Sport and Exercise Science

Year 2

Compulsory modules

• Applied Sport and Exercise Physiology

  In this module, you’ll develop your understanding of exercise physiology by applying various principles and knowledge of exercise physiology to field and laboratory settings.

  You’ll gain experience in conducting accurate assessments of physical fitness and physiological response, both as a subject and as a practitioner, utilising equipment and skills implemented in a range of contemporary occupational settings.

  You’ll complete twenty-two hours of lectures and eighteen hours of practicals (laboratory and field based). Alongside this, you’ll be encouraged to engage with broad aspects of data collection and interpretation to support your coursework assessment, while developing relevant practical skills in the field. You’ll be introduced to modern technological advances and will learn standard assessment techniques in exercise and sport physiology. 

• Research Methods

  This module will develop your knowledge of research methods and concepts, and will allow you to
  explore aspects relating to the design, analysis and interpretation of research as well as ethical
  considerations fundamental to the research process. The module will also give you the
  opportunity to develop your own research proposal, developing the ability to engage with literature
  in a critical and analytical manner.

• Sport and Exercise Biomechanics

  This module will allow you to explore the physics of sport. Essentially, you’ll be building on your knowledge covered in Introduction to Biomechanics, and forming key foundational identification skills in the analysis of human movement.

  Your study will enable you to make informed decisions about appropriate techniques of biomechanical principles and recreational activity, which shall support your understanding in the context of sport performance and injury prevention.

  The module will provide you with access to cutting-edge material such as analysis techniques and equipment, data collection, and will boost your critical thinking skills and problem-solving abilities with the chance to investigate and interpret real-world results.
   

• Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology

  In this module, you’ll build on some core concepts and theories. You’ll consider and explore some of the more complex psychological issues and challenges that applied sport and exercise psychologists often face when working with athletes, such as, burnout, injury, career transitions, stress, mental illness).

  You’ll also turn your focus to key stakeholders and teams, such as motivational climates, group dynamics, coach-athlete relationship. You’ll cover these topics in lectures, and will be assessed through assignments and practical sessions. Your study will be supplemented with additional online study material, for example, through weekly reading, podcasts, and online quizzes.

• Physical Activity and Health

  Learn the prevention and treatment concepts behind promoting and enhancing the nation’s health, from how physical inactivity impacts human health to formulating behavioural changes strategies. You’ll have the opportunity to investigate evidence from scientific literature pertaining to the role that physical inactivity plays in the resulting conditions and illnesses of obesity, insulin resistance syndrome, cancer and development of cardiovascular disease. 

Optional modules

• Principles of Training for Sport and Exercise*

  In this module, you’ll increase your employability by learning how to understand, write and deliver individualised group training programmes. You’ll study the theory and get hands-on with practical work, looking at physical conditioning for all levels of performers.

  You’ll gain knowledge of generic training principles which will support your development into real-world sport and training initiatives, and you’ll get the opportunity to apply your new skills to your specific sport/and or specific target group.

• Sport and Exercise Nutrition

  In a world where healthier regimes and good nutrition is encouraged, this module will put you in the position to get hands-on with this theme.

  You’ll undertake a detailed examination of nutrition in relation to sport and exercise, paying particular attention to the role of nutrition in influencing sport and exercise performance, health, training adaptions and recovery from exercise. In addition, you’ll have the opportunity to apply and extend your learning to examine the effects of nutrition in response to exercise through practical data collection and applied scenarios. Throughout the module you’ll use what you learn to inform your dissertation and independent study topics. 

• Sports Development

  You'll use both your theoretical and practical knowledge in this module, which will focus on improving the way sports organisations function through development of key sports methodologies designed to increase efficiency and effectiveness.

  You’ll get to grips with the best ways on how to promote interest, participation, and performance in sport. You’ll be given the opportunity to create your very own tailored sports development plan for a chosen organisation, and applying your skills to a real-world practical situation. Throughout the module, you can expect to receive twelve weekly lectures (2 hour) supported by individual and/or group tutorials. You’ll also be given the freedom to explore individual independent study.

