Curriculum Requirements
Master of Science in Exercise and Sport Science
Major Requirements
| Required Courses | Credits: | |
| EXSC 601 | Research Methods in Movement Sciences | 3 |
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This course explores how to successfully read, evaluate and conduct qualitative and quantitative research in Kinesiology. Students will learn how to apply relevant tools and techniques used in the analysis and interpretation of data, including statistical software. Emphasis is placed on conceiving and designing a research proposal. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 602 | Contemporary Issues in Movement Sciences | 3 |
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This course covers the current and emerging trends, controversies, and research in the field of movement sciences. Topics covered will include new developments in exercise physiology, biomechanics, sports leadership, and sports performance, among others. Through critical evaluation of scientific literature, students will develop an understanding of how research findings are translated into practical applications for athletes, patients, and the general population. The course will also emphasize communication skills, including written and oral presentations, to effectively communicate scientific findings to a variety of audiences. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| Total: 6 Credits | ||
Concentration-Level CreditsStudents must take 18 concentration-level credits (600 and above), including at least nine from either Kinesiology or Coaching Administration track to complete the degree. If a student takes nine credits from each track, they will earn two concentrations. |
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| Coaching Administration Concentration Track Option | Credits: | |
| EXSC 621 | Principles of Coaching and Leadership | 3 |
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This provides an overview of the principles and practices of coaching and leadership in the context of sports and physical activity. Students will learn about the latest research on leadership and motivation, and how to apply these concepts to develop effective coaching strategies for diverse populations across a variety of individual and team sports. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 622 | Athlete Development and Coaching | 3 |
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This course reviews the principles and practices of athlete development and coaching across the lifespan. Students will explore the factors that contribute to successful athlete development, including physical, psychological, and social development. Additionally, students will gain an understanding of the role of coaching in athlete development and develop skills to create effective coaching strategies. Additionally, students will learn how to create effective coaching strategies that support athlete development, while also gaining an understanding of the ethical responsibilities of coaches and the importance of diversity and inclusion. Finally, students will examine how technology can be used to support athlete development and coaching. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 623 | Psychology of Coaching and Sport | 3 |
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This course examines the psychological factors that influence athletic performance and coaching effectiveness in sport. Students will learn to apply principles from psychology, including motivation, goal setting, and mental preparation, can be applied to enhance athletic performance and coaching strategies. Additionally, students will gain an understanding of the psychological challenges that athletes and coaches face and develop skills to support athletes' psychological well-being and resilience. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 699 | Independent study1 | 1–6 |
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This course provides students with the opportunity to pursue a self-directed project in Exercise and Sport Science, under the supervision of a faculty member. Students will develop and carry out a research or applied project that aligns with their interests and career goals, and will develop skills in critical thinking, research design, and scientific communication. The course will culminate in the communication of project deliverable in both oral and written formats. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: (1-6)-0-(1-6) |
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| Total: 9 Credits | ||
| [1] Independent Study (EXSC 699) requires approval from the program director and department chair. | ||
| Kinesiology Concentration Track Option | Credits: | |
| EXSC 611 | Physiology of Human Performance | 3 |
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This course provides an in-depth examination of the physiological processes that underlie human performance. Through lectures, discussions, and laboratory exercises, students will examine the mechanisms by which the body responds to and adapts to exercise, training, detraining, and environmental stressors. Students will also learn how to interpret and apply relevant research findings to practical situations. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 612 | Nutrition for Sport and Exercise | 3 |
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This course investigates the role of nutrition in optimizing sports performance and exercise. Students will learn about the latest research on the nutrient requirements for athletes and active individuals, and how dietary factors can affect physiological processes related to exercise. Students will learn to collaborate with other healthcare professionals, such as coaches, trainers, and dietitians, to develop integrated approaches to optimizing sports performance and exercise. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 613 | Strength and Conditioning | 3 |
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This course provides an in-depth exploration of the principles and practices of strength and conditioning for athletes, healthy adults, and special populations. Students will learn about the latest research on strength and power training, and how to design and implement effective training programs for diverse populations. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 614 | Biomechanics of Human Performance | 3 |
