By Austin Miller – GTM Lead, Esport Supply
Start With the University’s Goals, Not the Gaming Equipment
A strong esports proposal should not begin with computers, monitors, or gaming chairs. It should begin with something the university already wants to accomplish, such as increasing enrollment, helping students find community, creating career-connected learning, or bringing new life to an underused campus space. Esports become much easier to support when leaders can see how it fits priorities they already care about.
Enthusiasm is important, but it usually won’t carry a proposal through the budget process by itself. Decision-makers need to know who the program will serve, what it will accomplish, how much it will cost, and how the university will measure success. The real task is not proving that gaming is popular; it is showing how that popularity can become a useful and sustainable part of campus life.
Define the Need Before Presenting the Solution
Start by looking at what is already happening on your campus. Student surveys, gaming club membership, tournament attendance, admissions questions, academic interests, and unused space can all help reveal genuine demand. A formal esports feasibility study can bring that information together, but a planning team can learn a great deal simply by talking with students, faculty members, admissions, student affairs, facilities, and IT.
Those conversations may lead somewhere different from the original idea. A small college might get more value from a flexible esports lab than a spectator arena, while a larger university may need separate areas for varsity competition, recreation, broadcasting, and classes. Defining the need first keeps the project from becoming a collection of expensive features searching for a purpose.
Explain How Esports Can Support Recruitment
Esports can give prospective students another reason to take a closer look at a university, particularly when they want a campus community that reflects their interests. The National Association for College Admission Counseling has identified esports as an emerging recruitment pipeline. That makes it relevant to enrollment conversations, but the proposal still needs to explain how student interest will move through an actual admissions process.
The program might participate in campus tours, admissions events, summer camps, high school tournaments, or online showcases. Admissions can then track inquiries, visits, applications, deposits, and enrollments connected to those activities. That is far more credible than promising an arena will automatically deliver a large freshman class, and it gives the university real information it can use to improve recruiting.
Show That the Program Reaches More Than Players
One of collegiate esports’ strongest advantages is the number of ways students can participate without earning a varsity roster spot. Programs need broadcasters, graphic designers, event organizers, shoutcasters, analysts, photographers, technicians, social media managers, and student leaders. Suddenly, esports is connected with communications, business, marketing, computer science, media production, and sports administration.
Ball State University’s esports program demonstrates that broader model through varsity competition, a large student club, broadcasting opportunities, and an academic concentration in esports production. Students can build portfolios, manage live events, and learn how to work under pressure with a team. That helps administrators see esports as more than a competitive activity happening behind a row of monitors.
Make the Space Useful Throughout the Week
A facility is easier to justify when it stays active beyond varsity practice. Classes might use it during the day, teams could practice in the afternoon, and student organizations may hold recreational events in the evening. Summer camps, orientation activities, workshops, alumni gatherings, and community tournaments can keep the room useful during weekends and academic breaks.
San Diego State University describes its Esports Engagement Center as supporting competition, recreation, academics, research, and student success. That is a helpful model because the facility operates as shared campus infrastructure rather than a private room for one team. The more groups that can use the space meaningfully, the stronger the coalition behind the proposal becomes.
Present the Complete Financial Picture
The budget needs to include much more than the opening equipment order. Decision-makers will want to understand renovation, furniture, electrical work, networking, software, staffing, warranties, maintenance, internet service, replacement cycles, and contingency funding. The federal Whole Building Design Guide’s life-cycle cost guidance provides a useful way to compare options based on their long-term cost instead of choosing whichever proposal looks cheapest on opening day.
A phased plan can make the request more manageable. The university might begin with a modest lab and club program, add varsity teams as participation grows, and introduce more advanced broadcasting or spectator features later. This gives the institution time to learn what students actually use before committing to every part of the final vision.
Establish Ownership and Accountability
Someone needs to operate the program after the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Recruiting, scheduling, student supervision, competition administration, equipment, broadcasting, marketing, and events do not manage themselves. Without a clear leader, those responsibilities can easily drift between athletics, student affairs, academics, and IT.
Western Michigan University’s description of its esports coordinator shows how broad that leadership role can become. A new program may not need a large staff, but it does need one accountable owner and a dependable group of campus partners. The proposal should explain how coaches, faculty advisors, student employees, and technical staff fit into that structure.
Define Success Before Asking for Approval
Choose a small group of outcomes that connect directly with the university’s goals. Those might include participation, facility use, event attendance, recruitment inquiries, applications, retention, academic involvement, student employment, or community partnerships. Recording baseline information before launch will make later results much more meaningful.
The proposal should also address wellness, accessibility, online conduct, academic expectations, and responsible gaming. Bringing up those concerns does not weaken the business case; it shows that the planning team understands the responsibility that comes with the opportunity. A persuasive proposal shows how esports can turn student enthusiasm into belonging, learning, recruitment, and measurable institutional value.
