Sports Science Degrees

Sports Science Degrees are becoming increasingly popular. With the UK winning the bid to host the Olympic Games in 2012, there has never been a better time to study a Sports Sciencedegree in the UK.

SPORTS SCIENCE DEGREE – FINDING THE RIGHT PROGRAMME

Sport Science in the UK boasts an international reputation beyond the Olympics. However, with so many courses available it is important that you consider which would be the best for you. To help you with this decision, X-Cel talks to the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) on the important things to look out for in a good sport and exercise science degree:

1. Are all the three aspects of science – physiology, biomechanics and psychology covered, as well as interdisciplinary approaches?
2. Are there good laboratory facilities to which you will have access?
3. Check that there is a strong practical skills element to the course. This will help to ensure that you get hands-on experience in the methods used by sport and exercise scientists.
4. How many of the staff are accredited by the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES)?
5. Check out what active research and community projects exist. Involvement in these projects will allow you the opportunity to gain experiences and skills beyond the formal curriculum. Universities with high ranking research groups will generally publicise this along with their research rating (5* being the top Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) grade awarded in 2001 by the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE)

It is important that you obtain detailed information about the actual content of the courses for which you are thinking of applying. Often courses with the same name have very different content, and equally courses with different names may in fact cover the same material.

Some universities offer discipline-specific programmes of study, for example in the psychology of sport and exercise. These courses tend to provide less breadth of study than traditional sport and exercise science courses. Such specialist courses may, however, appeal to those applicants with a very clear idea of their disciplinary interests and potential career progression. Generally, however, a broad understanding of sport and exercise science is best achieved through multidisciplinary study at undergraduate level (i.e. a course that focuses on biomechanics, physiology and psychology) A specialism can then be developed through relevant postgraduate study.

If you would like to offer your support for the UK’s Bid
for the Olympics in 2012 then register your vote at:
www.london2012.org

If you would like more information on studying
a degree in Sports Science in the UK then contact:

Universities and Colleges Application Service
0870 112 2211
www.ucas.com

British Academy of Sports and Exercise Science (BASES)
+44 (0) 113 289 1020
www.bases.org.uk

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