Why choose the School of Sport Science and Physical Activity
Work experience opportunities in our on-campus community exercise clinic with groups that include those with stroke rehabilitation; cancer palliative care; obesity; diabetes; cardiovascular disease; and older age.
Further your career prospects and/or boost your knowledge within your current profession to apply behavioural science to prevent, manage and treat long-term conditions.
The course is aligned with the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) ‘Working with People with Long Term Conditions’ professional standard.
About the course
We provide the support, subject knowledge and skills to achieve a postgraduate qualification designed to boost your career prospects. Attend four-hour intense teaching blocks (usually 0-2 per week) for 22 weeks, allowing you to build work around your studies.
This innovative, highly topical course brings together the fields of behaviour change and health, opening a host of career options where you can apply your expertise to promote health, modify behaviour and engender real change. Aligned with current public health policy, the course equips you to understand not only ‘what works’ (for example, physical activity interventions for cardiometabolic health) but, importantly, how to apply this understanding to support people to make real life changes using behavioural science methodologies and tools for lifelong impact to health.
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
- Laboratories accredited by the Chartered Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (CASES) including molecular and cellular labs and a biomechanics lab with 3D camera system
- Community exercise clinic
- Human Performance Centre with environmental heat chamber
- Sports therapy and rehabilitation centre
- Virtual-reality resource centre
- Strength and conditioning suite
- Nutrition research kitchen
- Equipment includes industry-leading equipment such as Woodway and h/p/cosmos® treadmills; hydrostatic weighing tank; echocardiogram machines; breath-by-breath gas analysers; blood analysers; 3D high-speed motion-capture camera system; and a range of force plates
Industry links
We are official education partners of Luton Town FC and Bedford Blues RFC as well as other sporting organisations in the region, giving you opportunities to improve your employability through work placements.
In addition, there are opportunities to develop personal and professional networks through our links with Sport England, governing bodies, active partnerships and health-industry experts.
We also host a hub of the Policy Research Unit in Behavioural and Social Sciences
Your student experience
Learn from a highly experienced academic team of behavioural scientists, exercise practitioners, nutritionists, physiologists, health psychologists and more, including internationally recognised behaviour change expert, Professor Angel Chater.
At our on-campus community exercise clinic, work with people experiencing conditions that impact their quality of life including cancer palliative care, stroke rehabilitation, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, mental health concerns and older age.
Access our Human Performance Centre, which helps train professional athletes and sports people including Team GB and junior Formula 1 racing driver, Frederik Vesti; the heat chamber is regularly used to acclimatise athletes taking on competitions and marathons in places with high temperatures.
Take up external placements at a range of relevant organisations within sport and health, including local and national cardiac rehab services; community cardiac groups; community exercise programmes; county council and public health departments; related charities; and sports teams.
Develop personal and professional networks through our links with Sport England, governing bodies, policy partners, relevant associations, active partnerships and health-industry experts.
Our academics offer supervision in a range of topics for your final major research project, which includes working in real-world environments such as with Premiere League football clubs; the Football Association (FA); rugby clubs; elite athletes; integrated care services; occupational health; the police and fire services; the NHS; public health; cardiac rehabilitation; and government bodies.
What will you study?
Learn to critically evaluate the evidence-base underpinning ‘what works’ by understanding how physical activity and nutrition interventions can improve health and prevent long-term health conditions.
Apply the evidence on ‘what works’ to practice by formulating effective health-based recommendations and learn how to work with people with long-term conditions.
Become proficient on how to support people to make real life changes by using cutting-edge behaviour change intervention methodologies and tools to optimise health and wellbeing outcomes, promoting health and preventing disease and illness.
Careers
Graduates will be equipped to work in a variety of settings with career prospects in public health; the NHS; governmental departments; the charity sector; sport, physical activity, nutrition, fitness and health industries; education; and academic research.
This PgCert also opens the way to completing our full MSc Clinical Exercise Physiology. Depending on your research experience, you may also choose to continue to further research-based study with an MSc by research or MPhil/PhD.
Fees for this course
UK
The standard fee for a Postgraduate Certificate for the Academic Year 2021/22 is £2,750.
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
Scholarship Available
The University of Bedfordshire is proud of its alumni and is delighted to offer a tuition fee discount for those who choose to continue or return to the University for on campus Postgraduate level studies.
We offer a 20% discount on full and part-time Masters courses to those who were successful in completing an Honours Degree with the University of Bedfordshire, DMU’s Bedford campus or the University of Luton.
EU
The standard fee for a Postgraduate Certificate for the Academic Year 2021/22 is £2,750.
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
