Julian Dickenson

Classroom

In all three of his years at Pittsburgh, Julian Dickenson has shown exemplary marks in the classroom. Twice he was honored as a BIG EAST Academic All-Star and he was on the Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll for the 2013-14 school year. Additionally, Dickenson was one of just three Panthers on the All-ACC Academic Team this past season.

Dickenson is holding a 3.86 grade point average while pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Actuarial Mathematics. At the conclusion of the 2014 spring term he was specially recognized as one of only 24 Pitt student-athletes who earned a 4.0 GPA for the entire school year. In addition to attaining the highest GPA on the men’s soccer squad, Dickenson has helped men’s soccer post the highest team GPA for men’s programs at Pitt in each of his three years. Dickenson was admitted into Phi Eta Sigma, the honors fraternity, following his freshmen term.

While balancing the responsibilities of a full-time student-athlete, Dickenson passed two actuarial exams with a recommended study time in excess of 300 hours. The passing rate for exams can be lower than 40-percent. This led Dickenson to landing a summer internship in 2014 as a Health and Group Benefits Actuarial intern at Towers Watson in Pittsburgh.

Character

As the only student-athlete majoring in Actuarial Mathematics at the University of Pittsburgh, Dickenson has taken on a major leadership role with the Actuarial Club in his spare time, serving as the Vice President. He was responsible for establishing the first-ever actuarial career fair at Pitt and oversees recruiting efforts to present to prospective underclassmen.

Entering his final year at Pitt, Dickenson will be a Veteran Leader in the Panther Leadership Academy after completing the Rising Leaders program last year. The goal of the program is to provide an opportunity for Pitt student-athletes to build and develop their leadership skills in order to achieve success in the classroom, on the field of play and in life.

By balancing school, athletics, extracurricular activities and service, Dickenson has learned the value of time-management and teamwork.

“Julian, in my opinion, is the classic example of the student-athlete ideal. First and foremost, he is an intelligent, mature and highly motivated young man of outstanding character. He has a 3.86 GPA in a demanding major, and at the same time, is a dedicated Division I athlete in the strongest soccer conference in the NCAA. Julian is a three-year letter winner and is one of our leaders as he enters his senior season. In my many years at Pitt, Julian is one of the finest young men that I have had the privilege to work with on the men’s soccer team.” – Head Coach Joe Luxbacher

Community

While at Pittsburgh, Dickenson has represented the Panthers men’s soccer team in a number of community service activities – many of them soccer oriented. In Panther P.A.W.S. (Pitt Athletes Working with Students), Pitt student-athletes work with local youth, offering skills and drills and instructions in addition to boosting self-esteem. Dickenson aided in similar experiences with the GA-SC Bulls Soccer Club Summer Camp and Futbol Para Los Ninos, the latter working specifically with Latino children. Outside of the soccer realm, Dickenson has volunteered with the Golden Harvest Food Bank.

Competition

Dickenson played in 16 games as a junior, making 14 starts. He recorded his first collegiate assist and point in Pitt’s rout of Howard in the final home game of the season. A three-year letter winner, Dickenson played in seven games, with two starts, before being sidelined for the remainder of the campaign with a foot injury. He bounced back for his sophomore season as the only Panther to start all 17 games. That year, Dickenson was named to the Pitt/Nike Invitational All-Tournament team for his strong play.