Sport Science study on person undertaking exercise

Sport and Exercise Sciences

Sport and Exercise Science at Bangor ranks in the Top 5 for its research quality and is one of the oldest providers of Sport and Exercise degrees in the UK.

On this Page:
Find out about the range of course options in Sport and Exercise Sciences

About Sport and Exercise Sciences

Do you want to be part of the growing Sport and Exercise and Adventure industries? Do you dream of working with elite athletes to help improve their performance? Do you want a better understanding of how science can be applied to sport and physical activity to improve your coaching and/or teaching ability? Do you want to develop your understanding of exercise as a medicine for people with health problems or want to promote the benefits of physical activity and exercise? Are you thinking of becoming a sport and exercise psychologist or a PE Teacher? If the answer to any of the above is ‘yes’, then studying a degree within the area of Sport and Exercise Science is the choice for you!

In many countries fewer than 5% of people meet physical activity recommendations and a similarly small percentage use exercise and sport to promote their health and prevent future health issues. Even fewer people are lucky enough to participate in competitive sport to experience the highs (and lows) that competitive situations can bring. However, there is a world-wide community of billions of people who enjoy watching, reading and talking about sport and exercise. The passion to watch sport is so powerful that it crosses cultural, ethical and political boundaries.

This interest, desire, need, and passion, whether to watch or take part, is why sport, health and exercise science is a growth industry and continues to shape all avenues of life. Our degree courses will teach you;

  • what sport and exercise psychologists, exercise and health practitioners, sport scientists, or sport/physical activity coaches and teachers do, how they do it, and why
  • what motivates sport performers and exercisers
  • how to enhance the performance of athletes and coaches
  • how and why exercise is medicine and its role in preventing health problems and rehabilitating individuals following injury and disease
  • the skills required to work in the adventure and outdoor markets

If you love exercise, adventure or sport or are interested in rehabilitation and how exercise influences health, you’ll love our sports science degrees.

5 reasons to study Sport and Exercise Science at Bangor

All our staff have higher education teaching qualifications and 100% of their research was rated as world leading or internationally recognised in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework. This places us 5th in the UK for all Sport Science departments. This means that staff are not only leading researchers, but many are also applied practitioners working with some of the world’s leading athletes and teams. This is a rare combination. It ensures that students benefit from the latest perspectives from both the research labs and from the applied world of exercise and high-performance sport.

All of our programmes offer placement opportunities to gain work experience, including placement years. These opportunities are closely linked to the unique high calibre professional research links associated with our staff e.g., UK Sport, Manchester City FC , Liverpool FC, RAF, England and Wales Cricket Board, NHS. To gain a placement in these leading organisations is facilitated by our staff unique links.

Our class sizes mean all students have regular practical sessions in our £1 Million teaching lab right from Year 1. This ensures you can confidently and competently use testing equipment, so you stand out for the competition in the world of work.

All our programmes break from the traditional compartmentalised teaching models adopted by many other sport and exercise departments. We achieve this by featuring cutting-edge modules across all years that are dedicated to bringing the psychology, physiology and human movement disciplines together. Modules such as “Psychophysiology of Sport and Exercise” and “Applied Psychophysiology: How to Monitor and Enhance Performance” cover the latest psychophysiological and neuroscientific research in sport and exercise and include practical experience so students can learn first-hand how what is happening in the mind can impact the body (and vice-versa). This interdisciplinary way of thinking is driving many of the latest trends in the field (e.g., the explosion of bioapps for monitoring stress levels, recovery, brain readiness etc) and will set-up graduates to apply modern interdisciplinary knowledge and skills in their future careers.

Many Sport and Exercise Science graduates pursue careers in teaching, coaching, physiotherapy – our course lays a solid foundation for careers in these domains. BUT, in addition to producing graduates for these traditional career paths, our programmes have also produced a long line of graduates who have progressed into highly successful academic careers (i.e., developed into the next generation world-leading sport and exercise scientists). In fact, most of our current lecturers and Professors are Bangor graduates! Our course has also produced a long line of graduates who have become successful applied practitioners for high-profile organisations (e.g., for Premier League football teams, international cricket teams, sport governing bodies, NHS).

