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School of Sport Sciences

Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology, BS

Sport, exercise and performance psychology professionals have recently been highlighted in the media bringing the academic field into a new and prominent light. The goal of our program is to help students combine a passion for sports with an evidence-based approach to psychology.

To practice in the field, graduate-level training in sport, exercise and performance psychology is needed. Upon completing the bachelorā€™s degree, many students find employment right away in a sport or exercise-related industry, like fitness and recreation.

Students desiring a career directly in the sport, exercise, and performance psychology field ultimately pursue graduate school to work as, for example, sport psychologists, counselors and Certified Mental Performance ConsultantsĀ®. These professionals work in youth, college, and professional sport, military, performing arts, business and other settings.

Other graduates enter a variety of other graduate program types, such coaching, public health, business, law and more. Unique to 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ, students can pursue an accelerated bachelorā€™s to masterā€™s program. Students in this program complete a bachelorā€™s degree in Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology and an online masterā€™s degree in Executive Sport Management in just 4 years. Learn more about saving time and money, while boosting your credentials, with the four-year .

Your Degree Plan The 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ Difference Learn by Doing Careers and Outcomes Meet Your Community Admission Requirements Tuition and Aid Take the Next Steps

Your Degree Plan

Intro

Aerial view of Martin and Woodburn Halls

Combine your passion for sports, exercise or performance with an evidence-based approach to psychology. Youā€™ll learn about the theory and practice behind working with athletes and performers from all backgrounds.

This program balances core training and professional development that guides students along their path in a dynamic field.

Build your foundation
Students admitted into the program complete a number of introductory courses that examine the foundations of the field, including basic psychology and kinesiology.

Develop your passion
Students take a variety of specialized sport, exercise and performance psychology courses, such as performance enhancement, social psychology of groups and teams, psychology of injury, and physical activity promotion. As their capstone experience, students have the option of pursuing a relevant internship or specialized course that allows them to develop and propose a research project in their area of interest.

Find your path
Along with the core curriculum, students in this program complete a series of career and professional development courses to prepare them for graduate school and the workforce upon graduation. Students will have a high degree of interaction with faculty to help guide their development.

Tailor this major to your interests by taking one of these courses as you pursue your degree:

  • SEP 272:
    Psychological Perspectives of Sport

    Explore the psychological factors that influence performance and assess the strengths and challenges of mental performance and mental skills training.

  • SEP 283:
    Introduction to Exercise Psychology

    Explore the psychological determinants and consequences of exercise behavior and apply your skills to a behavior change project of your own.

  • SEP 420:
    Sport Performance Enhancement

    Learn and practice performance enhancement techniques applicable to sport and other performance contexts.

  • SEP 425:
    Psychology of Injury and Rehabilitation

    Study the psychological factors associated with the onset, treatment, and rehabilitation of injuries sustained in sport and other settings.

Take advantage of special options related to this major:

  • Accelerated Program

    Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology offers the option to earn a bachelor's and master's degree in an accelerated time frame.

    Accelerated Program Details

  • Honors

    Expand your curiosity ā€” and enhance your curriculum ā€” through the 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ Honors College. Two programs are offered: for first- and second-year students and for third- and fourth-year students.

The 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ Difference

What sets this program apart from its competitors?

  • Enroll in one of the few Sport, Exercise and Performance psychology undergraduate programs in the nation.
  • Interact with the largest Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology doctoral program in the U.S.
  • Study abroad in one of the only in the world to specialize in sport, exercise and performance psychology.
  • Garner unique social and professional experiences beyond the classroom through the .
  • Develop skills and mentorship through an experiential peer advising program.
  • Network with industry leaders via professional conference travel.
  • Learn from six faculty experts who are award-winning researchers, educators, certified mental performance consultants and licensed counselors.
  • Engage in comprehensive curriculum designed to accommodate sport, exercise and performance career pathways.
  • Explore an .
  • The College of Applied Human Sciences awards nearly $500,000 in scholarships to students each year.
Scholarships

Over 92% of 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ freshmen receive grants or scholarships (2022-2023).

Learn more

Learn by Doing

Learning happens outside the classroom. Get involved.

Active engagement in research

  • You have the option of completing a capstone project that allows you to critically analyze existing research in the field and pursue an innovative research project of your own. Feedback from faculty and peers helps support your readiness for graduate school and your career. Common project topics usually include mental health in athletes and performers, exercise motivation and adherence, the psychology of injury rehabilitation, and youth sport development.
  • You can get involved with faculty and graduate students on their research projects. Topics include studies with NCAA athletes on performance related issues, body image in athletes, development of mobile health applications and evaluation of health and wellness programs

Community service involvement

  • The regularly organizes community service events open to both club and non-club members that help establish and build connections with the Morgantown community. Past events included cooking dinner at the West Virginia Grief Center, volunteering at the Animal Friends Thrift Shoppe, assisting with Deckerā€™s Creek Adopt-a-Highway and service at the Ronald McDonald house.

