Colleges with Exercise Science Major Requirements

An Exercise Science major is designed to explore the connection between exercise and human performance, as well as the role of physical activity in promoting healthy lifestyles. This interdisciplinary field encompasses biomechanics, exercise physiology and biochemistry, growth and development, exercise nutrition, measurement and evaluation, and exercise psychology. Many universities and colleges offer Exercise Science programs with specific requirements to ensure students receive a comprehensive education.

Curriculum Overview

Exercise Science programs typically blend classroom instruction with practical experience, providing a well-rounded education. The curriculum generally includes a combination of core courses, electives, and additional required courses in related fields. The Exercise Science curriculum provides a broad foundation for students planning to further their science education at the graduate or professional level. Students complete rigorous coursework in anatomy, chemistry, mathematics, physics, physiology, and psychology to build a foundation of science knowledge needed for success in the upper-level kinesiology courses. The core kinesiology courses emphasize biomechanics, exercise physiology, sport psychology, and motor learning/control.

Core Courses

These courses form the foundation of an Exercise Science education, covering essential topics and principles. Examples of core courses include:

Fundamentals in Health and Physical Fitness Assessment
Foundations of Exercise Science
Physiology of Exercise
Exercise Psychology (or Psychology of Sport)
Clinical Exercise Assessment and Prescription
Quantitative Research Methods
Advanced Writing for Research in Exercise Science
Functional Anatomy
Biomechanics
Concepts of Motor Learning

Electives

Electives allow students to specialize in areas of particular interest or tailor their education to specific career goals. Students may select elective courses under any Focus Area, or between Focus Areas. Some common elective options include:

Personal Fitness
Intro to Exp. Research w/ Human Subjects
Foundations of Phys. Act./Public Health
Introductory Special Topics in Kinesiology
Basic Prevention & Care of Athl. Inj.
Mech. Basis of Hum Movement
Theories of Adv. Conditioning
Theory and Pract. of Resistance Training
Phys. Act./Exercise Leadership
Intermediate Special Topics in Kinesiology
Adapted Physical Activity
Phys. Act. & Disease
Fit. Test. & Interp.
Functional Anatomy
Resistance Training: Techniques and Principles
Care and Prevention of Athletic Injuries
Scientific Foundations of Strength Training and Conditioning
Tests and Assessments for Fitness and Athletic Performance
Psychology of Sport Injury
Nutrition for Exercise and Sport
Clinical Competencies and Fieldwork in Exercise Science
Field Experience in Exercise Science
Independent Study
Internship in Exercise Science
Exercise Prescriptions and Programming for Special Populations
Advanced Principles of Strength and Conditioning: Program Design
Cardiovascular Physiology, Disease Prevention and Rehabilitation
Advanced Exercise Physiology
Motor Development: Infants to Adults
Physiology of Aging
Selected Topics in Exercise Science

Additional Required Courses

Many Exercise Science programs also require students to complete coursework in related fields to provide a broader scientific foundation. These courses may include:

Read also: The Right Path After GCSEs

Introductory Biology for Health Professions (lecture and lab)
Human Anatomy & Physiology I & II (lecture and lab)
Allied Health Chemistry I (lecture and lab) or General Chemistry I (lecture and lab)
Wellness for a Diverse Society
General Physics for the Health Sciences or General Physics I (non-calculus based)
Introduction to Psychology
Medical Terminology
First Aid and CPR
Basic Prev. & Care Athletic

College Program Examples

Here are some examples of colleges and universities offering Exercise Science programs, highlighting their unique features and requirements:

University of Kansas

The Exercise Science program at the University of Kansas prepares students for various career paths, including physical therapy, health and fitness programs, and graduate study in exercise physiology. The curriculum provides a broad foundation for students planning to further their science education at the graduate or professional level. Students complete rigorous coursework in anatomy, chemistry, mathematics, physics, physiology, and psychology to build a foundation of science knowledge needed for success in the upper-level kinesiology courses.

Indiana University Bloomington

All undergraduate students must complete the IU Bloomington General Education Common Ground Requirements. Kinesiology Major Courses (26-28 cr.) Minimum 2.0 GPA required in courses completed to fulfill this requirement. In-Major Electives (complete a minimum of 9 credits from this list of In-Major Electives). Majors have the opportunity to work with faculty research specialists in areas specific to kinesiology.

Syracuse University (David B. Falk College)

David B. Falk College academic degree programs focus on health and human performance, and sport business enterprise. The college’s signature emphasis on experiential learning supports student success through intentional internship requirements, faculty-mentored research projects, immersion travel, and global study abroad. Bring your knowledge into the field for an immersive 270-hour internship experience at major area hospitals, private practices, or college and professional athletic teams.

