Exercise and Sports Science

If you're passionate about wellness and physical fitness, La Roche University provides a pathway for you to become a skilled health care provider.

The Exercise and Sports Science program offers a unique blend of basic sciences and practical application. Students explore a variety of topics including exercise physiology, motor learning, biomechanics, psychology, strength and conditioning, nutrition and research methods.

Students who complete the program learn how to perform comprehensive health assessments and prescribe exercise to populations that include athletes, healthy individuals and the chronically ill.

The major also includes laboratory classes, elective courses and independent study opportunities for you to explore various sub-disciplines in the exercise and sports science field.

Expert Faculty

Our diverse faculty consists of health care providers with various backgrounds, including a certified exercise physiologist, a personal trainer and a practicing chiropractor.

Real-World Opportunities

You’ll have the opportunity to prescribe exercise to La Roche’s own athletes, act as a strength coach and work directly with an athletic trainer from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC).

By utilizing our Exercise Science Lab, you’ll gain hands-on experience in metabolic analysis, body composition analysis and cardiac screening analysis. The lab features a range of equipment including:

• Worx Metabolic Complete Kit capable of measuring electromyography, electrocardiogram, maximum oxygen consumption levels, pulmonary function and metabolic rate
• A Trackmaster treadmill
• A Monark 839E Cycle Ergometer
• Stethoscopes and blood pressure cuff kits 
• Geniometers and Gulick measuring tapes

Convenient Location

La Roche is located just minutes from a major metropolitan area in downtown Pittsburgh. You’ll be nearby to the city’s world-class medical centers such as UPMC and Allegheny Health Network, as well as various local hospitals and privately owned gyms and practices.

What Can You Do With Your Degree?

Career opportunities include:

• Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)
• Health/Fitness Specialist (HFS)
• Exercise scientist
• Exercise physiologist
• Sport scientist
• Clinical Exercise Physiologist (CEP)

The major also offers exceptional preparation for graduate programs in the following disciplines:

• Exercise Science
• Clinical Exercise Physiology
• Biomechanics
• Motor Learning
• Motor Development
• Physical Education
• Sports Psychology
• Kinesiology
• Sport Performance

Scholarships

In addition to La Roche’s merit-based scholarships, we offer annual and endowed scholarships, thanks to our generous donors. 

The John Sorbara Memorial Scholarship

This endowed scholarship was created in memory of the late John Sorbara, a La Roche student who passed away in 2004.

• Applicants must be a currently enrolled full-time undergraduate student in a health-science program at La Roche
• Must be a sophomore, junior or senior (having completed at least 30 undergraduate credits)
• Students majoring in nursing or radiologic technology are ineligible
• Applicants must have a minimum 3.0 GPA and remain in good academic standing during the award term
• First preference will be given to a student majoring in exercise and sports science, pursuing the athletic training program or majoring in health sciences
• Essay and two letters of recommendation are required
• Renewable award

Apply for Scholarship