Exercise and Wellness Master's Degree Program

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**Application Deadline – January 15, 2009

The deadline for admission in August 2008 has passed. The next application deadline is January 15, 2009.

Contact:

Dr. Kathy Campbell, Program Director
Phone: (480) 727-1569
E-mail: KDCampbell@asu.edu

Barbara Mattingly
Phone: (480) 727-1959
E-Mail: mattingl@asu.ed

The Department of Exercise and Wellness at Arizona State University's Polytechnic campus is committed to preparing outstanding scholars and professionals in the areas of fitness leadership and management as well as in health and wellness promotion. The Department of Exercise and Wellness at ASU Polytechnic offers the only degree program in Arizona specifically designed to prepare students for such careers. The Master's Degree Program in Exercise and Wellness offers unique opportunities for those interested in becoming scholarly professionals and contributors to public health through the delivery of effective exercise and wellness programs to all segments of society.

Who Should Apply?
Admission Criteria
Deficiencies
How To Get A Mentor
The Program of Study
Available Classes
Graduate Student Resources
FAQ

Overview

Potential students must have a designated mentor in order to be accepted into the MS program. All applicants are required to complete a statement of interest describing their career goals and research/professional interests. A minimum of thirty (30) credit hours of graduate courses are required to complete the MS degree. The student's program of study is separated into three course work areas: Research Courses, Exercise and Wellness Concentration Courses and Elective Courses.

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Who Should Apply?

Professionals in education, commercial fitness and wellness, worksite or corporate health promotion, and personal training who are interested in an advanced training in exercise and wellness as well as those interested in advanced graduate study in physical activity and chronic disease should consider the program.

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Admission Criteria
Admission to the M.S. degree program is based on a number of factors including: GPA, GRE scores, letters of recommendation, statement of career/research interests and the availability of a mentor with matching interests.

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Deficiencies
Students who do not have undergraduate credit for the basic courses required for a B.S. degree in Exercise and Wellness can be admitted with deficiencies. Deficiencies are determined upon admission and students will be provided with a list of courses that must be completed before graduation. These courses are not considered part of the graduate program of study. Sometimes a graduate class can be taken to substitute for a UG deficiency on a case-by-case basis. The general courses you would be expected to have at the UG level are: Anatomy, Physiology, Physiological Foundations of Exercise, Kinesiological Foundations of Exercise, Exercise Testing, Exercise Prescription, Human Nutrition, Stress Management, Health Behavior Change and a Basic Computer/Statistics course. (For more information about deficiencies, contact the M.S. Program Coordinator).

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How to get a Mentor
Look over the research interests of the faculty mentors in our program. You are encouraged to contact potential mentors directly via email. Indicate your scholarly interests in your letter of intent and indicate what mentors seem to "match" these interests. You should designate at least two potential mentors. Note, not all mentors are available to take a new student each year.

• Master's degree mentors list

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The Program of Study
The basic program of study includes a total of 30 semester hours of required coursework including, 12-15 semester hours of research coursework (Research Methods, Research Statistics, Research Seminar and Thesis) and 15-18 semester hours of Exercise and Wellness concentration courses. The thesis is considered a final integrative experience of the Exercise and Wellness degree. It involves conducting research that is guided by a recognized research paradigm (e.g., scientific, interpretive) and producing a scholarly report of the process and results. An Exercise and Wellness Department mentor and two other committee members help with this process. A final oral examination pertaining to the thesis is required. (More information about the thesis and a graduation timeline is available from your mentor.)

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Available Classes

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FAQ
Q) What kind of work is involved in our Program?

A) The Department of Exercise and Wellness at Arizona State University-Polytechnic is committed to preparing outstanding scholars and professionals in the areas of fitness leadership and management as well as in health and wellness promotion. The Master's Degree Program in Exercise and Wellness offers unique opportunities for those interested in becoming scholarly professionals and contributors to public health through the delivery of effective exercise and wellness programs to all segments of society.

What this means is that you will be asked to do scholarly work with a mentor in the area of research that interests you. Potential students must have a designated mentor in order to be accepted into the MS program. All applicants are required to complete a statement of interest when applying describing their career goals and research/professional interests. A minimum of thirty (30) credit hours of graduate courses are required to complete the MS degree. The student's program of study is separated into Research Courses and Exercise and Wellness Concentration Courses.

To get a mentor you need to look over the research interests of the faculty mentors in our program. You are encouraged to contact potential mentors directly via email. Indicate your scholarly interests in your letter of intent and indicate what mentors seem to "match" these interests. You should designate at least 2 potential mentors. Note, not all mentors are available to take a new student each year.

Q) What kind of prerequisites would I need before entering a program such as yours? I read about entering with "deficiencies" and would like more information about the course work I may have to make up.

A) The basic UG deficiencies are decided officially AFTER you are accepted-- when I look carefully at your UG transcripts. However, you can be accepted with deficiencies ... which may mean that would take a little longer to graduate or that you will have to take a few more classes at a time. Sometimes... a grad class can be taken to substitute for a UG deficiency on a case by case basis. The general courses you would be expected to have at the UG level are: BIO 201 Anatomy, BIO 202 Physiology, EXW 315 Physiological Foundations, EXW 340 Kinesiological Foundations, EXW 420 Exercise Testing, EXW 425 Exercise Prescription, NTR 241 Human Nutrition, Stress Management, some sort of Health Psychology/Health Behavior Change and some sort of Basic Computer/Statistics course.

Q) I would like to learn a little bit about the courses themselves (i.e. typical class size, hands on/ practical learning vs. lectures etc).

A) Graduate level courses are primarily theory courses and research seminars unless of course you take a laboratory course... such as Ex. Phys lab techniques. Class size is about 6-15 students. Your program of study is very flexible and so you may opt for taking internships and doing research (hands on) with faculty in their laboratory. You would be expected to complete a research thesis... which means that a big chunk of your time is doing research (i.e., HANDS ON).

Potential courses include: Research Methods, Research Statistics, Qualitative Research Methods, Research Seminar in EXW, Nutrition and Wellness, Applied Exercise & Wellness Laboratory Techniques, Sports Conditioning, Physiology of Physical Activity and Chronic Disease, Exercise Obesity and Health, Health Promotion, Fitness/ Wellness Management, Teaching Lifetime Fitness, Internship, Reading and Conference, Independent Research, Psychosocial and Stress Issues in Health and Wellness, Health Program Evaluation, Physical Activity and Public Health, Aging and Physical Activity, Adv. Exercise Prescription, Health Behavior Change, Technology in Public Health and Wellness, AND Epidemiology-- Also students may opt for other courses in Business, Nutrition, Psychology, Gerontology or Nursing etc.

Q) How competitive is your program?  How do I get an assistantship?

A) We receive about 30-40 applications for the MS degree each year. We accept about 10-12 students each year. Of those we only offer assistantships to 2 students. Assistantships are for teaching activity classes or for helping with the programs at the recreation center. Priority for assistantships goes to students in the following order: Doctoral students, 2nd year MS students, and 1st year MS students with NO deficiencies, with experience teaching what we need and those with excellent GRE and GPA scores. So getting an assistantship is very competitive. Copy and submit the assistantship form with your application.

Q) How do I find out about financial aid?

A) Go to the ASU financial aid Web page... http://www.asu.edu/graduate/financial/index.htm

Q) What about housing? 

A) ASU Polytechnic has many unique options for housing, especially for grad students.  There are several houses available for students to rent at a very low cost.  Check this out... It saves time, gas and facilitates a great learning environment for full time students.  See their Web page http://www.poly.asu.edu/housing/generalinfo/eligible.html

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