Students can select the degree track that best meets their goals:

Read also: Explore CFK

General Health and Exercise Science: Prepare for careers in community or corporate fitness, clinical physiology, medicine, sports medicine, research, public health, and clinical health professions.
Pre-Physical Therapy: Prepare for graduate study in physical therapy or related areas.
3+3 DPT program with SUNY Upstate Medical University: Earn a B.S.

Towson University

The requirements for the Exercise Science major include a minimum of 39 units of KNES courses and 26-27 units of courses outside of KNES for a total of 65-66 units. A minimum of 21 units of Kinesiology courses (KNES), out of the 39 KNES units required for the Exercise Science major, must be completed at Towson University.

Kennesaw State University (KSU)

Once an application has been approved, course registration will be opened for the student. course during early registration through Owl Express. Owl Express will show the course (ES 3398 or ES 4950) as CLOSED. Students approved to register for the internship will simply ADD the CRN for their specific course to their registration worksheet. As noted earlier, the KSU registration system will default to 1 credit hour. be eligible for a waiver of certain institutional fees. of Georgia Board of Regents Policy (7.3.4.2) and cannot be waived or amended by the Department of ESSM or KSU. signatory and can require a month or longer to complete.

Other Notable Institutions

Many other schools offer strong programs in kinesiology and exercise science. Some of the top institutions include:

