BSc (Hons) Sports Therapy

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UCAS Code:
846W
Institution:
B50
Delivery:
Full time according to Funding Council definitions

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Qualifying and practising as a sports therapist will enable you to provide advice and treatment for the prevention and rehabilitation of injuries. Upon graduation you'll be able to empower sports men, women and children to achieve optimal potential and performance.

The course is split between theoretical and practical elements, and you'll learn how to provide advice and treatment to manage the individual needs of a person within their sporting environment.This may involve designing and carrying out injury prevention programmes, providing immediate care of injuries and basic life support in a recreational, clinical, training and competitive environments. There will be opportunities to assess and manage sports injuries by providing specialist advice and treatments like sport and remedial massage and musculoskeletal interventions as part of a rehabilitation programmes.

This course at Bournemouth University is accredited by the Society of Sports Therapists who will provide insurance for 250 hours of practice. On successful completion of this course you will be eligible to apply for membership with them.

Join us on live chat now to find out more, or register to meet us at an Open Day.

Sport scholarships

If you’re passionate about sport and you’re a high-performing sport athlete with the desire to continue developing your talents whilst you’re studying, then have a look at our BU Sport Scholarships which are available to help support you financially.

All statistics shown throughout this page are taken from Unistats, Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE), BU institutional data and Ipsos MORI (National Student Survey) unless otherwise stated. As this is a new course, there isn’t any current data from students on this course and the Unistats data on this page is drawn from similar courses at BU.

Image description — Physiotherapy leg stretch demonstration

Key information

Next start date:

September 2020, September 2021

Location:

Bournemouth University, Lansdowne Campus

Duration:

3 years full-time, or 4 years with a minimum 30-week placement (both options require the completion of 200 hours supervised practice in your final year)

Accreditations:

The Society of Sports Therapists

Required subjects:

Biology, Human Biology, Physical Education, Sports and Exercise Science, Health Science

Entry requirements:

For September 2020 entry: 128 - 144 UCAS tariff points including a minimum of 2 A - levels or equivalent including 32 points in a required subject. BTEC Extended Diploma: DDM. For more information check out our full entry requirements.

International entry requirements:

If English is not your first language, you will need: IELTS (Academic) 6.5 with minimum 6.0 in each component or equivalent. For more information check out our international entry requirements.

Accredited by:

Course details

Qualifying and practicing as a Sports Therapist will enable you to provide advice and treatment for the prevention and rehabilitation of injuries. Upon graduation you’ll be able to empower sports men, women and children to achieve optimal potential and performance.

The course is split between theoretical and practical elements, and you’ll learn how to provide advice and treatment to manage the individual needs of a person within their sporting environment. This may involve designing and carrying out injury prevention programmes, providing immediate care of injuries and basic life support in recreational, clinical, training and competitive environments.

There will be opportunities to assess and manage sports injuries by providing specialist advice and treatments like sport and remedial massage and musculoskeletal interventions as part of rehabilitation programmes.

This course is accredited by the Society of Sports Therapists who will provide insurance for 250 hours of practice. On successful completion of this course you will be eligible to apply for membership with them.

On this course you will usually be taught by a range of staff with relevant expertise and knowledge appropriate to the content of the unit. This will include senior academic staff, qualified professional practitioners and research students. You will also benefit from regular guest lectures from industry.

Contact hours and assessment

Details of the assessment methods and contact hours for each unit of the course can be found in the programme specification.

Download the programme specification (pdf 527 kb)

Year 1

Core units

Foundations of Sports Therapy: This includes building on your foundational knowledge of anatomy and physiology and relating it to, common sports injuries, the process of tissue healing and practical sports massage therapy.
Athlete Welfare: This unit will enable you to identify risk factors associated with participation in competitive and recreational sport and exercise, specifically the interaction between the athlete, their environment and their own responsibilities concerning the maintenance of optimal health and wellbeing.
Exercise Prescription in Sports Therapy: This unit involves learning to apply the principles of exercise theory to plan and implement comprehensive exercise programmes. You will learn about physical fitness tests, contemporary testing equipment as well as accepted test protocols and measurements.
Assessment of Sports Injuries 1: Gaining an understanding of current knowledge and best practice in identifying and managing acute sports injuries and illness. As well as acquiring skills in carrying out initial assessments and primary surveys in the acute sports injury setting. This unit involves observing practice in a sporting environment.
Research Methodologies 1: Learning research skills for effective literature searching, and for designing, collecting and analysing/interpreting data sets gathered from original research studies.
Early Career Professionalism: This unit sets the foundations for you to develop into an effective, compassionate, robust, resilient and responsible professional with excellent communication skills.

