The Open University
If you’re an aspiring or practicing leader of sport or fitness activity, The Open University’s sport and fitness courses will develop your skills and understanding of sports science, psychology, training, coaching and leadership. They are designed to increase your effectiveness in your working role and develop employability skills to boost your career prospects.
The OU’s flexible distance learning model offers you the chance to study remotely while enjoying the support of a tutor and other students. This way you can fit your studies around your other commitments and is ideal for students who want to combine study with work.
The OU takes a blended approach to learning by using written text, audio-visual resources, interactive activities, quizzes, journal articles and reflective activities to develop your learning, supported by regular online tutorials. You will have the support of a personal tutor, and access to a module specific forum.
The benefits of studying a sport and fitness qualification with the OU:
- Our qualifications are recognised by the Register of Exercise Professionals (REPs).
- You gain REPs CPD points through completing our modules.
- We enhance your learning through innovative technology.
- You can fit our flexible study around your work and other commitments.
The undergraduate qualifications are underpinned by a postgraduate programme within the OU Sport Research Group. This interdisciplinary team of researchers designs, manages and completes research projects which are ultimately aimed at educating, understanding and improving the lives of athletes.
What can you study?
The OU offers a number of modular qualifications in Sports, leading towards a BSc (Hons) degree in Sports, Fitness and Coaching. Our modules can also be studied by themselves, on a stand-alone basis.
Most students study part-time (one module or 60 credits a year) but it is possible to study at full-time intensity (two modules or 120 credits a year) if your personal schedule allows.
Qualifications
BSc (Hons) Sport, Fitness and Coaching
Diploma of Higher Education in Sports and Fitness
Certificate of Higher Education in Sport, Fitness and Management
Individual modules
Stage 1
Introduction to sport and fitness
Working with people in sport and fitness
Stage 2
Sport and exercise psychology in action
Applying sport and exercise sciences to coaching
Stage 3
Exploring psychological aspects of athletic development
Exploring contemporary issues in sport and exercise
Free learning
If you’re unsure about whether the OU is suitable for you, our OpenLearn platform offers a range of free learning courses and articles in sport and fitness, and many other subjects.
Authored by OU academics, these free courses can be studied as tasters of module content and the OU style of learning, or simply for personal interest or career development.
Credit transfer
If you have already studied at university level, you may be able to count it towards your Open University qualification – which could save you time and money by reducing the number of modules you need to study. We call this credit transfer. For more details of when you will need to apply by and to download an application form, visit our Credit Transfer website
About The Open University
The Open University (OU) is the largest academic institution in the UK and a world leader in flexible distance learning. Since it began in 1969, the OU has taught more than 2 million students worldwide and has over 170,000 current students, including more than 7,000 overseas.
Over 76% of students are in full-time or part-time employment, and three out of five FTSE 100 companies have sponsored staff to take OU courses.
Regarded as the UK’s major e-learning institution, the OU is a world leader in developing technology to increase access to education on a global scale. Its vast ‘open content portfolio’ includes free study units, as well as games, videos and academic articles, which have reached over 36 million people.