  
  By the end of this module you’ll be equipped with both theoretical and practical fundamental concepts, which can be applied to the evaluation and management of real-world sports developmental situations.
   

• Performance Analysis

  Make informed decisions in the sports world with this analytical sports module. You’ll learn techniques and strategies to hone your understanding on the improvement and analysis of sport performance.

  With the guidance of expert sports tutors, you’ll progressively train in identifying key analytical trends, and build knowledge of tactical analysis, effective management, utilisation and presentation of data, with the aim to enhance sports performance. In addition, you’ll be introduced to the behavioural analysis concepts behind training and coaching athletes of tomorrow.

  If you’ve ever considered a career within talent development or performance coaching environments, this module will have you well prepared. You’ll gain a wide range of highly sought-after skills that are relevant and essential in the sporting world today.
   

• Laboratory Techniques in Sport and Exercise

  In this module you’ll learn reliable qualitative and quantitative laboratory techniques, enabling you to accurately run safe and professional exercise testing sessions. From these, you’ll be able to measure real sporting performance, and enhance your understanding about the interpretation of exercise data within the health, sports and performance context.
   
  You’ll devise sport and exercise constructs, which will enable you to develop your critical analysis skills, ability to problem solve and use numerical data effectively to draw meaningful conclusions. Throughout the module, you shall have access to engaging sports literature, relevant to the field. 
   

• Motivating Health Behaviour

  What are the main factors that motivate you to eat healthily and adopt healthy lifestyles? In this module, you’ll be discovering how the reasons behind consuming certain foods are important in relation to the improvement of lives globally, and in post-industrialised nations. To be healthy and active, our diet must comprise of certain foods to meet our energy and nutritional requirements and our lifestyle habits must include activities that promote health. In some circumstances, unhealthy food and lifestyle choices become of concern in relation to adverse health consequences. 

  This module will allow you to examine the approaches to motivate behavioural health change in relation to improved human health, by addressing nutrition, exercise and other relevant factors. 
   

• Work Experience 1

  In this module, you’ll be amidst the action and working with expert staff and patrons already assigned to the field of Sport and Exercise, under a supervised work-based learning experience, designed to complement your professional and technical skills. You’ll build on your professional knowledge, practical leadership skills and vocational competencies, embarking on a journey of self-discovery in terms of applying your theory to Sport and Exercise concepts. Participating in this placement will enhance your employability and will also open up avenues to investigate and identify your future career direction options and professional development opportunities. 

• Independent Study 1#

  In this module, you’ll study how the psychology behind sports concepts can enhance sports performance. You’ll delve into how to present evidence-based interventions and apply this knowledge in real-world settings. Strategic-thinking abilities, problem-solving skills, data management, and confidence in communicating your ideas will all be developed under the guidance of your tutor on this module. You’ll be offered this module as part of your programme of study under exceptional circumstances, and at the discretion of your module tutor.

Year 3

Compulsory modules

• Final Project/ Dissertation**

  In this module, you’ll be given the opportunity to create your own project/dissertation on a specific area of knowledge in relation to fields of sport and exercise science, sport, coaching and physical activity and health promotion. You’ll work one-to-one with a supervisor, developing and enhancing your research while utilising academic literature critically and analytically to support your findings. You’ll get to choose your topic and will be encouraged to get involved with both practical hands-on collection of data and desk-based study. You’ll explore a range of issues which will widen your knowledge and increase your awareness of future career paths.

• Applied Practice in Sport and Exercise Science**

  In this module, you’ll gain a thorough understanding of the scientific principles behind sport and exercise. You’ll explore a range of topics including physiology, psychology, and biomechanics. You’ll also have the opportunity to turn theory into sports practice by determining how concepts could be applied to sport, health and occupational settings. You’ll be encouraged to utilise your analytical skills in collecting and interpreting data to inform decisions and communicate information effectively. By the end of this module, you will be confident in applying your skills successfully as qualified practitioners or researchers within most sports-related fields. 

