Exercise Science
Discover the power to transform lives through Valpo’s exercise science program, where a blend of expert mentorship and real-world experiences prepares you to optimize health and enhance human performance.
Valpo’s exercise science program equips you with the skills and knowledge to thrive in a rapidly evolving field. Through courses like Exercise Physiology, Sports Nutrition, and Motor Learning, you’ll dive deep into human performance. In other courses like Fitness Assessment and Exercise Prescription, you’ll learn to design and implement fitness programs based on real-world needs. These and other specialized courses integrated into the curriculum are designed to prepare you for earning nationally recognized certifications that employers value, including certified strength coach and sports nutrition specialist.
Whether your goal is to work as a strength coach or wellness coordinator or to enter advanced healthcare roles like physical therapy, our program offers two unique concentrations, illuminating your unique path to a bright future:
• Focusing on fitness training, rehabilitation, and sports performance, the fitness and human performance concentration offers pathways to careers in personal training, strength conditioning, and more.
• The pre-health professions concentration prepares you for diverse careers in health and fitness while laying the groundwork for advanced education in allied health fields, such as occupational therapy, physical therapy, athletic training, physician assistant studies, clinical exercise physiology, and chiropractic care.
100% of exercise science students engage in hands-on learning experiences
$58,160 median annual salary*
*According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024 report.
CAREER PATHS
With a solid foundation from Valpo, your passion for exercise science can open doors to many different careers. Many of our graduates go on to pursue advanced degrees in fields like occupational therapy, physical therapy, or clinical exercise physiology, while others are transforming lives in careers like:
• Cardiac Rehabilitation Specialist
• Community Health Educator
• Corporate Wellness Specialist
• Health and Wellness Coach
• Nutrition and Wellness Consultant
• Personal Trainer
• Sports Performance Specialist
• Strength and Conditioning Coach
Visit valpo.edu/alumni-success to learn more.
EXPERT MENTORSHIP
At Valpo, you’re more than a student — you’re part of a community that genuinely cares about your success. With small class sizes, you’ll form meaningful connections with professors who bring both academic expertise and real-world experience in exercise science, biomechanics, sports medicine, and beyond. Our faculty are mentors dedicated to helping you define and achieve your goals. They’ll guide you through challenging coursework like Research Methods in Kinesiology and Sport, where you’ll design and execute your own studies, and Advanced Physiology of Exercise, where you’ll explore the body’s response to high-performance activity. Professors also assist with career preparation — from planning your internships to helping you earn certifications to providing unique networking opportunities through their academic connections — ensuring you graduate with confidence and a clear path forward.
EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
At Valpo, learning in the exercise science program is active, practical, and career-focused. From your first year, you’ll engage in hands-on activities that connect classroom concepts to real-world applications. You’ll practice resting and exercise heart rate and blood pressure, conduct basic fitness assessments, measure flexibility and muscular strength, analyze simple movement patterns, perform body composition measurements, and lead peer warm-up and stretching activities. You’ll also gain experience collecting and interpreting basic physiological data during maximal and submaximal exercise tests and functional fitness assessments.
“Valpo’s exercise science program has prepared me well for my future as an aspiring physical therapist. The classes align perfectly with what graduate schools require, and the hands-on experiences, like my internship, have been invaluable. I’ve had incredible mentors who not only guided me academically but also supported me emotionally every step of the way. The professors here genuinely care, and that has made all the difference in my journey.”
SARA STRAUSS ’25
MAJOR: Exercise Science
SCHOLARSHIPS AND AWARDS
For more information on financial aid, visit valpo.edu/aid.
a Beacon
students of any race, color, national or ethnic origin, age, gender, disability, sexual orientation, or religion. (For a full statement, see valpo.edu .)
Take the next step toward your bright future by visiting valpo.edu/exercise-science or by scanning the QR code.
Valparaiso University Valparaiso, IN 46383 web: valpo.edu email: undergrad.admission@valpo.edu
