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Why choose the School of Sport Science and Physical Activity
Our Sports courses rank 1st for student/staff ratio (Guardian, 2024).
Our sports science courses rank in the UK top 15 in their subject field (Daily Mail university rankings, 2024).
One of the only courses in the UK to offer around £10,000-worth of additional qualifications at no extra cost.
About the course
This innovative course is designed for those who want to train athletes to maximise their physical potential and improve their performance. You learn from leading professionals who teach you the skills you need to be a confident and well-informed strength and conditioning coach, while covering a wide range of sports science disciplines including anatomy, physiology, biomechanics, sport psychology and nutrition.
Course accreditation / industry endorsement
The course is endorsed by the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA), allowing you to gain additional qualifications in gym instructor; personal trainer; working with people with long-term conditions; S&C trainer; and graduate S&C coach.
Once you complete your degree, you can apply for professional accreditation with the UK Strength and Conditioning Association (UKSCA).
Facilities and specialist equipment
- New purpose-built strength and conditioning facility with Olympic weight room
- A fully supervised sports therapy and rehabilitation centre with sports injury clinic, open to staff, students and external athletes/clients
- Six BASES-accredited laboratories including physiology and biomechanics laboratories with cutting-edge equipment such as an environmental chamber, Vald Performance light gates, force plates and a 3D motion-analysis system
- Human Performance Centre, allowing students experience of working with athletes
- State-of-the-art gym with membership for students
- Sports arena; multi-use games areas; and 4G sports pitch
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.
We are also a Higher Education Partner of the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA).
Your student experience
- Learn from leading professionals in the field who have worked with elite sports people, including GB Olympians, national organisations (such as the RFU and the FA) and professional sports teams.
- Enhance your learning and build your experience through field trips to destinations such as St George’s Park, the home of England Football; Northampton Saints Rugby Club; and the dissection rooms at King’s College London.
- As well as placements with our official partners, you will have opportunities to gain experience with other sporting organisations such as Ampthill Rugby Club, Northampton Town Football Club, MK Dons Football Club and Girls Academy, and Oundle School.
- Collaborate with our partners to deliver school and community-based projects.
- Hear from guest speakers (who also teach on the course) and attend our ISPAR seminar series. Previous speakers have included Jack Wells (PGA); Tom Bromley (MK Dons); Akash Modhwadia (S&C coach at MK Dons); Mark Finney (former head of S&C at Northampton Saints); and Phil Pask (consultant physiotherapist for England Rugby).
- Benefit from the support of your own personal academic tutor who will guide and support you throughout your student journey.
- Our Bedford campus is a small, thriving academic community where academic staff get to know you well.
Luton Town Strength & Conditioning 1
Luton Town Strength & Conditioning 2
Luton Town Strength & Conditioning 4
Luton Town Strength & Conditioning 4(1)
SSPA Facilities
SSPA Facilities2
Strength & Conditioning Suite 1
Strength & Conditioning Suite 2
Strength & Conditioning Suite 3
Strength & Conditioning Suite 4
Strength & Conditioning Suite 5
Strength & Conditioning Suite 6
Strength & Conditioning Suite 7
with Professional Practice Year
This course has the option to be taken over four years which includes a year placement in industry. Undertaking a year in industry has many benefits. You gain practical experience and build your CV, as well as being a great opportunity to sample a profession and network with potential future employers.
There is no tuition fee for the placement year enabling you to gain an extra year of experience for free.
*Only available to UK/EU students.
with Foundation Year
A Degree with a Foundation Year gives you guaranteed entry to an Undergraduate course.
Whether you’re returning to learning and require additional help and support to up-skill, or if you didn’t quite meet the grades to pursue an Undergraduate course, our Degrees with Foundation Year provide a fantastic entry route for you to work towards a degree level qualification.
With our guidance and support you’ll get up to speed within one year, and will be ready to seamlessly progress on to undergraduate study at Bedfordshire.
The Foundation Year provides an opportunity to build up your academic writing skills and numeracy, and will also cover a range of subject specific content to fully prepare you for entry to an Undergraduate degree.
This is an integrated four-year degree, with the foundation year as a key part of the course. You will need to successfully complete the Foundation Year to progress on to the first year of your bachelor’s degree.
Why study a degree with a Foundation Year?
- Broad-based yet enough depth to give you credible vocational skills
- Coverage of a variety of areas typically delivered by an expert in this area
- Gain an understanding of a subject before choosing which route you wish to specialise in
- Great introduction to further study, and guaranteed progression on to one of our Undergraduate degrees
The degrees offering a Foundation Year provide excellent preparation for your future studies.
During your Foundation Year you will get the opportunity to talk to tutors about your degree study and future career aspirations, and receive guidance on the most appropriate Undergraduate course to help you achieve this; providing you meet the entry requirements and pass the Foundation Year.