Professional development

  • You will take three career and professional development courses to learn more about the profession while also preparing you to apply to graduate school or find employment.
  • You can earn course credit by serving as a peer advisor. Students in the peer advising program will have performed well in their courses and provide support to other students in mastering core content in the curriculum. Peer advisors have an opportunity to lead and learn skills related to teaching and mentoring.
  • Select students have the chance to shadow the Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology doctoral students in mental skills workshop design and delivery with athletes and other performers.

Study abroad

  • In most years, the program hosts a faculty-led study abroad trip to engage students in an enriching cross-cultural experience. Trips have included destinations such as Sweden, Costa Rica, Ireland and South Africa.

Before graduating, all undergraduates in this major complete an academic project (or "capstone") to demonstrate their research, communication and critical thinking skills. Projects in 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ's Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology major have included:

  • An imagery intervention for field goal kickers.
  • Impact of exercise on university students suffering from anxiety.
  • Mindfulness interventions with collegiate athletes.
  • Pre-competition anxiety interventions among high school track athletes.
  • The effect of coach involvement on ACL injury rehabilitation.
  • The relationship between motivational climate and burnout in youth sport participants.
  • The relationship between resilience and anxiety/depression in US service members.

Connect with other students who share your academic interests as a member of:

View all of the you can join.

Network with professionals in your field as a student member of:

Attending college will prepare you for many things. The Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology major will give you the following skills:

  • Interpersonal skills for quality connection and communication with others.
  • The ability to apply mental performance skills from your coursework to help you give your best every day and in your biggest moments.
  • Practical experience in the strategies designed to help others.
  • Writing and speaking so your innovative ideas are heard.
  • Professional self-reflection to prepare you for the successes and challenges ahead.

Live, study and pursue outside-the-classroom learning in a that shares your interests:

Outside of the Evansdale Crossing building.

What you learn outside of the classroom is just as important as what you learn during class. Weā€™ll help you follow your curiosity.

Careers and Outcomes

How does this degree prepare students for a career?

Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

Apply principles of psychology to human resources, administration, management, sales and marketing problems. Activities may include policy planning; employee testing and selection, training and development; and organizational development and analysis. May work with management to organize the work setting to improve worker productivity.

Has a Bright Outlook , May require a Graduate Degree

Median Salary: $147,420

Possible job titles include: Consultant, Industrial Psychologist, Industrial/Organizational Psychologist (I/O Psychologist), Organizational Psychologist.

Explore Career

School Psychologists

Investigate processes of learning and teaching and develop psychological principles and techniques applicable to educational problems.

May require a Graduate Degree

Median Salary: $84,940

Possible job titles include: Consulting Psychologist, Early Intervention School Psychologist, Psychologist, School Psychologist.

Explore Career

Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary

Teach courses in psychology, such as child, clinical, and developmental psychology and psychological counseling. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

Has a Bright Outlook , May require a Graduate Degree

Median Salary: $82,140

Possible job titles include: Instructor, Professor, Psychology Instructor, Psychology Professor.

Explore Career

Recreation and Fitness Studies Teachers, Postsecondary

Teach courses pertaining to recreation, leisure and fitness studies, including exercise physiology and facilities management. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

May require a Graduate Degree

Median Salary: $75,770

Possible job titles include: Coach, Professor, Health and Physical Education Professor (HPE Professor), Physical Education Professor (PE Professor).

Explore Career

Athletes and Sports Competitors

Compete in athletic events.

Has a Bright Outlook

Median Salary: $70,280

Possible job titles include: Baseball Player, Golf Professional, Hockey Player, Race Car Driver.

Explore Career

Sports Medicine Physicians

Diagnose, treat and help prevent injuries that occur during sporting events, athletic training and physical activities.

May require a Graduate Degree

Median Salary: $236,000

Possible job titles include: Director of Sports Medicine, Orthopaedic Surgeon, Physician, Sports Medicine Physician.

Explore Career

Athletic Trainers

Evaluate and advise individuals to assist recovery from or avoid athletic-related injuries or illnesses, or maintain peak physical fitness. May provide first aid or emergency care.

Has a Bright Outlook , May require a Graduate Degree

Median Salary: $57,930

Possible job titles include: Assistant Athletic Trainer, Athletic Trainer, Certified Athletic Trainer, Head Athletic Trainer.

Explore Career

Further your education

Keep going right here at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ. Consider these graduate programs:

  • (online)

Meet Your Community

The Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology family will inspire and support you.

