Course summary

Train as a strength and conditioning coach in our professionally accredited labs in Cambridge, with the option to specialise in physiology or biomechanics. Prepare for a career working with professional sports teams or athletes. Working as a strength and conditioning coach is challenging and rewarding. You're responsible for the physical and physiological development of athletes in search of performance gains – though there's also the option to work beyond elite sport. Strength and conditioning is more than just gym work. You'll help athletes to develop the speed, agility, endurance and strength they need to compete at the highest levels. With athletes progressing from basic rehabilitation exercise up to reconditioning for return to play, the role of the strength and conditioning coach is becoming more and more prominent. Our new degree course will give you the knowledge and skills you need to work with professional sportspeople, and it's aligned to UK Strength and Conditioning Association Standards. But there are opportunities outside of professional sport, too: our course recognises broader national concerns about low levels of physical activity. There's an emerging need for qualified healthcare professionals to work with a broad range of clients. We'll therefore encourage and support you to gain fitness industry qualifications. Two of the core strands of strength and conditioning and rehabilitation are biomechanics and exercise physiology. We'll cover both of them in detail throughout the course, but from Year 2 you'll have the chance to specialise. If you're interested in the movements your players make, or the joint loading that could lead to injuries, biomechanics may be the path for you. Or if you're fascinated by a player’s capacity to perform at the end of a game, or finish strongly in a race, you can focus on physiology. You’ll learn to work safely and ethically as a strength and conditioning coach in our accredited labs in the Cambridge Centre for Sports and Exercise Science. As well as gaining practical knowledge that's in demand from top-level clubs and sporting organisations, you'll also develop your research skills. In Year 3, our final year research project gives you the chance to complete an in-depth investigation into an area of sporting practice. By studying at ARU, you'll benefit from highly-experienced lecturers, including practising strength and conditioning specialists, sport therapists, coaches, health and exercise professionals and world-leading researchers. Our team currently includes a Paralympian World Record holder, Scottish Women’s Rugby player, and judo champion. We also host visiting guest speakers as part of our Excellence in Sport seminar series.