Course Leader - Dr Laura Charalambous
I joined the University of Bedfordshire as a Biomechanics Lecturer in September 2013. I currently lead the undergraduate Biomechanics units. I am Course Coordinator of our MSc Strength and Conditioning. I supervise a number of postgraduate research students. I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2015) and I hold the role of Chair of the Ethics Committee for the ISPAR Research Institute.
What will you study?
Studying our Strength and Conditioning BSc (Hons) course will equip you with the specialised knowledge and skills in the combined areas of strength and conditioning and sports science. To build your understanding in core areas of study, our unit in the Fundamentals of Strength and Conditioning will introduce you to the principles of strength and conditioning in relation to optimising sports performance. To apply this knowledge, you will learn to coach effective strength and conditioning programmes through high-volume, low-intensity exercise testing and coaching during our units in Applied Strength and Conditioning and Advanced Strength and Conditioning. Focusing on Biomechanics, you will acquire the skills for biomechanical measurement and assessment techniques in sports science practice while considering sports performance and injury prevention. Similarly, you will learn of the principles of human movement, anatomy and the application of sports biomechanics in our units in Anatomy and Biomechanics and Biomechanics for Sport and Exercise Science. This links closely with our Human Physiology unit where you will question how the human body adapts to exercise alongside studying physiological systems, major organs of the body and how they respond at rest.
You will look at this further in our Applied Exercise Physiology unit where you will consider the current measures of exercise performance and issues within applied physiology. Using both theory and practice, you will then examine the current factors that influence sport and exercise performance, how the human body adapts to different types of exercise and various training methods in our Physiology of Exercise and Adaptation unit. In areas of the mind, you will be given an Introduction to Sport and Exercise Psychology and how it contributes to performance enhancement and athlete wellbeing. Moreover, this course also gives you the flexibility to choose from a range of optional units. You can explore a variety of techniques in Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology, develop techniques for biomechanical analyses in our Applied Biomechanics unit, or learn how to safely prescribe exercise, particularly for individuals with low-risk diseases in our Exercise and Fitness Testing for Clinical Populations unit. Additionally, based on the latest research and trends in the fitness industry, our unit Advanced Applied Exercise Practice will allow you to build on practical and procedural elements of work.
Finally, you may complete a Dissertation for Sport Science and Physical Activity on a key issue relevant to your study and examine it using the skills and knowledge gained from your academic study. To help you with this, our units in Dissertation Preparation and an Introduction to Research Methods will support you in reading and understanding research, and to complete a proposal with ethical documentation. Alternatively, you may complete a Work Placement Project that will allow you to undertake work experience in the field that can be used to develop reflective practice, critical evaluation and work-based skills. To prepare you for your career, you will be provided with skills for the job application and interview process in our Professional Development and Employability unit. To add to this, you can also undertake a Professional Practice Year (Sport Science and Physical Activity) that will allow you to gain work experience while developing your professional skills.
How will you be assessed?
A wide range of assessment formats will be used within this course including Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) tests open and closed book exams laboratory reports case studies portfolios practical exams and presentations. Level 4 will consist of more knowledge based assessments including exams essays and simple practical competencies. Level 5 will have a more critical approach with an increase in the use of case studies reports and reviews of information while more advanced methods of practical competence will be assessed. At level 6 practical application of skills and knowledge gained at level 4 and 5 will be looked at through 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.
Teaching learning and assessment are supported by the research and accreditation held by members of the course team. All team members are either Fellows or Senior Fellows of the HEA while all Strength and Conditioning specific units are taught by UKSCA accredited coaches. This helps to keep general teaching and assessment methods up to date and inclusive and Strength and Conditioning practices in line with professional accrediting bodies. Unit specific knowledge is enhanced by the research profiles of unit co-coordinators. Peer reviewed journal publications in the area of Strength & Conditioning including the effects of different preparation strategy's on performance the relationships of physical capacities to performance and the effects of specific training interventions on performance have kept the unit content current and externally validated.
Careers
The focus on performance enhancement in the course will qualify you for many careers in the exercise industry including sports coaching; strength and conditioning; sport science support; and sports development.
This course also opens up the route to our postgraduate courses, including our Strength and Conditioning MSc.
Entry Requirements
Fees for this course
UK
The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the Academic Year 2025/26 is £9,250 per year. You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for your tuition fees. You can also apply for a maintenance loan from the Government to help cover your living costs. See www.gov.uk/student-finance
Excellence Scholarships
Worth £2,500 per year of study over three years when you score a defined number of UCAS tariff points from specified qualifications*
» If you don’t qualify for an Excellence Scholarship but have 120 UCAS tariff points, you have enough points for one of our Achievement Scholarships offering £500 per year of study**
» Other scholarships, bursaries and financial support packages are available
* Points requirements vary depending on type of qualification.
** Threshold is 120 UCAS tariff points across all awarding bodies and qualifications.
International
The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the academic year 2025/26 is £16,900 per year.
There are range of Scholarships available to help support you through your studies with us.
A full list of scholarships can be found here.
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