  • ā€œThe amazing professors in the sport and exercise psychology program have been able to show me all of the possible outcomes with this degree, as well as offering me a plethora of opportunities to get the most out of my time here as a student.ā€
    Nora Hanlon
  • ā€œWhen I visited 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ, I felt like I was stepping into a family. Even though itā€™s a big school, I felt like I was going to get every single thing I needed. For a school that has such a large number of students, you still get such a small, close-knit relationship with your professors and classmates. My friends at small, private colleges don't have the kind of personal connection with their professors like I do at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ.ā€
    Holly Rogers
  • ā€œThe faculty and staff truly care about each studentā€™s individuality and encourage them to pursue and explore unique areas and interests. There is room for creativity, trying new things, and being your own person. Iā€™ve always felt supported by the faculty as I found my own path.ā€
    Adrianna Wood
  • Portrait of Damien Clement

    Damien Clement

    Professional highlights:

    • Fellow, Association for Applied Sport Psychology, 2020-Present
    • 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ Foundation Award for Outstanding Teaching, 2015
    • Dorothy V. Harris Award, Association for Applied Sport Psychology, 2014
    • Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award, 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences, 2013
    • Acting Dean, 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ Honors College, August 2019ā€“June 2020

  • Ashley Coker-Cranney

    Professional highlights:

    • Certified Mental Performance Consultant, Association for Applied Sport Psychology
    • Licensed Professional Counselor, West Virginia Board of Examiners for Counseling
  • A smiling man with glasses with fitness equipment in the background. He is wearing a light-colored shirt and dark tie.

    Peter Giacobbi Jr.

    Professional highlights:

    • Research focus on chronic disease risk reduction using digital and other delivery technologies
    • Expert in the use of guided imagery in sport and exercise settings, overall well-being and managing health behavior
    • Current Google Scholar H-index of 33, Scopus H-index of 23
  • Smiling woman standing in Stewart Hall. She has long dark hair and wears a black suit jacket.

    Dana Voelker

    Professional highlights:

    • Certified Mental Performance Consultant, Association for Applied Sport Psychology
    • Steelcase Education Active Learning Center Grant, 2019
    • 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ Foundation Award for Outstanding Teachers, 2018
    • Association for Applied Sport Psychology Dorothy V. Harris Memorial Award, 2018
  • Photo of smiling man wearing glasses, a light shirt and patterned tie.

    Sam Zizzi

    Professional highlights:

    • Twice recognized as Most Outstanding Teacher at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ CPASS, and has mentored over 30 PhD students through degree completion
    • Serves as the Dr. Pat Fehl Endowed Professor to focus efforts on the health and wellness of WV citizens
    • Published one of the first books on self-awareness in sport, Being Mindful in Sport and Exercise Psychology (2017), with friend and colleague Mark Andersen
    • Certified Mental Performance Consultant, Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP)
  • Smiling woman with long brown hair wearing a blue shirt.
    Keeley C.
     BS, Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2013
    ā€œThe Sport and Exercise Psychology program was the most rewarding experience of my life. My experience at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ led me down a path that helped me reach all of my dreams and ensure success throughout the rest of my life.ā€
  • Matthew Gonzalez
     BS, Sport and Exercise Psychology
    ā€œ51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ has a legacy of training some of the best sport psychology professionals out there and that was what initially drew me to the program. Once I got there, it was much less about the legacy that made it special and so much more about the people (staff, faculty and other students in the program) who relentlessly supported each other.ā€
  • Smiling woman with long hair holding a trophy.
    Marina G.
     BS, Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2013
    ā€œMajoring in Sport and Exercise Psychology was a life-changing experience. With the help of the faculty and graduate students, I was able to pinpoint my career goals. These goals continue to drive me every day.ā€
  • Kelsey Kinnamon
     BS, Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2019
    ā€œI was provided with support and mentorship from the moment I began classes in the SEP program and always felt the faculty genuinely cared about me doing well and helping me craft my own career path. Being a student at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ shaped my journey in more ways than I can say, and I will always feel indebted to the people at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ.ā€
  • Smiling man wearing a dark blue graduation cap and gown.,
    Bobby S.
     BS, Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2013
    ā€œI would not be where I am today without 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ's sport and exercise psychology program. My SEP degree has not only prepared me for my future, but has opened doors to more opportunities than I ever thought possible.ā€

    • Admission Requirements

    To be admitted to 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ's Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology major, first-time freshmen must meet 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ's . Interested in transferring? Review the .

    Tuition and Aid

    How much does Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ cost? And how can you save?

    Tuition and Fees

    Estimated rates are available on our tuition website. Anyone who is not a current West Virginia resident, including international students, will be charged non-resident rates.

    Scholarships

    Estimate your eligibility for merit scholarships at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ Morgantown.

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    Net Price Calculator

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    Ways to Save

    Here are a few ways for you to save on the cost of attending 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ in addition to university scholarships.

    Financial Aid

    The most important step toward funding your future with financial aid for the Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology major is submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA.

    Ohio Tuition Reciprocity

    As the result of a special agreement, students from Ohio who are fully admitted to Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology can enroll at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ and pay in-state tuition rates. Students must be admitted to both the University and this major.

    Transfer Articulation Agreements

    To simplify the transfer process, we have formal agreements with certain institutions. These agreements outline the courses you should take to prepare for transferring to 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ.

    Review the to see if your institution is listed.

    Ready to take the next step?

    Learn how to join the 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ family.

    Want to know more about Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology at 51ĀŅĀ×»»ĘŽ? Fill out our request form to receive more information.

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