Year 2

Core units

Soft-Tissue and Therapeutic Modalities: l Learning about advanced soft tissue and therapeutic techniques within the context of sports injury management.
Assessment of Sports Injuries 2: This unit covers the principles and rationale of clinical assessment and evaluation of the peripheral joints. Enabling you to apply your skills relating to subjective and objective assessment, to plan treatments, monitor and evaluate different clinical presentations.
Applied Physiology: Developing your theoretical and applied understanding of the physiological changes that occur as a result of training and exercise. Learning about physiological assessment within a laboratory setting and the application to the individual for example in relation to exercise/rehabilitation programme design.
Manual Therapy 1 – Peripheral Joints: This unit develops your understanding and practical application of the principles and practices of manual therapy techniques for the peripheral joints.
Rehabilitation in Sports Therapy: This unit enables you to combine your pathophysiological knowledge and injury rehabilitation theory in order to plan, implement and monitor comprehensive rehabilitation programmes that progress a client from injury to full functional fitness.
Research methodologies 2: Building on research practice from the first year this unit enables you to understand a range of research methodologies and provide a critical understanding of their use.

Optional placement year

Final year

Core units

Manual Therapy – The Spine: Developing understanding and practical application of the principles and practices of manual therapy techniques to the spine.
Innovation in Sports Therapy: Exploring innovation in research, education and/or professional practice. Integrating evidence informed practice and the appreciation of wider health care issues to produce a justified innovation.
Sports Therapy Practice: This unit builds on and further develops your skills to plan, implement and monitor injury prevention strategies and return to play programmes that involve a comprehensive understanding of components of sport and exercise science. You’ll gain an understanding of the relationship between the sports therapist, other organisations and agencies and reflect upon experiences in sports therapy practice.
Service Improvement Project: The purpose of this unit is to provide an opportunity to undertake interprofessional project work with a variety of health practitioners and develop your skills in team working. Collaborative working is considered an essential skill for sports therapy practice.
Research Project: You will carry out a programme of independent research involving either the gathering primary data or being involved in analysis of existing data. This will enable you to evaluate findings in the context of a critical review of published literature and present the results and conclusions of a substantive piece of research.

Programme specification

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry.

If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

How you will be assessed

Placements

Engagement with placements will develop from observation to managing a caseload over the three/four year course. You’ll be supported throughout this time to enable you to apply theory in practice.

Placement content

There is a strong emphasis on the understanding and application of practical skills. In your first year there is a requirement to undertake 20 hours of acute sports injury placement observations. In your second year, there is a requirement to undertake 30 hours of observations relating to clinical sports injury assessment and treatment.

In your final year, there will be a requirement to undertake a minimum of 200 hours of supervised sports therapy experience.

What hours do you work?

As well as the placements interwoven throughout the course, you also have the option of taking a further minimum 30-week placement at the end of your second year of study.

What will your placements include?

In your first year, we'll supply you with a list of placements sourced by the placements team and support you in engaging in this first year. In your second and third years, you'll be responsible for finding and organising your own placement.

The placements may be with a Physiotherapist, Sports Therapist or Sports Rehabilitator, and each placement provider has to be recognised by an appropriate professional body.

We have established links with sports injury clinics and sports clubs throughout the local area who will be able to provide placements for you during the course.

Your application

For Sports Therapy, we are looking for applicants who are:

Experienced in health, fitness, sports and/or rehabilitation settings
Motivated, committed and enthusiastic about being involved in Sports Therapy
Able to demonstrate a clear understanding of the Sports Therapy profession and can demonstrate the skills and qualities relevant to the profession
Able to demonstrate that they have a career plan and are thinking of future employment opportunities.

IT skills

In the healthcare sector IT is now a vital tool for accessing and maintaining patient records, accessing literature to client care and conducting clinically-related research. As a student you will receive an introduction to IT near the beginning of your course and you will be provided with computer access and your own email address.

During the course, you will be expected to use your developing IT skills to produce assignments, conduct literature searches, and to use client-related record systems in the clinical setting. Following instruction some of your study will be undertaken through web-based learning tools, for example by participating in online discussions.

