The sports medicine market is growing, but why? Learn more about what’s driving the surge in demand for sports medicine professionals.
The Master of Science in Sports Medicine at the University of Western States offers online coursework coupled with hands-on laboratory exercises and practical, field-based experiences to prepare students for a professional career in sports medicine.
Why Is Sports Medicine Important?
Sports medicine jobs may include athletic trainer, strength and conditioning coach, and exercise physiology at the adolescent, high school, collegiate, or professional levels. Sports medicine can be applied to those who participate in sports as well as anyone who lives an active lifestyle.
Sports medicine professionals help active people with injury prevention, management, and rehabilitation. Professionals learn to provide quality patient care through physical and mental health techniques, whether it is soft tissue treatment or mental health communication strategies. These methods help athletes recover and maintain health to optimize their athletic performance.
Professionals in sports medicine are important because they implement injury prevention programs and assist in muscle recovery and injury rehabilitation for athletes. The M.S. in Sports Medicine program at UWS includes Rehabilitation and Sports Performance as one of its required program courses. This online class focuses on patients’ rehabilitation and care management to enhance performance while including a brief overview of muscle functions during movement, movement patterns, and functional exams.
The use of the clinical audit process and application of learned knowledge allows our graduates to gain hands-on experience, confidence in the professional field, and practice care protocols in preparation for their role in the sports medicine field.
In conjunction with the Psychology of Athletic Injury and Rehabilitation, a required degree course, graduates will learn theoretical and psychosocial topics that address an individual’s response to injury and rehabilitation. Our sports medicine students will be able to implement appropriate performance psychology techniques to improve adherence and compliance of the athlete or performer during the struggle of recovering from injury and transitioning to return to play.
Growth in the Sports Medicine Market
The growing caution for sports injury prevention and management for all ages and at all levels of play leads to an increased demand for sports medicine professionals. The demand for sports medicine physicians increased by 2.6% on average between 2017 and 2022. As of 2022, the sports medicine market employed 133,635 people and is expected to fill 72,500 new jobs by 2029. This estimate is based on the growing awareness of sports injuries, the increase in research, and the corresponding need for injury prevention and rehabilitation programs in the growing athletic world.
- An average of 30 million children play sports in the United States, and an average of 3.5 million injuries occur each year at adolescence.
- The number of student-athletes competing at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) level has increased by over 3,000 athletes in the 2017-2018 academic year compared to the year before.
- There are 62 new teams for men and 64 new teams for women at the college level.
Sports injuries, such as concussions for example, used to go undetected due to variable presenting symptoms, lack of education around this brain injury, and the late effects of brain trauma a concussion can have. With the rise in athletic participation, there is a correlating rise in injuries, including concussions. Now, there are updated recommendations for athletic trainers for concussion management through education, assessments, and return to academics and play.
Given the importance of concussion awareness and the rise in frequency of concussions, sports medicine professionals, including athletic trainers, can benefit from UWS’s Evidence-Based Concussion Management and Care elective. This online class provides students with up-to-date evidence about sports-related concussions, analyzing various organizations’ position statements, concussion laws, and standards of care for athletes to be able to return to a place, academics, and optimal health. Should our students choose to pursue a career in sports where concussions are prevalent, the program can be customized with elective courses to provide the best preparation for their desired career.
Impact of Sports Medicine Research
Sports medicine professionals can treat any individual who is injured while being active, in sports, or in independent exercise. Therefore, the demand for sports medicine physicians has been increasing with the push of a healthy lifestyle. However, to be able to keep up with the growing number of active people and competitive athletes, research is constantly conducted and studied, providing insight on common injuries in specific sports such as the cause, potential preventative measures, and how to manage care and rehabilitation.
Following the concussion example from above, research on sports-related concussions has dramatically increased in recent years with growing awareness and precautions taken in sports like soccer and football. In addition to the concussion management course UWS offers, the elective course, Research Applications, teaches students how to utilize current research to form evidence-based conclusions in patient care. UWS graduates focus on research applications to gain a deeper understanding of the research process, preparing future sports medicine professionals for independent research to exceed professional competency in the field. Studies are constantly being published, influencing injury rehabilitation methods. Sports organization regulations and medical treatments are everchanging, adapting to the sports injury data. This is why sports medicine professionals stay updated on published research and adjust their treatment plans if necessary.
There are several hot topics in sports medicine research. The common injuries found in athletes from various athletics are constantly being studied:
Looking to Join the Sports Medicine Field?
The M.S. in Sports Medicine at UWS is a degree for individuals who already hold a a professional degree (e.g., MD, DO, DC.) and license in health care. A variety of career options are available for those with a master’s degree in sports medicine with other higher education and certifications. The growing demand for sports medicine professionals is expected to continue, opening the market to a significant amount of job openings in the future. This sports medicine market growth appears to be a steady incline for the next several years, offering career opportunities in research and clinical work. Learn more about the sports medicine degree options available at the University of Western States to get started on your career path.