About Exercise Prescription at UConn

The Field – With the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, the broader healthcare market is placing significant emphasis on reducing sedentary lifestyles through exercise and on preventive care. Further, a focus on promoting healthier lifestyles for people with such chronic diseases as hypertension, dyslipidemia, cancer, arthritis, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease is contributing to this growth. Add to this normal populations with special health considerations, such pregnant women, and the employment market is robust to say the least. Conservative estimates by the American Kinesiology Association place job growth for exercise professionals at 10 percent through 2022.

In UConn Exercise Prescription 100% online graduate programs, you will:

  • Experience gold standard content—what employers are looking for: The content for our program is based on the American College of Sports Medicine’s (ACSM) Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription (GETP), considered the “gold standard” in the fields of sports medicine, kinesiology, and health and fitness—or for anyone conducting exercise testing and leading exercise programs. The senior editor of the 9th edition is UConn’s own Linda Pescatello, PhD, FACSM, FAHA, FNAK, who designed this certificate program and will be teaching much of the coursework. Learn more…
  • Learn from the experts who drive the industry: In addition to Dr. Pescatello, frequent expert guest speakers who are preeminent authorities in their field have provided course content in their related areas of expertise and will be lecturing on an ongoing basis. So you’ll have the opportunity to learn from and network with the people who are on the cutting edge of the exercise science industry. Learn more…
  • Gain a great head start on earning exercise certifications: Program content will help prepare you with the requisite knowledge you need to earn specialty exercise certifications from various associations, including the ACSM Certified Exercise Physiologist (ACSM EP-C) and Certified Clinical Exercise Physiologist (ACSM CEP) designations, among other professional organizations such as the Strength and Conditioning Association. Coursework can also help prepare you for entering a doctoral program.
  • Have opportunity to get published: Like UConn Kinesiology graduate students, you’ll learn the best practices for getting papers published in leading journals in the field of exercise science.

Is earning an Exercise Prescription degree or certificate for you?

UConn's Exercise Prescription online graduate certificate and master's degree are designed for professionals who:

  1. Wish to advance careers by learning from leading experts in the exercise science and health promotion field.
  2. Conduct exercise pre-participation health screenings.
  3. Identify the components of a comprehensive health fitness evaluation including maximal and submaximal graded exercise tests, muscle fitness, body composition, and flexibility assessments.
  4. Design exercise plans for healthy adults and adults with chronic diseases and health conditions.

 

Types of health and exercise professionals who may benefit from these programs include:

  1. Allied Health Education Professionals
  2. Athletic Trainers
  3. Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Specialists
  4. Chiropractors
  5. Clinical Exercise Physiologists
  6. Corporate Health & Wellness Professionals
  7. Dietitians
  8. Medical Fitness Professionals
  9. Nurses
  10. Personal Trainers seeking personal training certifications
  11. Physical and Occupational Therapists
  12. Physical Educators
  13. Physicians
  14. Registered Dieticians
  15. Respiratory Therapists
  16. Strength and conditioning specialists

 

Additional Exercise Prescription Resources

Professional Organizations