How we assess your application

We look at individual applications and make a tailored offer based on your potential to succeed on the course considering a range of factors, including your academic achievements, work and other experience, reference and personal statement, and in some cases, your performance at an interview or a portfolio review. Typically, we make an offer at the bottom of the tariff range.

AccessBU gives you the chance to tell us more about you and your life experiences if you haven’t had the same educational opportunities as other applicants. If you are eligible for AccessBU, your offer could be up to 16 UCAS Tariff Points below the published tariff.

Find out more about interviews with the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences

Selection methods

We select candidates for this course by looking at your application. For that reason, make sure your application really stands out from the crowd, and leave us in no doubt as to why you should be joining BU. We may ask you to provide a portfolio and/or take part in an online interview. You can find some handy hints about filling in your UCAS form on our how to apply web pages.

Because we need you to have practical and applicable skills in this particular subject, we’ll then invite the very best students for an interview. These interviews are designed to demonstrate that you have the necessary insight into Sports Therapy, as well as the motivation and commitment to become a Sports Therapist.

Find out more about interviews with the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences

Our offer making process

Our offer-making will typically be based on your most recent qualifications, including any required subjects where applicable. We'll consider all qualifications when assessing your application, although these may not be part of our offer.

If you do not meet the criteria of your original offer, we may still offer you a place. We will review your whole application and consider all academic qualifications (including those not in the offer) to see if you have the academic potential to succeed on the course. If we feel the answer is yes, we will confirm your place.

Our Unconditional Offer Scheme (2020 entry)

Applicants who are predicted to achieve strong academic results will be eligible for BU’s Unconditional Offer Scheme in recognition of their academic performance and potential to succeed at university. You will receive an unconditional offer from BU if you are selected for the scheme - course selection measures and other entry criteria (i.e. required qualifications) apply.

We believe that unconditional offers reduce pressure on applicants who will continue to strive to achieve the best grades possible. Excellent grades become a part of applicants’ CVs and also support eligibility for our Academic Excellence scholarship - if you achieve AAA or above at A-level or equivalent, you’ll be automatically eligible for this award.

Visit our Unconditional Offer Scheme FAQ page

Entry requirements

We use the UCAS Tariff in our entry requirements and will accept a combination of grades and qualifications to meet the overall tariff requirement. You can use the UCAS calculator to see how your qualifications equate to UCAS tariff points.

We have outlined our entry requirements below using the most common qualifications that we consider for this course. If your qualification is not listed, please contact our Future Students Enquiry Team who can advise accordingly. You can also find out more about how we consider your application in our offer-making process section.

For September 2020 entry: 128 - 144 tariff points including a minimum of 2 A levels or equivalent including 32 points in a required subject.

Required subject: Biology, Human Biology, Physical Education, Sports and Exercise Science, Health Science, or sport-related subject.

Numeracy and Literacy requirement: GCSE English Language or English Literature and Mathematics grade 4 (or grade C in the old grading system). We also accept iGCSEs, Key Skills and Functional Skills and other qualifications at Level 2 of the National Qualifications Framework.

A-level and AS levels: 128 - 144 tariff points including a minimum of 2 A levels or equivalent including 32 points in a required subject.

Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate – Skills Challenge Certificate: We accept this qualification, but it must be accompanied by an A-level sized qualification to meet the overall UCAS tariff.

Access to HE Diploma: 128 - 144 tariff points in a required subject with any combination of Distinction, Merit, Pass grades.

BTEC National:

Extended Diploma: Distinction, Distinction, Merit (128 UCAS tariff points) in a required subject.
Diploma: Accepted as part of the overall tariff. BTEC Diploma in Sport has to be at least a distinction level to cover required subject.
Foundation Diploma/ 90-credit Diploma: We accept this qualification, but it must be accompanied by an A-level sized qualification to meet the overall UCAS tariff
Extended Certificate/ Subsidiary Diploma: Accepted as part of the overall tariff but has to be at least a distinction level to cover required subject.

Cambridge International Pre-U Diploma: 128 - 144 tariff points including a minimum of 2 Principal Subjects including 36 points in a required subject.

Cambridge Technical:

Extended Diploma: Distinction, Distinction, Merit (128 UCAS tariff points) in a required subject.
Diploma: Accepted as part of the overall tariff.
Subsidiary Diploma: We accept this qualification, but it must be accompanied by an A-level sized qualification to meet the overall UCAS tariff
Introductory Diploma: We accept this qualification, but it must be accompanied by an A-level sized qualification to meet the overall UCAS tariff.

