The Master of Science in sports medicine at University of Western States is designed for health care providers seeking specialization and enhancement of their skills and knowledge to better work with athletes and active populations. The education attained through this degree allows for opportunities in the sports industry and enhances a provider’s skills, knowledge, and marketability to active and athletic populations.
The degree is designed for first-professional health care degree holders, or students working toward their first-professional health care degree, to build upon existing knowledge of key sports medicine content areas, such as anatomy, physiology, assessment, rehabilitation, exercise sciences and others. The skills gained in the program will also allow graduates to better integrate with sports medicine health care teams and providers. Individuals who may wish to further their education through this degree may include physicians (MDs, DOs), chiropractic physicians (DCs), physician’s assistants, nurse practitioners, physical therapists, athletic trainers and others that meet program admissions criteria.
Sports Medicine Curriculum
Students all take 14 core courses within the sports medicine program and then choose either the high-performance leadership or the performance nutrition concentration. Concurrent chiropractic students do not choose a concentration. They complete the master’s in sports medicine with dually-attributed chiropractic coursework.
High Performance Leadership:
The MS SM High Performance Leadership concentration strives to prepare current and future sport science and medicine professionals to lead integrated, multi-disciplinary teams.
Performance Nutrition:
The MS SM Performance Nutrition concentration guides in-depth learning related to the dietary and nutritional assessment approaches for athletic populations that optimize performance, health and recovery.
Offered primarily online, this program also requires one extended weekend hands-on lab session at the UWS campus in Portland, Oregon. Additionally, students will complete four credits of practicum with an appropriate licensed and/or credentialed supervisor in their geographic area.
Please note that the MS in sports medicine program does NOT grant professional licensure or professional certification at a state, provincial or national level. Students and graduates of the sports medicine program are advised to contact their local, state, provincial, or national governing entity to determine what skills and scope-of-practice requirements are legal under the student or provider’s scope of practice.
