Careers

Two people using equipment in a sport science lab

Seeing a career pathway for me to continue researching is an exciting opportunity.

Georgia, BSc (Hons) Sport and Exercise Science

Sports and exercise scientists can work at all levels, from the general population to elite performance – and our course prepares you for that.

We’ll encourage you to improve your employment prospects by making connections with schools and industry. We have links with a range of sporting organisations, and there are plenty of opportunities to get hands-on experience with internships, opportunities with our Exercise Testing Consultancy team, and an optional placement year.

What can you do with a Sport and Exercise Science degree?

How can I build my professional network?

How can ARU help with my employability and career development?

Teaching and modules

Explore how sport and exercise can be used to promote, maintain, and enhance health, wellbeing and performance across the lifespan.

Prof Dan Gordon

Explore different aspects of sport and exercise science, from sports psychology to strength and conditioning.

Through lectures and practical sessions in labs, you’ll learn how the body performs, and responds to, physical activity. You’ll evaluate human movement, undertake physiological assessments, and work with real clients to provide nutritional support. You’ll also look at data collection and interpretation; and sports coaching and its relationship to exercise science.

In your final year, you can choose between a research project, or working and completing a project in industry.

You also have optional modules to work as a gym instructor or personal trainer and become a qualified member of Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA).

What will I study?

Modules are subject to change and availability, and may vary by location. If you have the choice of optional modules, these are indicated with a *.

Year 1

Multidisciplinary Sport and Exercise Science 1 (30 credits)
Introduction to Sport Coaching and Development (30 credits)
Practical Delivery of Sport and Physical Education (30 credits)
Multidisciplinary Sport and Exercise Science 2 (30 credits)
Professional Development - Level 4
Into ARU
CIMSPA Level 2 Gym Instructor (0 credits) *

Year 2

Applied Research Skills (15 credits)
Practical Competencies in Biomechanics (15 credits)
Physiological Profiling for Strength and Power (15 credits)
Psychological Profiling for Sport (15 credits)
Professional Development - Level 5
Ruskin Module (15 credits)
Nutrition for Health and Exercise (15 credits) *
Perceptual Motor Skills (15 credits) *
Strength and Conditioning (15 credits) *
Biomechanics: Analysis of Motion (15 credits) *
Physiological Profiling for Endurance (15 credits) *
CIMSPA Level 3 Personal Trainer (0 credits) *

Year 3

Physiological Responses to Training (15 credits)
Physiological Basis of Training (15 credits)
Undergraduate Research Project (30 credits) *
Advanced Work Placement (30 credits) *
Applied Biomechanics (15 credits) *
Applied Sports Psychology (15 credits) *
Advanced Strength and Conditioning (15 credits) *
Performance and Exercise Nutrition (15 credits) *
Current Topics in Biomechanics (15 credits) *
Exercise Medicine (15 credits) *
Contemporary Issues in Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology (15 credits) *

Module details

To prepare you for university study, you can take a foundation year at the start of this course. Find out more about foundation years.

Year 1

Foundation in Sports Science

Module details

You can choose to take an optional placement year as part of this course. Placements typically happen in Year 3, and your course will take four years overall. Find out more about placement years.

Year 3

Work Placement - Psychology and Sport Sciences (120 credits)

Module details

What happens on a foundation year?

What happens on a placement year?

How is BSc (Hons) Sport and Exercise Science assessed

What equipment will I need?

Who teaches Sport and Exercise Science at ARU?

At ARU, you’ll learn from expert staff including practising sport therapists, coaches, psychologists, nutritionists and conditioning specialists. There’s the chance to hear from world-leading guest speakers too, through our Excellence in Sports seminars.

Dr Andrew Morrison
Interim Deputy Head of School
Professor Dan Gordon
Professor in Exercise Physiology
Dr Francesca Cavallerio
Senior Lecturer
Dr Jack Wells
Senior Lecturer
Dr Sanjoy Deb
Associate Professor
Dr Ash Willmott
Associate Professor

At ARU you’ll be based in the Cambridge Centre for Sports and Exercise Sciences, with facilities accredited by the Chartered Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (CASES).

Entry requirements

Standard entry requirements

Important additional notes

Our published entry requirements are a guide only and our decision will be based on your overall suitability for the course as well as whether you meet the minimum entry requirements.