Extended Project Qualification: We accept this qualification, but it must be accompanied by two A-level sized qualifications to meet the overall UCAS tariff.

International Baccalaureate Certificates: 128 - 144 UCAS tariff points from a minimum of two Higher Level certificates.

International Baccalaureate (Diploma): An overall score of 32 - 34 points including grade H5 in a required subject.

Scottish Highers: 128 - 144 UCAS tariff points from Scottish Highers, including 32 points in a required subject.

Scottish Advanced Highers: 128 - 144 UCAS tariff points from a minimum of two Scottish Advanced Highers.

Other useful information

Apprenticeships: We recognise the transferable knowledge and skills gained through apprenticeships and welcome applications from students with a Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship recognised by the Institute for Apprenticeships. Each application will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Mature applicants: We recognise that mature applicants may have a wealth of experience rather than formal qualifications, so we’ll consider your application on these merits if included in your application. You’ll need to apply to BU in the usual way through UCAS and you may be invited to an interview to discuss your suitability for the course based on the experience you tell us about in your application.

Deferred entry: We are happy to consider eligible applicants for deferred entry.

Non-academic requirements

International entry requirements

You can find details of the international qualifications we accept, and what level of study they apply to, on our entry requirements for non-UK students' page.

Please see below some examples of the qualifications for entry onto Year 1 for September 2020 entry:

Диплома за средно образование (Bulgarian Diploma of Completed Secondary Education) or Диплома за средно специално образование (Bulgarian Diploma of Completed Secondary Specialised Education). Minimum score of 5.5
Hong Kong HKDSE Diploma with required scores (4,4,5 to 4,5,5. Minimum 4 in English required)
Italian Esame di Stato[AB1] with minimum 80%+
Spanish Curso de Orientaciòn Universitaria (COU) prior to 2009 or if you hold a Titulo De Bachillerato awarded from 2009 onwards with a minimum of 8/10+
USA High School Diploma with minimum GPA 3.25 plus SAT Reasoning (1300) or ACT (26-29). If there is a subject specific requirement SAT Subject (600) or AP (4-4) will be required.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, you will need to provide evidence that you can understand English to a satisfactory level. English language requirements for this course are normally:

For September 2020 entry: IELTS (Academic) 6.5 with minimum 6.0 in each component, or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

If you do not meet the English language requirement for your degree then why not join our Pre-Sessional English course? Successful completion of our Pre-Sessional English course will meet your English language requirement.

Careers

Within six months of completing their studying Sport & Exercise Science related courses, 91% of our students are working or studying.

Typical job roles and industries

There are a variety of career options for students once you’ve graduated from this course. These include:

Working in a sports therapy clinic, either by setting up your own practice or working for others
Working with all levels of sports teams for both injury prevention and injury rehabilitation
Researching musculoskeletal function and performance in relation to sports injuries and sports therapy
Working in the health and fitness industry.

You will also develop transferable skills such as time management, managing data, project management, enhanced communication skills and critical thinking skills.

Further study

Costs and fees

All fees are quoted in pounds sterling and are per year. Your tuition fees will be the same for each year of your course. You can find full information about funding your studies and paying your fees in our pages on funding support for healthcare courses.

Our fees and funding section also includes information about the scholarships and bursaries on offer – including unlimited Academic Excellence Scholarships for UK, EU and International students.

Fees quoted are for tuition only unless stated otherwise, and we’re committed to ensuring there are no hidden extra costs while you’re at university – that’s why we’re clear about what you can expect us to cover, and what your cost of living will be.

No hidden extras

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

Professional body accreditation of the course.
Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service Check.
T-shirt and shorts for practical sessions and pitchside run-on bag.
The use of Sport BU facilities during the relevant periods of study.
One set of study-related consumables such as a memory stick.
Materials for laboratory and field-based teaching activity.
Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and/or fieldwork and non-financial support whilst on placement.
A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service.
The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces.
IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow.
Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) scheme.
Disability and additional learning support.
The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills.
24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team.

Costs of living and other expenses you need to consider

Additional costs

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

1. Textbooks, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of textbooks and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shops stock a wide range of stationery supplies on both campuses

2. Accommodation and living costs. Please visit our website for more information.

3. Travel costs to and from the University campus. An annual bus pass is included in your rent if you are living in halls of residence/Unilet accommodation

4. Travel costs to and from your placement. Where possible, travel distance and time is considered as part of the placement allocation process to keep this to a minimum.