University of Michigan
- Academic Highlights: There are 280+ undergraduate degree programs across fourteen schools and colleges. Michigan sports a 15:1 student-to-faculty ratio, and 18% of classes contain 50 or more students, but a solid 53% of classes offer a more intimate experience with fewer than 20 students. The Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program draws in 1,300 participants each year who partner with 800+ research mentors. For students in all academic programs at Michigan, study abroad opportunities are taken advantage of at high rates.
- Professional Outcomes: Within three months of graduating, 89% of LSA grads are employed full-time or in graduate school. The median salary across all majors is approximately 70k. Top employers include PwC, EY, JPMorgan Chase, Deloitte, Citi, Bank of America, and Capital One. Within six months, 93% of engineering grads are employed (average salary of $99k) or in grad school.
Rice University
- Academic Highlights: Boasting a student-to-faculty ratio of 6:1, Rice offers a spectacularly intimate learning experience. Class sizes are ideally small with 66% containing fewer than 20 students and a median class size of only fifteen. Undergraduate research opportunities abound with approximately 70% of graduates participating in academic research during their four years. Those experiences are open to freshmen through the Century Scholars Program and to all underclassmen through the Rice Undergraduate Scholars Program.
- Professional Outcomes: Six months after graduation, 88% of recent Rice grads have found careers or a graduate school home. Companies that employ many recent grads include Meta, Microsoft, Amazon, Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, Google, and Accenture. Over four hundred alumni work at Baylor College of Medicine, and over 200 work at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Across all majors, the average starting salary is $89k.
University of Texas at Austin
- Academic Highlights: UT Austin offers over 170 majors. Sn encouraging 36% of course sections enroll nineteen or fewer students. Opportunities for undergraduate research vary by school, and many student must compete for slots in programs such as Summer Research Scholars or use the Eureka database to find individual professors offering research assistantships.
- Professional Outcomes: Over 1000 alumni work in the offices of Dell, Google, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Deloitte; IBM, Meta, Oracle, and AMD employ over 500 each. Graduates early in their careers earn a median salary of $77,400, with median mid-career pay reaching $141,100. Roughly one-quarter of University of Texas at Austin undergraduates go on to pursue advanced degrees after completing their bachelor’s. Many pursue advanced study at UT Austin itself, which offers more than one hundred graduate programs.
Wake Forest University
- Academic Highlights: All freshmen enter the Undergraduate College, which offers 49 majors and 60+ minors. Sporting a student-to-faculty ratio of 10:1, classes are kept on the small side with 59% of sections enrolling fewer than 20 students. In addition to research opportunities for credit, students can pursue research fellowships through the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Center (URECA). Wake’s robust study abroad options feature 400 semester, summer, and year-long programs in 200 cities in more than eighty countries worldwide.
- Professional Outcomes: Within six months of graduation, 98% of the Class of 2023 had found their next destination, with 65% starting their first professional job and 32% matriculating into a graduate program. Employers landing the highest numbers of alumni included national and multinational corporations Wells Fargo, Deloitte, EY, Bank of America, PwC, and Truist.
University of Virginia (UVA)
- Academic Highlights: Undergrads can study within one of eight colleges/schools, which all offer many small classes; 14% boast single-digit enrollment and 48% contain 19 or fewer students. Undergraduate research opportunities can be challenging to uncover at any large school where graduate students get the prime spots, yet, UVA does offer a multitude of formal opportunities as well as the annual Undergraduate Research Symposium and three undergraduate research journals.
- Professional Outcomes: Upon receiving their degree, 86% of the Class of 2023 immediately joined the workforce-with an average starting salary of $82k-or headed directly to graduate school. Capital One (58), Amazon (45), Deloitte (41), and Accenture (34) scooped up the greatest number of 2023 grads.
University of Florida (UF)
- Academic Highlights: With 16 colleges and 100 undergraduate majors to choose from, educational experiences are exceptionally diverse. UF impressively offers 50% of sections with an enrollment of fewer than 20 students. The Center for Undergraduate Research offers a University Research Scholars program as well as summer opportunities, hosts its own Undergraduate Research Symposium, and publishes its own UF Journal of Undergraduate Research. Forty percent of all undergrads have such an experience.
- Professional Outcomes: The University of Florida demonstrates exceptional career preparation, with 83% of the Class of 2024 securing employment by graduation day. Gator alumni have established a strong presence at leading tech giants, with 200+ graduates currently working at Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Apple, Meta, and Oracle. The class achieved an impressive average starting salary of $68,000.
Indiana University (IU)
- Academic Highlights: IU offers 200+ majors The university’s 18:1 student-to-faculty ratio is strong for a school of Indiana’s size, and it does make an effort to keep undergraduate classes on the small side. While there are a number of introductory courses that transpire in giant lecture halls, 35% of all sections contain no more than 19 students. Experiential learning opportunities are available to those who seize them; over one-quarter of arts and sciences students completed research with a faculty member. On the study abroad front, roughly the same percentage of A&S graduates spent a semester in a foreign country.
- Professional Outcomes: Class of 2023 grads reached their next employment or graduate school destination at a 92% rate within six months of receiving their degrees. The median starting salary for IU grads ranged between $54,000 and $60,000. Among the largest employers of Hoosier alumni are local pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly, EY, Amazon, PwC, Salesforce, Deloitte, IBM, Oracle, Microsoft, Accenture, and Google.
Rutgers University
- Academic Highlights: Rutgers is divided into 19 schools and colleges, collectively offering 120+ undergraduate majors. Forty percent of class sections have an enrollment of nineteen or fewer students compared to only 19% of sections that contain more than 50 undergrads. The Aresty Research Center facilitates several programs that match 300+ undergraduates per year with faculty members conducting research in an area of interest.
- Professional Outcomes: Upon graduation, 89% of Class of 2023 grads had secured a first job or were heading to an advanced degree program. 71% headed directly to the world of employment, where the companies hiring the largest number of grads included RWJBarnabas Health, Amazon, and Lockheed Martin. Investment banks like JP Morgan Chase employ hundreds of alumni, as do companies like Bristol-Meyers Squibb, Merck, Johnson & Johnson, and CVS Pharmacy.
