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  1. Master’s in Kinesiology vs. Sport Management

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    Master's Kinesiology vs Sport Management

    From negotiating deals on behalf of top athletes to overseeing operations at a stadium, there are many ways to build a career behind the scenes of athletic teams and events. If you’re interested in sports and health leadership, you might be weighing your options for pursuing a graduate degree. A program in kinesiology is one way forward, but it’s important to choose the educational path that best fits your goals.

    When you consider the differences in completing a master’s in kinesiology vs. sport management, you’ll see how a curriculum that provides a comprehensive background in sports business and administration can give you an edge in reaching your professional objectives. Students who earn an master’s in sport management develop the skills necessary to drive strategy in sports-oriented organizations and help athletes achieve success both on and off the field.

    What Graduate Studies in Kinesiology Have to Offer

    The field of kinesiology scientifically examines the movement of bodies in ways that can apply to a wide range of career paths. Graduates with kinesiology degrees commonly go on to work in fields like:

    • Physical education
    • Athletic training
    • Choreography
    • Health and fitness consulting
    • Corporate fitness and wellness instruction
    • Physical therapy

    Those interested in a master’s degree may have previously taken undergraduate courses exploring the science behind what makes an exercise program effective, best practices for preventing injuries, and techniques for promoting fitness. By completing a graduate program, professionals gain a deeper understanding of the theory behind their work and deepen their engagement with various approaches to health and fitness.

    Master’s programs might offer concentrations in areas of study such as human performance, biobehavioral science, and exercise physiology. Some of these specializations are intended for students who plan to pursue a doctorate or a career in research. That means the curriculum may involve a requirement to perform original research and write and defend a thesis.

    At the University of Florida, innovative research taking place in Center for Exercise Science shapes the curriculum for graduate students studying kinesiology. The scientists working in this multidisciplinary research center perform groundbreaking studies into the connections between physical activity, the functions of muscles and organs, and illness. Kinesiology graduate students have the chance to develop cutting-edge knowledge from working with renowned experts in areas such as cardiovascular physiology and rehabilitation neuroscience.

    The Advantages of a Sport Management Master’s Degree

    Advanced studies in kinesiology may concentrate on the scientific and medical aspects of athletic events, but a graduate program in sport management explores issues related to business, leadership and marketing as well as athlete performance. While working toward an M.S. in Sport Management, professionals develop the skills, knowledge and experience necessary to perform administrative functions for teams, organize events, and guide athletes through a variety of challenges on and off the field.

    In a sport management curriculum, students become more informed financial and organizational decision makers with a thorough understanding of the legal concepts related to sports and player contracts. They analyze data to evaluate health and human performance and perform research to solve the types of problems that occur in sports organizations. Students have chances to explore how sports relate to broader social issues, investigate how psychological principles apply to athletics, and refine their personal leadership philosophies.

    Graduates who complete their advanced education in sport business may go on to succeed in an array of crucial roles, including:

    • Sport facility manager
    • Athletic development professional
    • Sport marketing consultant
    • Sport law
    • Coaching

    Start Changing the Game With UF’s Online M.S. in Sport Management

    The online Master of Science in Sport Management from University of Florida equips students to take on complex financial and administrative challenges in the world of sport. The comprehensive sport management curriculum can help you develop your skills as a multi-talented professional who is ready to break into this field.

    UF is a sports powerhouse whose top-tier faculty have firsthand insight into every facet of the industry. UF’s large alumni population and student support services also offer highly valuable networking and professional development opportunities. With options like the Gator-to-Gator alumni social network and specialized career coaching with internationally recognized industry professionals, a UF graduate will start their sport career on the right foot.

    Through core courses that include Sport Marketing and Management and Leadership in Sport and electives such as Sport Sponsorship and Athlete Development, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the business of sport. You will also have the opportunity to pursue a graduate certificate in Sport Event Management or in a specialization in the area of Athlete Development, High Performance Coaching, Sport Law, or Director of Racquet Sports.

    Learn more by downloading a brochure, or start your application today.

  2. How to Get into Sport Management

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    how to get into sport management

    Behind every game-winning run, double-clutch layup or unstoppable running play, there are the individuals who make it all possible without putting on a jersey. Sport management professionals contribute in roles that range from representing athletes in contract negotiations to overseeing facility maintenance and upgrades.

