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2025 Graduate Catalog

Master of Science in Sports and Health Sciences

The Master of Science in Sports and Health Sciences studies the physical, physiological, psychological, and functional adaptations of humans. This online master’s degree helps to develop your critical thinking skills and provides the scientific principles you’ll need to help varied populations optimize sports performance and reach athletic, fitness, and general health goals. Physical fitness and health and wellness employers seek experienced professionals with extensive knowledge of nutrition, fitness training, and changes in fitness technology to help individuals improve functionality and quality of life.

Degree Program Objectives

In addition to the institutional and degree level learning objectives, graduates of this program are expected to achieve these learning outcomes:

  • Apply qualitative and quantitative research practices to relevant issues and problems in sports and health sciences through the development and assessment of research proposals and concluding with the analysis and communication of data.
  • Dissect the relationships between psychological behaviors such as personality, motivation, stress, and aggression on sport performance.
  • Examine physical activities and lifestyle behaviors designed to promote positive health and quality of life.
  • Analyze sport movements and design movement-oriented exercise prescriptions.
  • Illustrate the potential for enhancement of muscle strength, muscular endurance, power, flexibility, and motor performance during anaerobic training.
  • Assemble protein, carbohydrate, and fat recommendations for athletes, and discern between dietary recommendations for disease prevention and recommendations for performance.
  • Evaluate best practices to measure selected parameters related to athletic performance, and explain how to administer field tests appropriately.

Degree at a Glance

Degree Program Requirements

Core Requirements (21 semester hours)

Students must choose a concentration for this degree program and may select from a General Concentration, Concentration in Exercise and Chronic Disease, Concentration in Exercise Science and Human Performance, or Concentration in Health and Wellness Management.

General Concentration (12 semester hours)

This general concentration allows you to select from all the concentration courses offered within this program, enabling you to create your own focused area of study.

Objectives

This general concentration allows you to select from all the concentration courses offered within this program, enabling you to create your own focused area of study.

Concentration Requirements (12 semester hours)

Concentration in Exercise and Chronic Disease (12 semester hours)

With growing evidence that exercise and activity can help alleviate the burden of chronic disease, it is important for Health and Fitness Professionals to understand the positive effects of exercise on chronic diseases. This concentration will prepare the learner to design and implement fitness programs for individuals and groups who suffer from one or more chronic diseases. Students will learn the role of fitness professionals in the healthcare continuum, be able to recognize the signs and symptoms of common chronic diseases, and design and implement fitness programs for individuals who suffer from common chronic diseases.

Objectives

Upon successful completion of this concentration, the student will be able to:

  • Analyze effects of exercise and activity on health and chronic diseases
  • Evaluate the roles and limitations of fitness professionals in the healthcare continuum
  • Create safe and effective fitness programs for those suffering the effects of chronic diseases using industry best practices
  • Utilize critical thinking skills to synthesize relevant knowledge to implement fitness programs for individuals who suffer from common chronic diseases
Concentration Requirements (12 semester hours)

Concentration in Exercise Science and Human Performance (12 semester hours)

The Exercise Science and Human Performance concentration is a scientific study of the concepts and applications designed to appraise and enhance athletic performance for researchers and practitioners. Students will develop skills to effectively assess and evaluate exercise and human performance through test administration and program design. Course content focuses on factors influencing health and performance; including adaptations to exercise, biomechanics, nutrition, testing and evaluation, exercise techniques, exercise prescription, and psychological aspects of performance.

Objectives

Upon successful completion of this concentration, the student will be able to:

  • Design an individualized exercise prescription using results from fitness and exercise testing and evaluation.
  • Analyze the functional anatomy of the lower and upper extremities during exercise and human performance.
  • Synthesize sports nutrition and supplementation findings into recommendations for professional practice.
  • Assess concepts associated with functional movements as they pertain to integrated training.
  • Generate mental training strategies to improve an athlete’s performance.
Concentration Requirements (12 semester hours)

Concentration in Health and Wellness Management (12 semester hours)

The Health and Wellness Management concentration helps give students the knowledge to design and implement wellness programs. Students will develop skills to effectively design and manage health and wellness programs for individual clients and corporate settings. Course content focuses on topics crucial to effective fitness leadership and quality management in health and wellness occupations.

Objectives

Upon successful completion of this concentration, the student will be able to:

  • Implement programs for exercise, nutrition, and lifestyle change in designing health and wellness programs for clients in private, community, and corporate settings.
  • Construct an ethical and leadership philosophy for managing a corporate wellness facility and program.
  • Evaluate the role of healthier fitness, nutrition, and lifestyle habits have on disease prevention, general health, and overall well-being.
  • Hypothesize solutions to current challenges facing the fitness, wellness, and healthcare industries.
Concentration Requirements (12 semester hours)

Final Program Requirement (3 semester hours)

  1. Required as the first course in this program.

  2. Taken once all other requirements have been met.

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