Sport Development

Key features

• Employability skills enhanced through community engagement projects
• A range of exciting placement opportunities facilitated
• Small class sizes and regular access to facilities
• Access to a full range of National Governing Body and short course awards (incentives available)
• High quality teaching and research output
• Quality Nike University of Cumbria Sports Kit for use on and off campus
• Exciting career exit routes

Why study with us?

Whether your dream is to coach athletes to international success or to develop the health and social benefits of sport for a wider population, then this course is for you. The University of Cumbria can give you the practical skills and theoretical knowledge that underpin success in coaching and sport development.

This course focuses on the process of developing and coaching sport. It has a very strong vocational element including practicing coaching in real settings and organising sport and exercise events. As well as theoretical knowledge and understanding, it equips you with a wide variety of generic and transferable skills such as planning, communicating and working in teams. These skills are valuable to a wide range of employers in the sport industry such as national governing bodies, leisure services, private clubs and organisations.

What can this course lead to?

This course can lead to an exciting career in sports development. Graduates from this course have gained regional and national recognition as coaches, performers, administrators and officials, with organisations such as British Rowing, the Ski Club of Great Britain and the Women’s Sports Foundation.

The course will also provide you with the skills and additional qualifications such as coaching awards necessary to coach athletes of various levels in community, school and elite club settings. Past students have moved into areas such as performance analysis in professional clubs, community coaches for private coaching companies and physical education teachers in schools

Other employment paths include sport and leisure development, exercise and health professions, fitness consultancy, personal training, and the uniformed services. Alternatively, the course will support postgraduate study for those interested in gaining higher qualification.

Resources and facilities

The university’s Sports Complex boasts a large, multi-purpose sports hall, astro turf pitch, a specialist gymnastics area and an air conditioned fitness suite with cardiovascular stations, fixed weight stations and a free weights area. The facility is run by Register of Exercise Professionals accredited staff.

You will also have access to a range of performance analysis technology in our Human Performance Laboratory.

Entry requirements

80 UCAS tariff points.

GCSE at grade C or above in English.

Find out more about qualification options from the UCAS tariff table.

Please check selection criteria for any additional entry requirements.

Credit and UCAS requirements UCAS code: CX61 UCAS points: 80 Selection criteria

All places are offered subject to successful CRB clearance.

Costs Full-time students

Home

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year has been set at £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount).

As a full-time UK student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning £21,000 per annum (if you're from England) or £15,795 (if you're from Scotland). You may also be eligible for a maintenance loan (up to £5,500) and a maintenance grant (up to £3,354). For more information about student loans and grants, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Full-time students may be eligible for one of 110 NSP awards for full-time students worth up to £6,000.

Cumbria Bursary

The Cumbria Bursary is an annual cash award of £1,000 for up to three years of study. There are 300 Cumbria Bursaries available in 2013.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Access to Learning Fund
• Utilities trust

EU

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year has been set at £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount).

As a full-time EU student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning £21,000 per annum (or the equivalent in your country). For more information about student loans, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Full-time students may be eligible for one of 110 NSP awards for full-time students worth up to £6,000.

Cumbria Bursary

The Cumbria Bursary is an annual cash award of £1,000 for up to three years of study. There are 300 Cumbria Bursaries available in 2013.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Utilities trust

International

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year is £9,960.

Fees are billed annually and may be paid by the student or a sponsor. 75 percent of the annual tuition fees must be paid before or at registration. For students requiring a Tier 4 Student Visa, a deposit of £3,500 is expected as a minimum before a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) will be issued. For more information, visit our international student finance page.

Early payment discount

If you are paying your own fees, you may be eligible for an early payment discount of £1,000. This discount is awarded to students who pay in full before registration.

Additional financial support

Our money doctors will be on hand throughout the year to help you manage your money while you’re in the UK. However, if you do happen to run into financial difficulty during your time here, you may be able to access a small emergency support fund.

Part-time students

Home

The tuition fee for students starting study in the 2013/14 academic year is £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount). This fee is billed annually. For part-time students, the annual fee is calculated based on the number of years you take to complete your course. For example, a student studying part-time for six years may expect to pay £4,125 per year.

As a part-time UK student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning over £21,000 a year (if you're from England) or £15,795 (if you're from Scotland). For more information about student loans and grants, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Part-time students may be eligible for one of 40 NSP awards worth up to £3,000.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Access to Learning Fund
• Utilities trust

EU

The tuition fee for students starting study in the 2013/14 academic year is £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount). This fee is billed annually. For part-time students, the annual fee is calculated based on the number of years you take to complete your course. For example, a student studying part-time for six years may expect to pay £4,125 per year.

As a part-time EU student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning over £21,000 a year. For more information about student loans, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Part-time students may be eligible for one of 40 NSP awards worth up to £3,000.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Utilities trust

UCAS Link

Visit UCAS

Modules

Year one

• Practitioner Skills in Sport Coaching and Sport Development
• Introduction to the Sociology of Sport
• Sport and Philosophy
• Anatomy and Physiology
• Introduction to Sport and Exercise Psychology
• Research and Study Skills

Year two

• Applied Coaching
• Sport Development: Policies and Practice
• Skill Acquisition
• Training Theory
• Applied Sport Psychology
• Advanced Research Skills and Investigation

For detailed summary of all course content please read our programme specification for this course.

Course summary

The course blends academic rigour with practical and vocational skills. It integrates core practical modules that challenge and encourage you to develop your practitioner skills. The flexible study programme is split into three levels so you can progress in steps towards the honours degree on a full-time or part-time basis. Each level equates to a year’s full-time study.

At level four, you study subject-discipline modules like Exercise Physiology, Sport Psychology, and Sport Sociology, as well as a practical module in The Foundations of Coaching, and an Introduction to Research and Investigative Skills.

At level five, a substantial part of the course has a practical element including modules in applied coaching, skill acquisition and training theory. These modules allow you to apply the knowledge learned at level four and have helped students to develop their coaching and sport development practice.

Extra support through additional tutorials will be available.

Case studies

"Personally, I find the modules brilliant. I use everything I learn in my coaching roles with local clubs and really feel I’m progressing." - Robbie George.

"The practical elements of the course and volunteering options help a considerable amount as you are able to put theory into practice." - Laura

"The course provides great opportunity for practical, first hand experience through schools placements and superb links with local clubs and organisations. This type of experience is vital in helping boost chances of employment on graduation." - Marcus

“Lancaster City Council’s Community Engagement Service (Wellbeing) has been delighted to support student community engagement projects around the city in the last few years. The partnership has proven effective in delivering events and opportunities to young people across the city, as well as supporting students in acquiring important job-specific skills to enhance their employment prospects in an increasingly difficult job marketplace.” - Stuart Glover, Sport and Physical Activity Development Officer