Undergraduate Degrees

The sports science degree you choose will depend on your specific interests, for example, a degree in Sport and Physical Education will give you skills to undertake a PGCE to teach A Level PE. Adventure Sport Science equips you with technical skills and teaching ability in various water and mountain-based disciplines. 

See our Courses

Intercalated Degrees

These degrees are aimed at medical students who have successfully completed the requisite number of years in Medical School and want to gain a BSc to specialise, or gain experience in sports science or clinical sports science.

See our Courses

Top up Degree

This sport degree is suitable for those who have studied a related sport science Foundation degree.

See our Courses

Top 5

overall for Research

REF 2021

3rd

in the UK for research quality

Complete University Guide 2023

Treadmill
Treadmill

Why Study Sport and Exercise Sciences?

Sport and exercise science is about applying scientific principles to the promotion, maintenance and enhancement of sport and exercise related behaviours. It is fast becoming one of the most popular subjects to study in the UK (and globally) at both undergraduate and postgraduate level.

Two students testing the Sport, Health and Excercise Science equipment

Where will my degree take me?

We’ll help you gain the knowledge and skills you need for a career in the expanding sport and exercise and adventure markets.

Student Profile George Robinson

Sport Science

"The course is designed to equip students with the skills to enter a sporting environment. With Bangor being a research orientated university, it puts a lot of emphasis on developing research and critical thinking skills. "

3d illustration of the muscle system of a canoeist

Career Opportunities in Sport and Exercise Sciences

Our sports science degree programmes aim to maximise your employability by gaining hands-on experience alongside teaching. These include lab practical sessions, a research project or dissertation and demonstrations, tutorials and research. You can gain real life experience working abroad and develop additional professional qualifications in a range of areas.

Do you have a question about life as a Bangor University student? Our ambassadors will be happy to help you find the answer.

They can tell you more about studying here, about the amazing Clubs and Societies we have, and how they made friends and settled in to life at university as a Sport and Exercise Sciences student.

If you have any questions about the course, our lecturers are on hand to help. Below are some examples of frequently asked questions. Can you think of any more? 

  • What are the qualities of a successful Sport and Exercise Sciences student at Bangor?
  • How can I prepare myself to study Sport and Exercise Sciences at Bangor?
  • How will I know that Sport and Exercise Sciences at Bangor is the right choice for me?

Our Research in Sport and Exercise Sciences

Research and Impact in the School of Human and Behavioural Sciences

Sports Science Research Excellence:

  • 1st in Wales / 5th in the UK for research in Sport Science; with 100% of research either world leading or at an international level (Research Excellence Framework, 2021)

All our staff are research active and this world-class research informs all our teaching.  We place a strong emphasis on the application of research to practice and you’ll undertake a supervised research experience during your degree. This will help you follow a successful career as a Sport, Health, and Exercise professional as being able to identify relevant research questions, and having the skill set to conduct research to answers these questions, is highly valued by employers. Your supervised research experience will help to nurture your skills whilst also allowing you to be mentored (in an area of your choice) by an established researcher, experienced in developing research-based practices that enable leading organisations to stay at the top of their ‘game’ (e.g., UK Sport, NHS, and the MOD). 

We have expertise within the areas of:

  • Psychology of Elite Performance
  • Extreme Environments
  • Physical Activity, Health and Wellbeing

During your degree you’ll showcase the results of your research experience at the Student Conference, which is acknowledged as a hallmark of our degree programmes by both our students and external examiners.  Working with our academic staff and presenting your research in this way will give you highly prized transferable skills such as being organised, effective time management, problem solving, positive interpersonal skills, analytical skills and critical thinking. 

Treborth Sports Facilities

Bangor Sport Facilities

Bangor Sport offer indoor and outdoor facilities for a whole range of sport and fitness activities, including weight training, aerobic classes, athletics, indoor climbing, indoor cricket, tennis, squash, trampolining, football, rugby, hockey and much more.

Related Subject Areas

You may also be interested in these related subject areas.

Related Subject Areas

You may also be interested in these related subject areas.

It looks like you’re visiting from outside the UK, would you like to be redirected to the international page?