    If you’re exploring how to get into sport management, first you need to establish a game plan:

    With clear objectives and the right preparation, you’ll be ready to build a successful career behind the scenes of amazing athletic performances.

    Finding Your Career in Sports

    Sport management professionals may find employment by working for a professional team, college athletic program, governing body, athletic facility, agency or a variety of other organizations. Depending on your prior experience and areas of interest, there are many roles that could be a good fit for you, such as:

    • Marketing Coordinator: Develop and execute sports marketing strategies to promote a team or league, managing advertising campaigns and monitoring budgets
    • Financial Analyst: Prepare forecasts and analyze budgets to guide decision-makers as they work to strengthen and grow an organization
    • Facility Operations Manager: Keep fields or arenas running smoothly, supervising all construction and maintenance activities
    • Corporate Partnership Manager: Nurture an organization’s relationships with other businesses, generating advertising revenue and forming long-term connections
    • Event Coordinator: Oversee the events that take place at sports facilities, from all-star games to trade shows
    • Director of Athletics: Take responsibility for a school athletic program, including hiring and supervising coaches, preparing budgets, coordinating schedules and maintaining compliance with conference rules

    Gain Experience from a Sport Management Internship

    When you’re seeking what you can do with a sport management degree, real-world experience is a huge advantage. That’s why internships might be vital to getting your start. In a survey of 2,000 senior professional and college sports industry executives conducted by the Sport Business Journal, 74 percent said that internships were their top priority when evaluating entry-level job candidates on paper.

    During an internship, you’ll apply the skills you’ve learned to handle the day-to-day challenges of a sports organization. Interns observe seasoned professionals in action, become more effective team players, and expand their networks. In some cases, exceptional performance as an intern can even lead directly to a job offer.

    As you look for a sport management internship, reach out directly to local organizations as well as searching job posting sites. Try contacting sports leagues or associations, professional teams, university athletic departments, private clubs, and community athletic centers to see whether they would be interested in taking you on as an intern.

    Network with Professionals

    The sports industry can be a small world. Forming productive connections with professionals is often a highly effective means of progressing toward your career plans. One of the best ways to get in touch with experienced people who can offer advice and assistance is through your school. Instructors, career center staff, and alumni who work in the field may be able to point you in the right direction and advise you on the next steps.

    Share your cover letter, resume, and social media profiles with these experts. By gathering their input, you’ll be able to hone your materials to highlight your qualifications and demonstrate your engagement within sport management. Concise, powerful documents can make all the difference when you’re trying to capture the attention of a potential employer.

    You can spot chances to progress your career by staying active in a professional community. Attending conferences, joining organizations, and posting in groups on social media allow you to stay up to date with the latest industry developments and find promising employment opportunities. A faculty advisor or career coach can help you find the appropriate events and organizations for your interests.

    Start Changing the Game With UF’s Online M.S. in Sport Management

    The online Master of Science in Sport Management from University of Florida equips students to take on complex financial and administrative challenges in the world of sport. The comprehensive sport management curriculum can help you develop your skills as a multi-talented professional who is ready to break into this field.

    UF is a sports powerhouse whose top-tier faculty have firsthand insight into every facet of the industry. UF’s large alumni population and student support services also offer highly valuable networking and professional development opportunities. With options like the Gator-to-Gator alumni social network and specialized career coaching with internationally recognized industry professionals, a UF graduate will start their sport career on the right foot.

    Through core courses that include Sport Marketing and Management and Leadership in Sport and electives such as Sport Sponsorship and Athlete Development, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the business of sport. You will also have the opportunity to pursue a graduate certificate in Sport Event Management or in a specialization in the area of Athlete Development, High Performance Coaching, Sport Law, or Director of Racquet Sports.

    Learn more by downloading a brochure, or start your application today.

  3. Careers in Sport Law

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    Careers in Sport LawMichael Jordan, Patrick Mahomes, and Serena Williams all have something in common and it’s not just their athletic prowess. It’s the fact that throughout their careers, each of them has worked side by side with experts in sport law. From sports agents to athletic directors, there are many paths to get to the major leagues of sport management, but each of them also requires a substantial knowledge of sport law. But what is it?

