BA in Exercise Science
Waverly, USA
BA
DURATION
4 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
STUDY FORMAT
Key Summary
About: Wartburg's BA in Exercise Science blends liberal-arts study with hands-on health and athletic tradition. You’ll study exercise science, kinesiology, biomechanics, sports science, and health promotion in a personalized setting with close faculty mentorship. The programme emphasizes critical thinking, ethics, communication, cultural competence, and collaboration to prepare you for roles in fitness, rehabilitation, and community health.
Career Outcomes: Graduates can enter commercial, community, corporate, and clinical health‑fitness facilities; roles include fitness instructor, strength and conditioning coach, exercise physiologist, wellness coordinator, rehabilitation assistant, and community health educator. Employers span gyms, hospitals, corporate wellness, sports teams, and public-health organizations, and allied settings.
Wartburg’s exercise science major combines the school’s long tradition of success in health sciences with its dominance in athletics to create a program that will help fill a growing demand in a wide range of health-related fields. Students get to know faculty in a very personalized environment.
In the first year of the program, exercise science students will take many of the same courses as students in the college’s renowned biology program. During the second year, the programs will start to diverge when exercise science students begin taking courses specific to their major, including human nutrition, advanced exercise physiology, exercise testing, and prescription, kinesiology, and a “current topics” course. Though not required, students are strongly encouraged to complete an internship where they can observe, plan, and implement fitness programs in a real-world setting.
Graduates can go on to study athletic training or physical therapy in graduate school, attend nursing or medical school, or further study one of the core areas in exercise science.
Requirements
14½ course credits:
- BI 151 Biology I: Cells, Genes, Evolution, Diversity
- CH 113 Principles of Chemistry I
- CH 114 Principles of Chemistry II
- EXS 225 Human Nutrition
- EXS 325 Advanced Exercise Physiology
- EXS 375 Exercise Testing and Prescription
- EXS 461 Exercise Science Seminar
- MA 214 Statistical Methods
- PE 351 Kinesiology
- PE 355 Biomechanics of Human Movement
One of the following anatomy options
- Option One
- EXS 217 Human Anatomy and Physiology I
- EXS 218 Human Anatomy and Physiology II
- Option Two
- BI 317 Human Anatomy
- BI 318 Mammalian Physiology
Four-course credits from
- CH 325 Biochemistry
- EXS 349 Current Topics
- EXS 365 Science of Muscle Growth
- EXS 455 Methods of Exercise Science Research and EXS 456 Student-Originated Research
- NSC 335 Neurobiology
- PBH 101 Introduction to Public Health
- PE 349 Personal Training
- PE 357 Essentials of Strength Training
- PE 471 Internship in Fitness Management
- PSY 225 Life Span Human Development
Note:
By completing the exercise science major, students have met the requirements for OCAC/ILAC.
Program Goals
- To develop content expertise in the foundational areas of exercise science. These include anatomy and physiology, exercise physiology, kinesiology, nutrition, and exercise testing and prescription.
- To prepare students for professional school training in physical therapy, strength and conditioning, athletic training, and medical and other health professions.
- To prepare students for master's and doctoral programs in kinesiology, exercise physiology and biochemistry, and nutrition.
- To prepare students to enter the workforce as strength and conditioning coaches, personal trainers, and laboratory technicians.
Wartburg is the first NCAA Division III school to utilize the Elite Form motion-capture system throughout its entire weight room, allowing for unique student-faculty research opportunities and better leveraging of the connections between intercollegiate athletics and academics.
Program Goals
- To develop content expertise in the foundational areas of exercise science. These include anatomy and physiology, exercise physiology, kinesiology, nutrition, and exercise testing and prescription.
- To prepare students for professional school training in physical therapy, strength and conditioning, athletic training, and medical and other health professions.
- To prepare students for master's and doctoral programs in kinesiology, exercise physiology and biochemistry, and nutrition.
- To prepare students to enter the workforce as strength and conditioning coaches, personal trainers, and laboratory technicians.
Wartburg is the first NCAA Division III school to utilize the Elite Form motion-capture system throughout its entire weight room, allowing for unique student-faculty research opportunities and better leveraging of the connections between intercollegiate athletics and academics.
Those seeking immediate entry into the workforce can find opportunities in commercial, community, corporate, and clinical health-fitness facilities.
