Sport Coaching and Physical Education

Do you dream of being the great coach behind a great athlete? Or to inspire children through engagement with sport and physical activity? Or maybe you would like to have your say in the policing of sport and in the development of athletes? Work towards all these and even more careers at our Cambridge Centre for Sport and Exercise Sciences.

As a Sport Coaching and Physical Education student at ARU, you'll have access to amazing opportunities: you can use specialist labs accredited by the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES), gain safeguarding and coaching qualifications, and get first-hand experience working with schools and sports clubs.

We know that you want to learn from professionals, so our staff members include elite athletes and coaches who will be teaching you not just based on their academic knowledge, but also from their hands-on experience. As a graduate of our industry-endorsed degree, you'll be ready to work in the UK’s rapidly growing sport and fitness industry or to continue your learning journey to postgraduate study. Find out more about our approved and accredited courses.

By choosing to study BSc (Hons) Sport Coaching and Physical Education at ARU, you’ll be choosing an applied course that is embedded in real-life experiences and focused on getting you career-ready.

Our degree course is packed with opportunities to complete work placements in local schools and sports clubs. Moreover, you'll have the chance to gain unique work experience with organisations such as Living Sport and Cambridge City Council, who run community sports projects for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. You can also apply to internship programmes with professional sports teams.

In the final year of your Sport Coaching and Physical Education degree, you'll be offered a unique opportunity to complete a real-life research and development project immersed in industry. Our previous students have taken advantage of work placements in places such as Meldreth Primary School, Stephen Purse Foundation Senior School, Cambridge United Football Club, and University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Together, we’ll explore sport development, applied coaching pedagogy (how people teach and learn), athlete development, sport physiology and the psychology of sport coaching. You’ll learn how to use your knowledge as a leader, teacher and a sports coach – and to work safely, ethically and confidently on your own, or as part of a team. To do this, you’ll use state-of-the-art facilities including exercise testing and human movement labs, and a strength and conditioning suite. Within the Sport Coaching and Physical Education course you’ll be assessed via non-examination methods such as assessments, presentations and a research project.

And to top it all off, there’s financial support for talented athletes.