Students who want to become certified athletic trainers must earn a graduate degree from an accredited athletic training program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE). Students will graduate with a Master of Science in Athletic Training and be eligible to sit for the Board of Certification examination.

The Athletic Training (AT) Program is designed to prepare students for a professional entry-level healthcare career in the athletic training profession. This program, specifically designed to meet national and state licensure requirements, is a two-year master's level program (49 credit hours) that combines classroom and clinical education teaching/learning strategies. 

The Master of Science in Athletic Training (MSAT) degree is offered through the UWF Department of Movement Sciences and Health (MSH). The professional preparation courses in this program encompass the athletic training professional domains. The overall objectives of the Athletic Training Program are to instruct, evaluate, and provide hands-on experience for students in the following domains:

1. Risk Reduction, Wellness, and Health Literacy​ - Students promote healthy lifestyle behaviors with effective education and communication to enhance wellness and minimize the risk of injury and illness. 
2. Assessment, Evaluation, and Diagnosis - Students implement systematic, evidence-based assessments and evaluations to formulate valid clinical diagnoses and differential diagnoses to determine a patient’s plan of care.
3. Critical Incident Management - Students integrate best practices in immediate and emergency care for optimal outcomes.
4. Therapeutic Intervention - Students rehabilitate individuals with a health condition (i.e., injury, illness, general medical condition) with the goal of achieving optimal activity and participation levels based on core concepts (i.e., fundamental knowledge and skillsets) using the applications of therapeutic exercise, modality devices, and manual techniques.
5. Healthcare Administration & Professional Responsibilities - Students integrate best practices in policy construction and implementation, documentation and basic business practices to promote optimal patient care and employee well-being.

AT students are educated in cognitive and psychomotor skills related to recognition, treatment, and rehabilitation of injuries and illnesses involving the physically active as well as risk management, health care administration, pharmacology, diagnostic imaging, and medical ethics and legal issues. In addition to the didactic courses, students are required to complete a minimum number of clinical education hours in a variety of settings.

Admission Requirements

The application process for the UWF Master of Science in Athletic Training consists of two steps, application through ATCAS (the Athletic Training Centralized Application Service) and application to the UWF Graduate School.

In addition to the University graduate admission requirements described in the Admissions section of the catalog, the department bases decisions for regular admission on a holistic review of credentials in which the following criteria are used to assess the potential success of each applicant:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
• A minimum of 3.00 cumulative grade point average (GPA) and a grade of "C" or better on all prerequisite courses. The following prerequisite coursework ("C" grade or higher) is required for admission:
  • Anatomy/Physiology with lab - 2 courses
  • Biology with lab - 1 course
  • Physics - 1 course
  • Biomechanics - 1 course
  • Chemistry - 1 course
  • Exercise Physiology - 1 course
  • Nutrition - 1 course
  • Psychology - 1 course
  • Statistics - 1 course
• Preferred coursework: 
  • Principles of Athletic Training or equivalent - 1 course
  • Functional Kinesiology - 1 course
• 50 hours of observation under a licensed and certified athletic trainer
• Two (2) letters of recommendation - one letter should be from a practicing athletic trainer
• A resume/curriculum vitae
• Letter of Intent for Athletic Training

Progression Requirements

To matriculate through the MSAT program, students must earn a grade of “B” or better in all courses. Any course grade below this may require remediation or a course retake which will delay progression through the MSAT program and graduation. Any course grade below a “B” will be considered a failure. A student will not be able to advance in the curricular sequence until the course is successfully repeated at a "B" or better. A student who has had two or more course failures in the MSAT program will be dismissed from the program. The MSAT Program will follow the UKCOH Dismissal Policy outlined in Appendix A for both Academic and Behavioral Performance. Additionally, students must follow all UWF Graduate School and UWF MSAT program policies outlined in the UWF MSAT Student Handbook.  

Program Dismissal

Failure to maintain the academic and professional standards as specified in the MSAT Student Handbook may result in dismissal from the program.

Required Courses: (49 credits)