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This course evaluates the principles and applications of biomechanics as they relate to human performance in sports and other physical activities. Students will learn about the latest research on human movement and the mechanical factors that influence performance, as well as how to apply this knowledge to improve performance and reduce injury risk. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 699 | Independent study1 | 1–6 |
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This course provides students with the opportunity to pursue a self-directed project in Exercise and Sport Science, under the supervision of a faculty member. Students will develop and carry out a research or applied project that aligns with their interests and career goals, and will develop skills in critical thinking, research design, and scientific communication. The course will culminate in the communication of project deliverable in both oral and written formats. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: (1-6)-0-(1-6) |
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| Total: 9 Credits | ||
| [1] Independent Study (EXSC 699) requires approval from the program director and department chair. | ||
| Department Approved Electives | Credits: | |
| CLNU 625 | Techniques in Epidemiology and Biostatistics | 3 |
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Epidemiologic techniques for analysis of population data from surveys, as well as case control retrospective and prospective studies will be reviewed. Biostatistical techniques including cross tabulation, scatter diagrams, histograms and line plots, regression and correlation analysis, analysis of variance, discriminant analysis, factor and spectral analysis will be applied to clinical and experimental data to illustrate techniques available for data analysis and interpretation. Computer statistical packages will be used to facilitate analysis. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| CLNU 630 | Issues in the Food Supply | 2 |
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The focus of this course is on understanding the wide ranging effects of the American food system. Selected issues will include changes in food consumption patterns over the last century, changes in nutrient profile of foods, new technologies for home and institutional food preparation, and the effect of modern agribusiness upon the environment. Emphasis is on the influence of cultural diversity, fast foods, and other factors on the American dietary intake. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 2-0-2 |
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| CLNU 635 | Community Nutrition | 2 |
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Techniques for development, funding, assessment, and evaluation of projects in community and government resources will be studied. Current legislative issues will be discussed along with the methodology necessary to stimulate activities on these issues. Resources for the consumer, including community action and government outreach programs, will be reviewed. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 2-0-2 |
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| CLNU 645 | Nutritional Contributions of Food | 2 |
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The structure and physical properties of foods are examined with respect to nutrient content and distribution in the food supply. The effects of agricultural methods, market handling, processing, and home preparation on nutrient quality are considered. The interaction of food components in food preparation methods is discussed and factors that influence food taste, texture, and appearance are explored. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 2-0-2 |
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| MGMT 605 | Organizational and Behavioral Factors | 3 |
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The classical substance of organization and management is linked with the analysis of organizational elements and dimensions of human behavior in the work environment. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| MRKT 620 | Strategic Marketing and Branding | 3 |
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Marketing is at the core of a business enterprise. Without customers, a business cannot exist. This course prepares students to approach, structure, and solve complex marketing problems on strategic and tactical levels. Analysis of the dynamic marketplace trends affecting everchanging customer preferences, evolving market structures, and competitive scenarios will reflect the complexity of the marketing task. The course provides students an understanding of strategies and tactics for capturing market opportunities via delivery of superior customer value and brand equity management. Analysis of the trends affecting the ever changing customers' wants and preferences, evolving market structures and competitive scenarios will reflect the present complexity of the marketing task, and the imperative of capturing market opportunities via delivery of superior customer value and the brand equity management. Classroom Hours- Laboratory and/or Studio Hours- Course Credits: 3-0-3 Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| MGMT 650 | Strategic Leadership Capstone | 3 |
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An examination of the operational aspects of high level leadership, including its role in framing the organization's 20 year strategic plan, the making of consequential decisions in an uncertain, complex, and rapidly changing environment, and maintaining excellence in the corporate world. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| ARCH 753 | Seminar 1: History & Theory of Design for Health | 3 |