    From contract law to tort law, the sport law discipline encompasses a vast expanse of legal knowledge relating to athletics. Whether working for a specific player, organization, or other clients in the field of sport, an understanding of sport law is extremely beneficial when navigating the business side of sports.

    Sport management degrees are useful for people working in the athletics industry, and choosing the right specialization when possible is also key. By pursuing a Master’s in Sport Management with a concentration in sport law, you learn skills that will help you in any sport management career path you choose. Some examples of the types of sport law knowledge you gain include:

    Contract Law

    With a specialization in sport law, you will gain a firm understanding of contract law. This is one of the most important things to understand in the sports world. Education in contract law gives an understanding of what a legally enforceable contract looks like, how to read one, and how to apply that knowledge when negotiating for a client. If your goal is to be a sports agent, manager, athletic director, or any other high-level sports administrator, you will need a good understanding of contract law.

    Intellectual Property Law

    Intellectual property law focuses on the legal ownership that a person or company has over a product, including patents, designs, trademarks, and copyrights. In a sport administration career, this information can help keep athletes and others from infringing upon a team or company’s intellectual property. This knowledge can also be financially beneficial to clients if used correctly. Phrases like “Tebowing” from Tim Tebow and “Linsanity” from Jeremy Lin are trademarked, so anytime those phrases are used for profit, they legally have a right to compensation.

    Labor and Employment Law

    Labor and employment law focuses primarily on workers’ rights and compensation. Understanding labor laws can help when negotiating contracts with coaches and athletes as well as with sponsors. Having a thorough understanding of this knowledge can also prevent organizations from getting into legal trouble. The labor and employment subjects touched upon in sport law specializations can include discrimination, disability, hiring/firing, safety, and benefits.

    Title IX Law

    Title IX law involves violations of discrimination based on an athlete’s sex, gender identity, or gender expression. While Title IX covers a broad scope of industries, it has a heavy impact specifically on the world of sports.

    Title IX plays a large role in the jobs of sport marketers, athletic directors and coaches. For an athletic director, a knowledge of Title IX and equal treatment is vital when scheduling games and practice times, budgeting travel and equipment expenses, and training coaching staff.

    Common Title IX violations deal with sexual harassment, proper compensation, and an equal number of opportunities to play in the sports world.

    Tort Law

    Tort law involves the invasion of an individual’s civil rights causing injury, suffering, or loss. Sport law specializations provide sport management students with an understanding of negligence and intentional torts, including how they may affect future clients. Athletics can pose risks and may cause physical and mental harm to athletes. Because of this, tort cases including personal injury and battery lawsuits are a likely possibility.

    Risk Management

    Risk management is the process organizations go through to minimize the risk of harm and financial loss to them and their assets. Sport law helps students to understand the responsibilities sport organizations and facilities owe to consumers, spectators and employees.

    Who Benefits from a Specialization in Sport Law?

    A knowledge in sport law will be helpful, no matter what career path you take in sport management. Here are a few sport management career examples in the industry that would benefit from sport law knowledge:

    Athletic Director

    An athletic director is in charge of overseeing all athletic programs at a high school or college. This includes hiring coaches, budgeting expenses, and coordinating the season schedules. An understanding of sport law can be extremely beneficial to an athletic director who must adhere to the rules and regulations of organizations like the NCAA as well as state and/or amateur sport associations. It can also be helpful when looking over contracts and in following labor and employment law.

    Compliance Officer

    Compliance officers are often hired by sports organizations to make sure they are upholding ethical safety requirements and are protected against legal action. Compliance officers should be equipped with knowledge of the law, business management, HR skills, and risk management. Because they provide business and legal support, an understanding of sport law is necessary.

    Sports Agent

    Sports agents are the legal representatives of professional athletes and coaches during contract negotiations. Because of this, sports agents need to have a deep understanding of contract law and agency law. A majority of athletes come into the business in their late teens or early twenties, so having experienced and knowledgeable legal counsel is crucial. Agents are involved in negotiations with both teams and sponsors, and they are constantly looking for new talent.

    Successful sports agents should be thoroughly researched on the industry’s latest best practices while building and maintaining relationships with athletes. They must be able to understand their clients’ worth in the industry to vie for them in negotiations and also have an understanding of the policies and operations of the respective leagues and organizations. They must also have a working relationship with other agents and teams, and learn an athlete’s wants and needs to create the best opportunities for them.