5. Sports Therapy-branded clothing (optional)

6. Additional course costs in first aid work, sports massage, or fitness instruction (optional)

Repeat units

Our staff

On this course you will be taught by staff with relevant expertise and knowledge appropriate to the content of the unit. This could include senior academic staff, qualified professional practitioners and research students, many of whom are actively engaged in research and/or professional practice in the sports therapy sector which is integrated into the teaching of this course.

You can find out more about some of the staff that are currently teaching on the course and their research activities below. Please note that teaching staff can change.

Dr Osman Ahmed – Course Leader and Senior Lecturer (Academic) in Sports Therapy

Dr Joanna Thurston – Lecturer (Academic) in Sports Therapy

In 2016, I wrote the BSc (Hons) Sports Therapy degree within the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences at Bournemouth University. Prior to this, I had a strong teaching portfolio both at the University of Bath and here at Bournemouth University, within the Department of Sport and Physical Activity.

Having received a number of student-nominated teaching awards since joining BU, I was one of only six staff selected as a Learning and Teaching Fellows at BU in 2014 for my excellence in Fusion-based learning and teaching approaches.

I am currently completing my PhD, which explores the experience of living with pre-menopausal osteoporosis using a reflective topical autobiographical method.

My professional background in sport rehabilitation and movement analysis for performance enhancement meant I was fortunate to have some amazing professional experiences, from working with Dr Dave Alred in Performance Coaching to massaging Justin Timberlake. With Dave in professional football, I have carried out consultancy work at Bolton Wanderers and with players at Chelsea.

View Joanna Thurston's staff profile

Course changes

2018

Date	Changes to this course
23/11/2018	Where the change was made: 2019 entry requirements Change: Diploma no longer needs to be accompanied by an A level. Previous text: Diploma: Accepted as part of the overall tariff but it must be accompanied by an A level or equivalent in a required subject

2017

Date	Changes to this course
07/09/2017	Where the change was made: Key facts and 2018 entry requirements Change: 2018 entry requirements have changed to 128 - 136 tariff points including a minimum of 2 A levels or equivalent including 32 points in a required subject. Previous text: The entry requirements for this course are 128 tariff points from 3 A levels or equivalent, including 32 points from a required subject.
07/09/2017	Where the change was made: 2018 entry requirements Change: 2018 GCSE entry requirements have changed to This course requires GCSE English and Mathematics grade C (or grade 4 in the reformed GCSE grading) or equivalent qualifications. Previous text: This course requires a minimum of 4 GCSEs grades A* - C (or grade 4 or above in the newly reformed GCSE grading) including Maths and English or equivalent qualifications.

Date

Changes to this course

07/09/2017

Where the change was made: Key facts and 2018 entry requirements
Change: 2018 entry requirements have changed to 128 - 136 tariff points including a minimum of 2 A levels or equivalent including 32 points in a required subject.
Previous text: The entry requirements for this course are 128 tariff points from 3 A levels or equivalent, including 32 points from a required subject.

07/09/2017

Where the change was made: 2018 entry requirements
Change: 2018 GCSE entry requirements have changed to This course requires GCSE English and Mathematics grade C (or grade 4 in the reformed GCSE grading) or equivalent qualifications.
Previous text: This course requires a minimum of 4 GCSEs grades A* - C (or grade 4 or above in the newly reformed GCSE grading) including Maths and English or equivalent qualifications.

BSc (Hons) Sports Therapy

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Key information

Next start date:

Location:

Duration:

Accreditations:

Required subjects:

Entry requirements:

International entry requirements:

Accredited by:

Related courses

Our stories

Read about Christian’s start to the year on BSc (Hons) Sports Therapy

Exploring the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences

Check out second-year student Sam’s guide to living in Bournemouth

Planning your future

Course details

Contact hours and assessment

Year 1

Year 2

Optional placement year

Final year

Programme specification

How you will be assessed

Placements

Placement content

What hours do you work?

Your application

IT skills

How we assess your application

Selection methods

Our offer making process

Our Unconditional Offer Scheme (2020 entry)

Entry requirements

Entry requirements

Non-academic requirements

International entry requirements

Careers

Typical job roles and industries

Further study

Costs and fees

No hidden extras

Costs of living and other expenses you need to consider

Repeat units

Our staff

Dr Osman Ahmed – Course Leader and Senior Lecturer (Academic) in Sports Therapy

Dr Joanna Thurston – Lecturer (Academic) in Sports Therapy

Course changes

2018

2017