The sport studies program allows you to bring your love of sport together with a deeper understanding of sports history, culture and practice. You’ll study sport history, psychology and sociology, exploring topics that range from marketing and mass media to race and gender. This major prepares you for a wide variety of career paths in school, college and professional sport, including coaching, administration, marketing and sports communications. It also prepares you for graduate study in areas such as sport law or sport psychology. Students interested in pro leagues, sporting goods or media are encouraged to take supporting coursework in related disciplines such as business, journalism or communications.
As a student in the sport studies program at UNH, you’ll be able to pursue one of four focus areas: sports information/media relations, management/administration, marketing or coaching/psychology. You will gain practical experience and make professional contacts through internships in coaching, communications, marketing, event management and other aspects of the sport industry. Demand in this industry is expected to grow as participation in high school, college, professional and recreational sport rises.
Phone: (603) 862-2071
Sport Studies is an interdisciplinary major that provides a foundation for careers in the sport industry. Students may prepare for careers in school, college, and professional athletic administration/management, coaching, marketing, and sports media. The program also prepares majors for graduate study in areas such as sport law and sport psychology. Sport Studies students are encouraged to pursue a second major or minor in a complementary discipline, such as business, journalism, or psychology.
Majors take a core of foundation courses as well as electives in applied areas such as sport marketing, athletic administration, and sport psychology. Majors must earn a grade of B- or better in KIN 565 Principles of Coaching and KIN 580 Sport Industry, and a grade of C or better in each required University and Kinesiology course. All majors must complete a minor or 20 credits of prior-approved coursework in supporting areas such as business, psychology, or education. In addition, an internship experience or independent study is required. An internship experience is strongly recommended since it is often critical to career development. Interested students should consult with the program coordinator, Heather Barber, Heather.Barber@unh.edu.
This list only includes major classes. Students should be registered for, and taking an average of 16 credits per semester to be ‘on track’ to graduate in 4 years. In most semesters, this means a student will be taking Discovery or elective courses, to meet this 16 credit ‘load’.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | |
| KIN 580 | Sport Industry | 4 |
| PSYC 401 | Introduction to Psychology | 4 |
| ENGL 401 | First-Year Writing | 4 |
| Credits | 12 | |
| Spring | ||
| KIN 565 or KIN 562 |
Principles of Coaching or Sport Media Relations |
4 |
| Credits | 4 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| KIN 562 or KIN 565 |
Sport Media Relations or Principles of Coaching |
4 |
| PSYC 402 or SOC 502 or ADMN 420 |
Statistics in Psychology or Statistics or Business Statistics |
4 |
| Credits | 8 | |
| Spring | ||
| KIN 560 | Sport Psychology | 4 |
| Sport Studies Elective 1 | 4 | |
| Credits | 8 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| KIN 650C | Internship in Sport Studies | 2-4 |
| 2 Sport Studies Electives 1 | 8 | |
| Credits | 10-12 | |
| Spring | ||
| KIN 740 or KIN 741 |
Athletic Administration or Social Issues in Contemporary Sports |
4 |
| Sport Studies Elective 1 | 4 | |
| Credits | 8 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| KIN 761 | Senior Seminar Sport Studies | 4 |
| KIN 650C | Internship in Sport Studies | 2-4 |
| Sport Studies Elective 1 | 4 | |
| Credits | 10-12 | |
| Spring | ||
| KIN 740 or KIN 741 |
Athletic Administration or Social Issues in Contemporary Sports |
4 |
| Credits | 4 | |
| Total Credits | 64-68 | |
| 1 | 16 required credits of electives including 4 credits from KIN 650C Internship in Sport Studies or KIN 696 Independent Study. |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 401 | Introduction to Psychology | 4 |
| ADMN 420 | Business Statistics | 4 |
| or PSYC 402 | Statistics in Psychology | |
| or SOC 502 | Statistics | |
| KIN 560 | Sport Psychology | 4 |
| KIN 562 | Sport Media Relations | 4 |
| KIN 565 | Principles of Coaching | 4 |
| KIN 580 | Sport Industry | 4 |
| KIN 740 | Athletic Administration | 4 |
| KIN 741 | Social Issues in Contemporary Sports | 4 |
| KIN 761 | Senior Seminar Sport Studies 2 | 4 |
| Cognate Requirement 1 | 20 | |
| Electives | ||
| Advisor approved KIN electives 3 | 16 | |
KIN 505 | Activity, Injuries and Disease | |
KIN 521 | Theory of Coaching Basketball | |
KIN 522 | Theory of Coaching Football | |
KIN 523 | Theory of Coaching Hockey | |
KIN 525 | Theory of Coaching Soccer | |
KIN 528 | Theory of Coaching Track and Field | |
KIN 561 | History of American Sport and Physical Culture | |
KIN 561W | History of American Sport and Physical Culture | |
KIN 630 | Sport Facility and Event Management | |
KIN 643 | Social Media Marketing in Sport | |
KIN 650C | Internship in Sport Studies | |
KIN 668 | Ergogenic Aids in Sports | |
KIN 693 | Teaching Assistantship | |
KIN 696 | Independent Study | |
KIN 720 | Science and Practice of Strength Training | |
KIN 743 | Sport Marketing | |
KIN 765 | Advanced Topics in Coaching | |
KIN 780 | Psychological Factors in Sport | |
KIN 798 | Special Topics | |
| Total Credits | 72 | |
| 1 | Select a minimum of 20 credits from other departments. All courses must be approved in advance by faculty advisor. |
| 2 | Majors must complete a minimum of 150 hours of industry experience before they can take KIN 761 Senior Seminar Sport Studies. Students must be enrolled as a sport studies major for one full semester before taking KIN 761 Senior Seminar Sport Studies. See advisor for details. |
| 3 | Include 4 credits of KIN 650C Internship in Sport Studies or KIN 696 Independent Study. |
Internal transfers to sport studies must have a 2.5 GPA as well as a minimum grade of C in PSYC 401 Introduction to Psychology, Statistics (PSYC, SOC, DS) and a minimum grade of B- in both KIN 565 Principles of Coaching and KIN 580 Sport Industry.
I. SPORTS INFORMATION
II. MANAGEMENT
III. MARKETING
IV. COACHING/PSYCHOLOGY
Procedure for Internal Transfer Application to Sport Studies Option – To Begin in Fall 2005
Admission decisions on internal transfer into Sport Studies will be made by the Sport Studies faculty. Space in the option is limited by available faculty and staff resources. Applications may be submitted for admission to either the fall or the winter semester. All decisions will be made between semesters after a review of grades for the latest semester. Admissions will be granted based on space available. The faculty will consider overall G.P.A., grades in prerequisite courses, performance in other Sport Studies courses or activities, and resume. Attitude and commitment will play a major role in consideration. Only completed applications will be considered. Applicants will receive a letter of acceptance, deferral, or denial from the Department Chair. All decisions must be considered final.
Prerequisites and procedures
Examples of application materials
Applications will be reviewed after final transcripts are received. Students who do not follow the procedures or who miss deadlines will not be admitted to the program.
All majors are required to present updated resumes, personal plans, and portfolios for preregistration each semester. The field is highly competitive; simply "loving sports" means little. All majors are expected to begin volunteering with one or more of the following prior to seeking an internship: UNH Athletic Department, UNH Campus Recreation; Oyster River Youth Association, the Whittemore Center; Seacoast United Soccer Club. Without experience and a portfolio, students cannot expect to land internships. For more information about jobs and careers in sports see materials in the Sport Studies Lab.