    Sports Manager

    While many use the term ‘sports agent’ and ‘sports manager’ interchangeably, they are two different careers. A sports manager has only one client, either a player or a team, and they are focused on public perception rather than behind-the-scenes negotiations.

    A sports manager keeps close relationships with the media to make sure their player is in good standing with the public, manages any issues between the athlete and their team, and hires any personnel the player might need. Essentially, the sports manager is responsible for an athlete’s business dealings in order to allow the athlete to focus solely on their performance.

    Sports managers for teams and organizations have similar duties on a larger scale. They make sure the organization runs smoothly, manage staff assignments, and act as a spokesperson with the marketing team to ensure the organization maintains a good public image.

    Start Changing the Game With UF’s Online M.S. in Sport Management

    The online Master of Science in Sport Management from University of Florida equips students to take on complex financial and administrative challenges in the world of sport. The comprehensive sport management curriculum can help you develop your skills as a multi-talented professional who is ready to break into this field.

    UF is a sports powerhouse whose top-tier faculty have firsthand insight into every facet of the industry. UF’s large alumni population and student support services also offer highly valuable networking and professional development opportunities. With options like the Gator-to-Gator alumni social network and specialized career coaching with internationally recognized industry professionals, a UF graduate will start their sport career on the right foot.

    Through core courses that include Sport Marketing and Management and Leadership in Sport and electives such as Sport Sponsorship and Athlete Development, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the business of sport. You will also have the opportunity to pursue a graduate certificate in Sport Event Management or in a specialization in the area of Athlete Development, High Performance Coaching, Sport Law, or Director of Racquet Sports.

    Learn more by downloading a brochure, or start your application today.

  4. Your Career is a Marathon, not a Sprint: Q&A with Career Coach Erin Braddock

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    One of the key advantages available to students taking University of Florida’s     online M.S. in Sport Management program is the personalized attention they receive, including access to our expert career coaches and the ability to discuss their goals with industry veterans.

    Today, we wanted to share some of our coaches’ insights, so we talked with Erin Braddock about the advice she would give people who are just starting in the field.

    Erin Braddock is a sport management industry veteran, with eight years working with the Orlando Magic, where she was responsible for facilitating and managing corporate partnerships. She was instrumental in activating numerous multi-million dollar accounts and was responsible for securing the Magic’s first jersey sponsorship with Disney.

    Read her full Q&A below, or contact an Enrollment Specialist to learn more about our sport management master’s program or our career coaching services.

    Interested in learning more about careers? Download our comprehensive Sport Management Career Guide.

    Sport Management Career Q&A with Erin Braddock

    Let’s start by talking a little bit about your background. What’s one of the proudest moments of your career and how did you get to that moment?

    I feel like I took the scenic route in my career. I wasn’t 100% sure what I wanted to do coming out of school and hadn’t been exposed to a whole lot of sports entities coming from a small town in the Midwest.I worked for several companies including Disney, the Orlando Sentinel (Tribune) and Hilton Grand Vacations before I landed what I would have called my ideal job: at the Orlando Magic working in Corporate Partnerships.Hands down, my proudest moment in my career was helping to secure the first jersey sponsor at the Magic with Disney. My internship and my first two jobs were both with Disney, so it was fun to see things come full circle.

    What’s something you’ve learned in your career that surprised you?

    Your career is a marathon, not a sprint. I recall naively thinking I would hit this proverbial finish line when I landed my first job, and then all of schooling, internship experience, etc. would finally pay off. The reality was I hadn’t landed my dream job, and I think I felt a little disheartened it wasn’t what I had envisioned. Thankfully, it wasn’t the finish line. I was able to move along and still take key learnings from that opportunity, and I’ve been able to do the same with every other opportunity I had moving forward. Like a marathon, your career will likely be full of twists and turns, and you may choose to take a different route than you had previously thought you would. Early on in my career, I aspired to be a VP or C-level executive, but after getting married and having children I realized this wasn’t what would bring me the most joy. When I came to a fork in the road I chose to leave the professional sports world to jump into teaching and helping others as they navigate their way through their career marathon. It’s been very enjoyable and rewarding thus far.

