Why choose the School of Sport Science and Physical Activity
Block course delivery (one four-hour day) allows time for work experience and employment.
In the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey 2025, the University of Bedfordshire ranks UK 29th overall; we rank UK 7th for skills development.
Work placement opportunities are available, helping build your CV and career prospects.
About the course
This course is now only taking applications for 2026 entry.
For further information or to apply contact admission@beds.ac.uk
This 60-credit postgraduate qualification is designed to develop your knowledge, key competencies and skills in performance sport and the health and fitness sector as an applied sport scientist in elite, grassroots and schools' sport as well as with the general population within a health club setting.
Within an ideal environment for scientific exploration and practical skills development, you explore approaches to supporting athletes including testing physical capacities; looking at performance nutrition; and strength and conditioning. This will enable you to assess athletes’ performance, see what is lacking in their performance profile and positively impact their physical performance.
If you would like more information about this course, please contact Dr Iain Fletcher at iain.fletcher@beds.ac.uk
Course accreditation
We increase the employability of our graduates by being a Higher Education Partner of the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA).
Facilities and specialist equipment
- Sports laboratories accredited by the Chartered Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (CASES)
- Human Performance Centre with heat chamber for high-temperature acclimatisation
- On-campus community exercise clinic supporting clients with a range of conditions
- Sports injury clinic
- New strength and conditioning suite with nine lifting platforms
- Free gym
- Range of external games areas and pitches
Industry links
We are official partners of Luton Town FC and Bedford Blues RFC as well as other sporting organisations in the region such as Bedford Tigers RLFC, MK Dons, Cricket East and Be Active, giving you opportunities to improve your employability through work placements.
There are also opportunities to develop personal and professional networks through our links with Sport England, governing bodies, active partnerships and health-industry experts.
Your student experience
Study with an academic team who have world-leading expertise in their fields and are actively involved in supporting elite sports performers as well as research on human performance.
Benefit from our successful partnerships with professional sports teams, elite athletes, academies, schools, colleges and other relevant organisations.
Local placement opportunities with Luton Town FC, Bedford Blues RFC, Ampthill Rugby club, Northampton Saints, MK Dons, Saracens, Northampton County Cricket Club, Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) and the USA’s National Football League (NFL).
Gain invaluable work experience in our Human Performance Centre, which offers testing to sports people, teams and the general public across the range of fitness capacities. There are also opportunities to work in our community exercise clinic or help support our University BUCS team athletes.
Regular industry speakers attend our ISPAR seminar series including Jack Wells (PGA), Tom Bromley (S&C coach for MK Dons), Mark Finney (former head of S&C at Northampton Saints), and Phil Pask (former lead physio for England Rugby).
Our graduates have gone on to careers at the Lawn Tennis Association, British Water Skiing, Red Bull Racing, Saracens, Bedford Blues, MK Dons and the Geelong Cats in the Australian Football League, to name a few.
Course Leader - Dr Iain Fletcher
I have worked in the field of Sport & Exercise Science for the last 30 years. My particular areas of expertise are in Biomechanics and Strength and Conditioning, with my research exploring optimising sports performance and in particular the effect of acute exercise interventions effects on performance.
What will you study?
In the unit Principles of Strength and Conditioning, you will be introduced to coaching concepts around running- and jumping-based actions such as acceleration, deceleration, plyometrics and metabolic conditioning, enabling you to design training sessions that optimise these physical capacities.
Our Applied Strength and Conditioning unit will concentrate on resistance training, with session design and coaching lifts at its core.
Advanced Strength and Conditioning will provide more complex information and skill development in areas such as periodisation, weightlifting and agility.
These core S&C units allow you to design and coach training programmes for specific sporting physical requirements.
Broadening your knowledge base, our unit Sport Science Support will give you experience of the support systems used to optimise sports performance in specific populations, such as children, athletes with a disability, women and the aging athlete.
How will you be assessed?
A wide range of assessment formats will be used within this course, including laboratory reports, case studies, portfolios, practical exams and presentations. The course will move assessments from a controlled established scientific base through to a more autonomous and practical application of research to inform the practical skills associated with performance sport as a career. This will be reinforced by original research and athlete assessment, creating data to be explored and analysed through reports and research dissertations, while high-order practical competency (with problem solving) will be examined in line with governing body competencies, preparing students for potential accreditation and work opportunities.
Careers
Completion of this course will give you the opportunity to work within the sport and health sectors, supporting human performance. Specific career paths include sport scientist, exercise physiologist, strength and conditioning coach, FE/HE lecturer and laboratory technician.
You can also continue to further research-based study on MSc by Research, MPhil or PhD programmes.
