people who train BJJ have an advanced education, my reasoning is that BJJ requires time, dedication, and commitment I believe that these characteristics will show up in other areas of BJJ players lives. I'll go first im currently finishing my bachelors in psychology, minoring in human biology, and have plans to attend medical school. (I just thought id post on here to get a feel for how this study will run, thanks all in advance)
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Wow! So many here with degrees and a lot of lawyers as well. Really surprised.

In my gym there aren't many people with advanced degrees. It's probably because most of the people who train here are relatively young and very few are over the age of 28. One guy (around 40 years old) has some major degree in physics and engineering and what not and is the head of the engineering department in a University. The funny thing is that he is the biggest spaz in the gym and does not seem to be thanking at all when rolling.

I'm just finishing my BS in psychology and have no idea what to do after that. The amount of people here with advanced degrees amazes me.
 
Hillary said:
I like how you get onto someone about making a (admittedly, rather large) leap, and yet you make one yourself. :) I'm in the beginning the process of an MD, and in high school I was varsity and captain or co-captain of volleyball, softball, and golf, and was varsity soccer. This is while I maintained a job breaking and training horses, and was training kickboxing and Jiu Jitsu congruently. Plus 11 AP classes between sophomore and senior year, and a 4.08 GPA at the end of it. High school is easy, you only have to quit those sports if you really don't care.
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I didn't make a leap, just put forth my own "guess". I don't know if it is true or not, but I think it makes sense economically. There may be many other factors though, now that I have had time to consider it. I think the biggest factor is parenting, kids who are involved with sports are more likely to have involved or encouraging parents; those same kids are more likely to grow up and go on to advanced degrees. So my hypothesis might not hold water, but the point is that I do not think the "traits" that make a person obtain an advanced degree (usually vanity if we really went to the heart of the issue) help a person stay dedicated to hobbies. Otherwise, most folks with advanced degrees would be better at golf... Honestly, if you believe that most pursue advanced degrees out of vanity (as I really do), then this could actually cause people with advanced degrees to have a higher drop out rate than the general public (because of the ass kicking you get when you start). But if you have the combination of vanity and dedication, you could theorize that they are also more likely to become advanced students (vanity so overwhelming that they are willing to do what is required to not get ass kicked).

I am half kidding, but the point is that how you define the "traits" of advanced degree holders will ultimately determine how you view the hypothesis. Dedication is obviously required, but I don't think a person with an advanced degree is any more dedicated in general to things in life, than someone else. They are dedicated to things they excel at, like almost everyone.

Congratulations on being both atletic and dedicated to school, but your individual experience has no relevance here. Aside from the fact that you are not part of the population of advanced degree holders (if I read your post correctly), I didn't say that all people who were good students would quit sports, or even many. I just theorized that the percentage would be higher (maybe only marginally) than non-degree holders. Still, I recognize that the theory may not hold up, as I just spit it out on the spot, and neglected to consider other factors.
 
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Pete the beat said:
Wow! So many here with degrees and a lot of lawyers as well. Really surprised.

In my gym there aren't many people with advanced degrees. It's probably because most of the people who train here are relatively young and very few are over the age of 28. One guy (around 40 years old) has some major degree in physics and engineering and what not and is the head of the engineering department in a University. The funny thing is that he is the biggest spaz in the gym and does not seem to be thanking at all when rolling.

I'm just finishing my BS in psychology and have no idea what to do after that. The amount of people here with advanced degrees amazes me.
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we have 3 or 4 doctors and a mad scientist MIT guy. The really smart guy, the MIT guy, he is just like you described, totally mat retarded with crazy tunnel vision. None of the M.D.'s are very good either, and I have yet to see one make it past beginner level, I think one might have gotten his blue before he stopped coming. Probably just a coincidence, but still interesting. I get a kick out of looking at the backgrounds of people who stay as opposed to those who don't. I don't think there is a pattern.
 
RedAger said:
In the last year of my J.D.
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Ditto.

TS, just so you know, this thread isn't going to give you a representative sample. First of all the people who post on the grappling forum are the ones who train but are also into the discussion of grappling, and might be more intellectually-inclined. Second, out of those who post on this forum, the ones who post on this thread are going to be mostly those who have (or are working towards) an advanced degree, otherwise they would probably ignore the thread or not reply.
 
Under graduate degrees (though both are very related) in Finance and International Investments.

Currently employed at a Hedge Fund. Working towards obtaining my CFA - Chartered Financial Analyst
 
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