    What advice would you give someone who’s just starting in your field, or has an interest in getting into it? What steps should they start thinking about taking?

    Start relationship building with people already in the industry, and actively seek out opportunities to get experience. A lot of people think they need to “network.” While this is true, networking should really be more focused on building relationships — not just a one-time exchange of business cards. When a position opens in the sports industry there are bound to be a lot of applicants, so how does your resume stand out? Often, it’s because of connections reaching out on your behalf. The sports industry is rather small at the end of the day. As the student, it’s important to remember you are the one driving the ball down the field and taking the initiative to seek out and foster these relationships. Although it may seem intimidating, everyone was in your shoes at one time and most are likely to assist where possible.

    What separates someone who’s “good” from someone who excels and surpasses the competition?

    You can teach skills, but you can’t teach character, dependability, passion, attitude, emotional intelligence, etc. Those who excel possess the intangibles and couple them with the “good” skillsets really knock it out of the ballpark so to speak.

    Start Changing the Game With UF’s Online M.S. in Sport Management

    The online Master of Science in Sport Management from University of Florida equips students to take on complex financial and administrative challenges in the world of sport. The comprehensive sport management curriculum can help you develop your skills as a multi-talented professional who is ready to break into this field.

    UF is a sports powerhouse whose top-tier faculty have firsthand insight into every facet of the industry. UF’s large alumni population and student support services also offer highly valuable networking and professional development opportunities. With options like the Gator-to-Gator alumni social network and specialized career coaching with internationally recognized industry professionals, a UF graduate will start their sport career on the right foot.

    Through core courses that include Sport Marketing and Management and Leadership in Sport and electives such as Sport Sponsorship and Athlete Development, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the business of sport. You will also have the opportunity to pursue a graduate certificate in Sport Event Management or in a specialization in the area of Athlete Development, High Performance Coaching, Sport Law, or Director of Racquet Sports.

    Learn more by downloading a brochure, or start your application today.

  5. How UF Athletics Entered the Top Ten: Q&A with Career Coach Jeremy Foley

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    sport management career coach Jeremy FoleyBehind every perfectly executed play, behind every victory and behind every post-victory celebration is a story about transforming potential. The players and teams that win games spend countless hours in practice, elevating their performance to the absolute best it can be. The organizations that promote and support them must also transform themselves, by hiring and supporting strong decision makers and leaders.

    Related Content: UF Sport Management Career Guide

    The same is true for entire college athletics franchises. None of the campus-wide pride, the networks of alumni or the brand recognition would be possible without years, often decades, of transformation.

    It should come as no surprise, then, that the University of Florida’s story is also one of incredible transformation.

    The Gator Nation Rises: Interview with UF Sport Career Coach Jeremy Foley

    For more than a decade through the 1960s and 70s, the Florida Gators’ record was inconsistent, often falling below 50% win rates for their seasons, and only a handful of season win rates above 80%. The Gator journey, however, resulted in a transformation that led to incredible success through the 90s and beyond, with win rates often exceeding 80% and 90%.

    Our athletics program has carried that momentum through to today, and shared that success across multiple sports— in fact, ours is the only program that has achieved the top 10 in each of the past 33 National All-Sport Standings.

    We spoke with UF career coach and Athletic Director Emeritus Jeremy Foley to get his perspective on how this transformation took place, and to talk about his long-running sport management career, which began as an internship with the UF ticket office.

    “I was part of a journey with an athletic program — one that had only pockets of true success 40 years ago — that is now a top 10 program in the country,” Foley said. “If you have a conversation about the top athletic programs today, you have to include University of Florida, and I’m proud to have been a part of that.”

    1. Can you talk about what drew you to University of Florida? What about it made you happy to stay?

    To be honest, I really just enjoyed the work, and I was happy here.

    That’s the thing about this industry. It’s a lot of hard work and you have to put in the time, so it better be something you love. If you don’t love what you do, you’re going to be miserable. Even when I was an intern, I enjoyed coming to work every day. I enjoyed being in the office, and I enjoyed being around the people here.

    2. Did you have a vision for what you wanted out of your career when you started? Has your career path changed from what you initially thought? If so, how?