Other equivalent qualifications may be accepted for entry to this course; please email [email protected] for further information. Applicants to undergraduate courses can also check our information about undergraduate entry qualifications.

You'll need a computer and reliable internet access to successfully engage with your course.

We don't accept AS level qualifications on their own for entry to our undergraduate degree courses. However for some degree courses a small number of tariff points from AS levels are accepted as long as they're combined with tariff points from A levels or other equivalent level 3 qualifications in other subjects.

Important additional notes

Our published entry requirements are a guide only and our decision will be based on your overall suitability for the course as well as whether you meet the minimum entry requirements.

You'll need a computer and reliable internet access to successfully engage with your course.

Important additional notes

Our published entry requirements are a guide only and our decision will be based on your overall suitability for the course as well as whether you meet the minimum entry requirements.

You'll need a computer and reliable internet access to successfully engage with your course.

International students

English language requirements

Contextual offers

Fees and funding

UK students

£9,535 UK students starting 2025/26 (full-time, per year)

If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. Part-time students should be studying more than a quarter (25% intensity) of a full-time course each year.

You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

If you start a course on or after 1 August 2023, you won't repay anything until you earn more than £25,000. This is called repayment Plan 5. At this point, you'll repay 9% on everything you earn over £25,000. After 40 years (from the April after graduation), all remaining debt is wiped.

If you started a course on or before 31 July 2023, you won't repay anything until you earn more than £27,295. This is called repayment Plan 2. At this point, you'll repay 9% on everything you earn over £27,295. After 30 years (from the April after graduation), all remaining debt is wiped.

For example for students who are on repayment Plan 5:

If you earn £25,500, you'll repay £45 a year or £3.75 a month
That's because £25,500 is £500 above the threshold, and 9% of £500 is £45.

What you repay depends on how much you earn after university. The more you earn, the more you pay back.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£9,535 UK students starting 2025/26 (full-time, per year)

If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. Part-time students should be studying more than a quarter (25% intensity) of a full-time course each year.

You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For example for students who are on repayment Plan 5:

If you earn £25,500, you'll repay £45 a year or £3.75 a month
That's because £25,500 is £500 above the threshold, and 9% of £500 is £45.

What you repay depends on how much you earn after university. The more you earn, the more you pay back.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£9,535 UK students starting 2025/26 (full-time, per year)

If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. Part-time students should be studying more than a quarter (25% intensity) of a full-time course each year.

You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For example for students who are on repayment Plan 5:

If you earn £25,500, you'll repay £45 a year or £3.75 a month
That's because £25,500 is £500 above the threshold, and 9% of £500 is £45.

What you repay depends on how much you earn after university. The more you earn, the more you pay back.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£1,400 Placement year (2024-25)

International students

£17,500 International students starting 2025/26 (full-time, per year)

You can pay your fees upfront, in full or in two instalments. We will ask for a deposit of £4,000 or a sponsorship letter

Find out about paying your fees.

£17,500 International students starting 2025/26 (full-time, per year)

You can pay your fees upfront, in full or in two instalments. We will ask for a deposit of £4,000 or a sponsorship letter

Find out about paying your fees.

£17,500 International students starting 2025/26 (full-time, per year)

You can pay your fees upfront, in full or in two instalments. We will ask for a deposit of £4,000 or a sponsorship letter

Find out about paying your fees.

Placement year fee

Living costs

Bursaries, sponsorship and working

Apply for Sport and Exercise Science

Clearing places available

UK students, apply through Clearing for a September 2025 start

Apply through Clearing

Apply by phone

UK students, call our Clearing line

01245 686868

UK students

Apply through UCAS for 2026

Apply through UCAS

International students

Apply direct

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Sport and Exercise Science

BSc (Hons)

With foundation year

With placement

Careers

Teaching and modules

BSc (Hons)

With foundation year

With placement

Facilities

Entry requirements

BSc (Hons)

Important additional notes

With foundation year

Important additional notes

With placement

Important additional notes

International students

English language requirements

Fees and funding

BSc (Hons)

With foundation year

With placement

BSc (Hons)

With foundation year

With placement

Apply for Sport and Exercise Science

Clearing places available

Apply by phone

01245 686868

UK students

International students

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