Optional modules

• Strength and Conditioning for Sport and Health*

  You’ll develop both practical and theoretical knowledge of the strength and conditioning spectrum, including evidence-based practice, rehabilitation and working with special populations. You’ll enhance your abilities to work collaboratively with peers and plan interventions that provide solutions to real sporting problems. On completion of this module, you’ll be well prepared to achieve accreditation with recognised awarding bodies associated with strength and conditioning. 

• Advanced Practice in Sport and Exercise Psychology

  This module will provide you with an advanced understanding of sport and exercise psychology theory. You’ll take an in-depth look at professional concepts and draw real-life connections between sports psychology theory and practice. Through independent fieldwork and analysis of the latest applied research, you’ll have the opportunity to investigate issues relating to athlete (and coach) sports performance, devising ways to enhance the quality of competitive sports experience and optimising sport-learning through intervention. You’ll be looking at a range of topics including emotional regulation, group processes, cognitive function in competitive settings and behavioural change. You’ll be encouraged to apply key theoretical concepts to real-life practical situations involving sports participants. On completion of this module, you can expect to have an excellent grasp of sports performance enhancing interventions. 

• Clinical Populations and Rehabilitations

  Interested in creating interventions that enhance recovery, health, and mobility after injury across a range of populations? Then this module is for you. You’ll get to grips with both theoretical knowledge and practical skills in the area of exercise and training of clinical populations with long-term health conditions. On completion of this module, you shall be accredited with a Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) award, indicating your successful completion of the module.

• Emerging Technology in Exercise and Health

  You’ll get to grips with the biomechanics of the human body in this module, and will develop your theoretical knowledge, technical, practical and transferrable skills in the area of exercise. Most importantly, you’ll be encouraged to identify the strengths and weaknesses of emerging, industry specific technology, and its application to exercise and health. You will learn how to critically analyse technology data and apply the findings within your field of expertise to real-word problems.

• Sport and Exercise Nutrition

  You’ll be pairing sports and exercise with nutrition and investigating how the role of nutrition influences sports and exercise performance, training adaptations and recovery from exercise. You’ll also get the opportunity to work with others over many weeks on a group project to explore the effects of nutrition on responses to exercise. By the end of this module, you’ll have picked up the necessary skills to transfer your abilities into real-world scenarios as a sports and exercise nutritionist. 

• Sports Injuries

  In this module, you’ll widen your knowledge about supporting the recovery of athletes through injury. You’ll investigate the epidemiology, diagnosis and mechanisms behind the most common sports injuries, including join-specific injuries. You’ll learn how to identify risk-factors, implement evidence-based treatment plans, and develop an understanding of rehabilitation principles, processes and techniques. You’ll have the opportunity to gain practical experience in assessing, treating, and supporting individuals with their return to sports from a wide variety of scenarios. By the end of this module, you will have refined your expertise in supporting individuals’ recovery from injury and you will also have gained the confidence to tackle some of the challenging and evolving areas of sport.

• Independent Study 2#

  You’ll get involved in individual or group work on an appropriate topic, agreed with your module leader and with approval of the field committee. Once your learning contract has been formally approved, your module will be registered on the student’s programme of study. Your study may be work-based, enabling you to gain recognition and academic credit for learning gained through your professional practice, or from an in-depth study of your own high-level sporting performance. 

• Work Experience 2

  This optional module will provide you with valuable work experience, and will not require you to take time out of your studies. You shall be able to continue your studies in other modules concurrently in the semester and there will be no additional fees to these opportunities beyond normal tuition fees. The module themes will be organised and facilitated by the department, however, you may be able to organise your own experience with approval by the work experience module lead.

Work placements

Optional modules

• Work experience modules

  This is a placement which you will organise to align with your employment interests, although we can provide a range of possible alternative options. On site, the Clinical Exercise and Rehabilitation Unit (CLEAR) and Human Performance Unit (HPU), based at Oxford Brookes' Centre for Sport, are excellent environments for practical experience of laboratory exercise tests. Local hospitals, sports clubs and sports centres also provide similar environments for hands-on field-based exercise tests. Recent work placement projects include: the development of exercise training programmes for CLEAR unit clients with significant movement disorders; performance analysis of Olympic-level athletes in the HPU.