    I knew I wanted to be involved in sports, but I didn’t have a specific plan; I didn’t think about being an athletic director when I first started. I just kept doing what I enjoyed, and I let my career take me wherever it made sense. One of the things I will say is that my career went by incredibly fast because of how much I loved doing what I was doing and the great people I got to work with.

    3. Who do you look up to for inspiration? Who are some of the people who have influenced your career path?

    It’s hard to think of one person who has inspired me because so many people influenced my perspective. One of the most important things that I focused on when I was younger was how leaders made decisions. What I learned from that was immensely valuable. As a leader, you have to make a lot of tough decisions, and you have to hold yourself accountable for them.

    4. What is the difference between an average leader and a great leader?

    You need a thick skin, you have to be able to make decisions and you have to be able to own them. Being an excellent leader isn’t about avoiding failure— if you never fail, it means you always played it safe and always lived toward the middle. If you have a willingness to fail sometimes, you can achieve amazing things.

    What I learned from watching great leaders is that you have to be able to learn from failure and apply those lessons to the next tough decision.

    I’ve worked with some excellent coaches, and I think that their fanatical drive for success is what makes them different. They’re not just concerned with succeeding once but replicating their success over a period of time.

    5. What does success mean for you? Has your definition of success changed over time?

    Some people think success is only about winning games, but, for me, success is more than that. Winning is still important, but how you win and your consistency in winning are equally important. You can’t be successful if you’re not doing things the right way or if you’re not treating people right.

    You can’t be successful if you don’t have high ethical standards, and, on a college campus, you can’t be successful if you put yourself or one program ahead of the rest of the university. Valuing all sports is also part of success. There are colleges where men’s coaches don’t like women’s coaches; I don’t think that’s success.

    You also have to do it over a period of time. You have to be able to win as well as do all the stuff I just talked about. And you have to be able to duplicate it. If you’re going to be successful in athletics, you can’t just do it once.

    That doesn’t mean you win every game. But success is about having people look at you and your programs collectively and recognizing that the entire culture is built on consistently achieving excellence.

    6. What are some of the biggest challenges sport management professionals face today?

    It’s an incredibly competitive field these days. When I wanted to get into sports, people told me to get a master’s degree in sports administration, and there were two schools that offered it. Now, there’s a lot more and many more options. There’s a lot of people like myself who get in it and they don’t like to leave, because you’re on a roller coaster in a really good way.

    People also really need to understand the time demands of the field. Sports get played on nights, weekends and over the holidays. As my career moved forward, as I moved up, I got busier and busier. People really need to understand that going in.

    The world is also changing a lot. Not everyone wants to attend games in-person. There’s an entire culture around watching them on TV. People need to be aware of those shifts and how to be successful as the habits of fans change.

    7. What’s one piece of advice you’d give to someone just starting out?

    Don’t get discouraged. There are challenges, sure, but the rewards from doing something you love and seeing your hard work pay off outweigh the risks. The other big thing is that you have to develop an outstanding work ethic. If you think you already have a great work ethic, push yourself harder.

    The best coaches I met were the ones that worked harder than anyone else. They made hundreds of recruiting trips, phone calls and they made themselves the hardest working people anyone around them knew.

    8. What is the deadliest sin for sport management professionals?

    The deadliest sin is trying to win at all costs. If you’re involved in that kind of thing at any level or you think the ends always justify the means, in the world we live in today, you’re done. It goes back to what I said before about success. These days, you need to do the job with honesty and integrity. You have to stay true to your values and what you really stand for.

    Start Changing the Game With UF’s Online M.S. in Sport Management

    The online Master of Science in Sport Management from University of Florida equips students to take on complex financial and administrative challenges in the world of sport. The comprehensive sport management curriculum can help you develop your skills as a multi-talented professional who is ready to break into this field.

    UF is a sports powerhouse whose top-tier faculty have firsthand insight into every facet of the industry. UF’s large alumni population and student support services also offer highly valuable networking and professional development opportunities. With options like the Gator-to-Gator alumni social network and specialized career coaching with internationally recognized industry professionals, a UF graduate will start their sport career on the right foot.