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This core course, ARCH 753, focuses on the history and theory related to designing for health, at the intersection of methodologies, design commonalities and specificities, between health and disease of our bodies, minds and the mutually reciprocal relationship to the healthiness of our built environments. Principles of holistic design for health, as well as some of the key tools and design approaches are introduced in this course. Aiming to introduce a history of health institutions and their associated spaces, the course will develop expertise with which to address common challenges faced by aging or users with special abilities through universal or inclusive design, confronting the notion of a normative, standardized, and idealized human body. A contemporary human-centered approach to designing spaces for wellness challenges the practice of standardization in architectural and interior spaces, including standards of healthcare. Architectural spaces are conventionally designed for normative bodies, generally dismissing diversity and special abilities as limiting factors in how people use and move through spaces. Built spaces, products, and clothing are all based on dimensions and measurements of averaged and often idealized bodies. There persists an unconscious practice of bias, based on standardized, normative body features, dimensions, and capacities. Designing for people with special abilities environments, services, and products has to be practiced in such a way that they can be used by all people to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design. Students examine the major health barriers and their spatial consequences, affecting the design of spaces. The ways in which architectural and interior spaces have contributed throughout history to our well-being or dis-ease form the overall focus of this core course. The course surveys the disciplinary domains of the design of institutional design, architectural and interior spaces, mobility schemes and devices, medical products, interfaces, fabrics, wearables, and clothing, material systems, service design and smart systems. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| ARCH 754 | Seminar 2: Body, Mind, and Built Environments | 3 |
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In the course ARCH 754 students engage in explorations of the built environment, the health ecosystem and both its linked stakeholders, the processes and relationships which are undertaken as a transdisciplinary, silo-leaping inquiry into the origins, emergence and differences in health. While new science aligns health states a result of the longitudinal impact of the environment and lifestyle of individuals, correlations between design and disease are investigated by mapping user experiences and affective capacities, thereby evaluating all the good or bad encounters and flows that enhance and diminish health and wellbeing over the life course. The class learns and explores emerging methods in order to identify how urban, architecture or health system affectors translate into design practices for the built environment that induce health disparities and general negative health impacts among individuals. Besides qualitative data and inquiries into human experiences, also quantitative and population data via federal and open access databases or imaging data will be integrated with data visualization to facilitate change effective strategies and communications. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| ARCH 755 | Seminar 3: Environmental Behavior and Design | 3 |
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This course, ARCH 755, introduces concepts, computation, and tools with capacities to affect environmental qualities. Students will be introduced to a toolbox that can be applied to the measurement of people-based environmental attributes, daylight and artificial light, color, temperature, air quality, flows, and other environmental properties and their processes, as well as a set of skills that simulate environmental behaviors in space. In a series of technical software tutorials, methods are introduced for simulating options in relation to varying criteria and constraining parameters to map out a solution space of possibilities rather than a single optimal solution. Introducing students to environmental qualities and their impact on human well-being, these notions are key concepts to base innovations in the architecture and design of healthcare spaces. In addition to learning simulation software applied to environmental qualities, this course is pedagogically organized to include seminar discussions around particular themes and readings, including nature, environments, atmosphere, and design intelligence, as well as problem-based short design exercises on case studies, worked on in groups of students. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-1-3 |
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| Total: 9 Credits | ||
| Culminating Experience/Project Requirement | Credits: | |
| EXSC 701 | Seminar in Exercise and Sport Science | 3 |
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This seminar course in exercise and sport science provides students with the opportunity to engage in critical analysis and discussion of contemporary research, issues, and trends in the field. Through in-depth exploration of current research and literature, students will gain a deeper understanding of the physiological, psychological, and social factors that impact exercise and sport performance. This course will provide a foundation for students to stay current with advancements and trends in the field,and may also provide preparation for further graduate study or professional work in exercise and sport science. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 702 | Field Experience2 | 3 |
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This course provides students with the opportunity to complete a culminating project in Exercise and Sport Science that demonstrates their mastery of the knowledge, skills, and competencies acquired throughout their program of study. Students will work independently or in small groups under the supervision of a faculty advisor, developing and executing a research or applied project that aligns with their academic and career goals. The course will culminate in a project presentation in both oral and written formats. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| EXSC 703 | Culminating Project2 | 3 |
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This course provides students with the opportunity to complete a culminating project in Exercise and Sport Science that demonstrates their mastery of the knowledge, skills, and competencies acquired throughout their program of study. Students will work independently or in small groups under the supervision of a faculty advisor, developing and executing a research or applied project that aligns with their academic and career goals. The course will culminate in a project presentation in both oral and written formats. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| Total: 6 Credits | ||
| [2] Students must complete EXSC 701 concurrently with either EXSC 702 or EXSC 703. | ||
| Total Required Credits = 30 |