University of Georgia (UGA)
- Academic Highlights: UGA boasts seventeen distinct colleges and schools that offer 125+ majors. 49% of sections enroll fewer than 20 students compared with 12% of sections that enroll 50 or more. No matter your major, UGA encourages you to conduct research with a member of the school’s faculty. The Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities (CURO) awards grants to 500 students per year, and in 2024, a robust 620+ students presented at the CURO Symposium.
- Professional Outcomes: 95% of the Class of 2023 was employed or continuing their education six months after graduation. Popular employers include Accenture, the CDC, Deloitte, KPMG, Lockheed Martin, PwC, and Bank of America. Salaries vary between colleges; however, the median hovers around 60k.
University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison)
- Academic Highlights: There are 230+ undergraduate majors offered across eight schools and colleges, Undergrads can expect a mix of large and small classes, with 43% of sections enrolling fewer than 20 students. Undergraduate research opportunities exist, but the onus is on the student to show initiative and procure the placement. Still, 44% of recent grads engaged in research, and the school hosts an annual Undergraduate Symposium where 600 students presented in 2024.
- Professional Outcomes: In 2023, 72% of job-seeking grads graduated with an offer. Top employers included UW-Madison, Epic, UW Health, the State of Wisconsin, Kohl’s, and Deloitte. Across all graduating years, companies employing 250+ alumni include Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Target, Apple, Meta, and Salesforce.
University of Miami
- Academic Highlights: Over 100 undergrad programs are offered across nine schools, A noteworthy 92% of graduates report being satisfied with their education while 82% were satisfied with their major. Fifty-two percent of all course sections contain fewer than 20 students, and only 7% of sections sport enrollments of more than 50 undergrads. Study abroad opportunities are vast and include university-run programs in sixteen locations; roughly 40% of undergrads participate each year.
- Professional Outcomes: Within six months of graduating, 99% of the Class of 2023 had positive outcomes, with 62% employed full-time and 36% in graduate school. Companies employing 2023 grads included Citi, Bank of America, Jackson Memorial Hospital, JPMorgan Chase, Deloitte, and Goldman Sachs. Across all majors, the median starting salary was an impressive $62k. 100+ Canes also can be found in the offices of Amazon, Microsoft, and Google.
Pennsylvania State University (PSU)
- Academic Highlights: Penn State offers 275 majors and a number of top-ranked programs in a host of disciplines. Unlike some public research universities that can have student-to-faculty ratios greater than 20:1, PSU boasts a solid 15:1 ratio. That level of support allows 61% of classes to have an enrollment below thirty students. Even at such a large institution, it is possible to get involved in undergraduate research. Eberly College of Science professors are running upwards of 3,000 research projects per year, and the school has a well-maintained and up-to-date database of undergraduate research positions. All told, 16% of graduates report having engaged in undergraduate research.
- Professional Outcomes: By graduation, 79% of Nittany Lions have found their next employment or graduate school home. Over a hundred alumni work at Tesla; Deloitte, Amazon, Google, JP Morgan Chase, Microsoft, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, and Accenture each employ over 500 alumni. Three-quarters of recent graduates employed full-time earned starting salaries of greater than $50k.
Michigan State University (MSU)
- Academic Highlights: This highly regarded state institution boasts over 400 areas of study-undergraduate, graduate, and professional-across 17 degree-granting colleges. A 17:1 student-to-faculty ratio rates in the average range for public universities of MSU’s size and scope. Class sizes are a genuine mix of small seminars and giant lecture halls. In one recent year, 55% percent of undergraduate course sections contain fewer than 30 students; just 23% enrolled more than 50. Undergraduate research opportunities do exist for those bold enough to pursue them; 36% of recent grads completed one such experience.
- Professional Outcomes: Within months of strutting across the graduation stage, 63% of Class of 2023 members had landed full-time employment, 25% were pursuing advanced degrees, and 4% were still looking for a job. The top employers of this group included big names like the State of Michigan, General Motors, the US Federal Government, Ford Motor Company, and PepsiCo. The median starting salary earned was $64,149.
University of Maryland, College Park
- Academic Highlights: Undergraduates can select from 100+ majors across twelve colleges and schools. 47% of class sections enroll fewer than twenty students. Undergraduate research opportunities are within reach as 21% of recent graduates completed one. The Office of Undergraduate Research facilitates numerous opportunities throughout the year, and hosts an annual Undergraduate Research Day and Summer Undergraduate Research Conference at which 550+ students make presentations.
- Professional Outcomes: Within six months of graduating, 94% of Class of 2023 grads had positive outcomes. 71% found employment; the companies/organizations that hired the greatest number of grads included Northrop Grumman, Deloitte, Capital One, and Montgomery County Public Schools. Amazon, Google, and Microsoft employ more than 900 alumni each. The salary range for 2023 grads was between $60k and $86k.
University of Pittsburgh (UPitt)
- Academic Highlights: Forty percent of sections have an enrollment of under twenty students while 18% enroll more than 50. Plenty of personal connection with professors is available to those who seek it. Structured undergraduate research opportunities are available within every single school at UPitt; the bi-annual Research & Creative Expression Fair features 100+ projects.
- Professional Outcomes: Within a few months of graduating, 98% of 2023 grads entered full-time employment or full-time graduate or professional school. Employers scooping up the highest number of grads in one recent year included the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (208), PNC (67), BNY Mellon (37), and Deloitte (21). The median salary across all majors was $62,127.

Career Paths

An Exercise Science degree can lead to a variety of exciting and rewarding career paths. Graduates may find employment in:

Commercial or private health and fitness centers
Hospital exercise and cardiac rehabilitation programs
Corporate fitness centers
Coaching
Health screening and education
Pharmaceutical sales
Sales and marketing of medical, fitness, or sports-related equipment

The major also serves as a foundation for graduate-level work in health sciences, such as:

Nursing
Chiropractic
Medicine (physician assistant, medical doctor, etc.)
Physical/occupational therapy
Dietetics
Adapted physical education
Ergonomics
Biomechanics
Exercise physiology
Motor control
Sport psychology
Sports medicine

Undergraduates who desire to pursue careers such as a physical therapist, physical education teacher, personal trainer, athletic coaching, or sports medicine should explore kinesiology and exercise science as a potential major.

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