    Through core courses that include Sport Marketing and Management and Leadership in Sport and electives such as Sport Sponsorship and Athlete Development, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the business of sport. You will also have the opportunity to pursue a graduate certificate in Sport Event Management or in a specialization in the area of Athlete Development, High Performance Coaching, Sport Law, or Director of Racquet Sports.

    Learn more by downloading a brochure, or start your application today.

  6. The University of Florida Online Master’s in Sport Management Program Forms Partnership with PAADS

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    The University of Florida’s online Master of Science (MS) in Sport Management program, in a newly formed partnership with the Professional Association of Athlete Development Specialists (PAADS), is proud to offer focused coursework that prepares students to become experts in both athlete performance and athlete development.
    paads partnership
    As the nation’s first PAADS-approved academic degree program, the MS in Sport Management curriculum will include the opportunity for students to complete a specialization in elite athlete performance and athlete development. The specialization’s required courses examine both the psychological and physiological elements of performance training, offering both theoretical and practical insight into the creation of effective performance enhancement on the field or court along with the development of the overall well-being of the athlete. Students learn to work with athletes on an individual, case-by-case basis, analyzing their emotional, psychological, physical, and overall well-being. The specialization also includes specialized coursework in other, personal facets of athlete support, including helping athletes develop character and life skills, refine their media interactions, and manage their career development and personal finances.

    After completing the athlete performance and development courses, students will have met the academic requirements necessary to receive a Professional Level Athlete Development Specialist certificate through PAADS.

    Specializations Toward PAADS Certificate

    “This master’s degree is the first of its kind in the United States” stated Professor Michael Sagas who serves as chairman of the Department of Sport Management at the University of Florida.

    “The curriculum allows students to receive an excellent sport business management foundation while also allowing for the ability to obtain specialized training in elite athlete performance, athlete human development, and overall athlete development from the youth to professional level. The program is uniquely positioned with PAADS as a partner and will utilize faculty expertise from many of the PAADS partner organizations, world renown sport psychologists, elite coaches, and athlete character development experts.”

    “PAADS is pleased to partner with the University of Florida in offering this program, which will further the PAADS mission of advancing the profession of athlete development specialists.” said Kathleen Stroia, Chair of the PAADS Board of Directors.

    “The education provided though this specialized coursework will enable graduates of the program to make valuable contributions in maximizing the potential and overall well-being of athletes, both on and off the field of play.”

    This new specialization provides a valuable, practical course of study for any students looking to work directly with athletes at any level of the sport industry, and help them reach their full potential on the field and in life. For more information about the specialization requirements and the online Master of Science in Sport Management program, please visit https://sm.hhp.ufl.edu.

    About PAADS

    The Professional Association of Athlete Development Specialists (PAADS) is the global leader in the profession of athlete development. PAADS is a non-profit, membership association of professionals who help athletes maximize their potential and overall well-being. Through inter-sport collaboration, PAADS establishes standards to advance the athlete development profession. The Global Partners of PAADS include: ATP World Tour (ATP), Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), Major League Baseball (MLB), National Basketball Association (NBA), National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), National Football League (NFL), National Rugby League (NRL), United States Olympic Committee (USOC), United States Tennis Association (USTA), Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). For more information on PAADS, please visit www.PAADS.org.

    Press Contact

    Michael Sagas
    Professor and Chair
    Department of Sport Management

    Msagas@ufl.edu
    352-294-1640

    Start Changing the Game With UF’s Online M.S. in Sport Management

    The online Master of Science in Sport Management from University of Florida equips students to take on complex financial and administrative challenges in the world of sport. The comprehensive sport management curriculum can help you develop your skills as a multi-talented professional who is ready to break into this field.

    UF is a sports powerhouse whose top-tier faculty have firsthand insight into every facet of the industry. UF’s large alumni population and student support services also offer highly valuable networking and professional development opportunities. With options like the Gator-to-Gator alumni social network and specialized career coaching with internationally recognized industry professionals, a UF graduate will start their sport career on the right foot.

    Through core courses that include Sport Marketing and Management and Leadership in Sport and electives such as Sport Sponsorship and Athlete Development, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the business of sport. You will also have the opportunity to pursue a graduate certificate in Sport Event Management or in a specialization in the area of Athlete Development, High Performance Coaching, Sport Law, or Director of Racquet Sports.

    Learn more by downloading a brochure, or start your application today.