2025/26 entry Applications also open for 2024/25
DSportExSci Professional Doctorate in Applied Sport and Exercise Science | Part-time
About this course
LJMU's Professional Doctorate in Applied Sport and Exercise Science enables you to create and interpret new knowledge associated with your own professional practice.
- The School of Sport and Exercise Sciences is ranked 6th for Sports Science (QS World University Rankings 2024)
- Designed to support the creation and interpretation of new professional practice in your own area
- Enjoy high quality supervision on this programme which is underpinned by high-grade research
- Go on to work with elite athletes or take up a position in physical activity promotion, education, teaching or research
- Work closely with academic staff who are leaders in their research field and experts in training
Applied Sport and Exercise Science is an established discipline with growing possibilities for qualified professionals.
Opportunities for professional training at doctoral level are increasingly important for vocational careers within sport and exercise. This doctorate facilitates the creation and interpretation of new professional knowledge.
To obtain the award you will need to complete a related Masters programme or MPhil and spend two or more years acquiring a range of supervised skills connected with applied research.
The programme is underpinned by a strong focus on equipping future Applied Sport and Exercise Scientists for a range of professional scenarios associated with problem solving.
You will develop your skills as a research practitioner, more specifically the ability to complete research projects in the real world. You will also demonstrate that you have the generic professional skills required to be an Applied Sport and Exercise Scientist through your own work-based learning experiences, taught sessions on the programme and extensive supervision.
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Matthew's story
Matthew was drawn to the Doctorate in Sport and Exercise Sciences thanks to the balance it strikes between the applied nature of the subject and its research elements.
I have really enjoyed ...
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Go on a tour of the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences
Fees and funding
There are many ways to fund postgraduate study for home and international students
Fees
The fees quoted at the top of this page cover registration, tuition, supervision, assessment and examinations as well as:
- library membership with access to printed, multimedia and digital resources
- access to programme-appropriate software
- library and student IT support
- free on-campus wifi via eduroam
Additional costs
Although not all of the following are compulsory/relevant, you should keep in mind the costs of:
- accommodation and living expenditure
- books (should you wish to have your own copies)
- printing, photocopying and stationery
- PC/laptop (should you prefer to purchase your own for independent study and online learning activities)
- mobile phone/tablet (to access online services)
- field trips (travel and activity costs)
- placements (travel expenses and living costs)
- student visas (international students only)
- study abroad opportunities (travel costs, accommodation, visas and immunisations)
- academic conferences (travel costs)
- professional-body membership
- graduation (gown hire etc)
Funding
There are many ways to fund postgraduate study for home and international students. From loans to International Scholarships and subject-specific funding, you’ll find all of the information you need on our specialist postgraduate funding pages.
Please be aware that the UK’s departure from the EU may affect your tuition fees. Learn more about your fee status and which tuition fees are relevant to you.
Employability
Further your career prospects
LJMU has an excellent employability record with 96% (HESA 2018) of our postgraduates in work or further study six months after graduation. Our applied learning techniques and strong industry connections ensure our students are fully prepared for the workplace on graduation and understand how to apply their knowledge in a real world context.
Employment opportunities in Applied Sport and Exercise Science have become increasingly professionalised in recent years. As a consequence there is a need for individuals to demonstrate high level professional and personal skills. A growing number of Applied Sport and Exercise Science graduates work in applied settings as practitioners and promoters, as well as taking employment in Applied Sport and Exercise Science education, teaching and research positions.
Staff on the course have existing experience of supervised trainees working in the Applied Sport and Exercise Science service domain.
The student experience
Discover life as a postgraduate student at LJMU.
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Course modules
Discover the building blocks of your programme
Your programme is made up of a number of core modules which are part of the course framework. Some programmes also have optional modules that can be selected to enhance your learning in certain areas and many feature a dissertation, extended report or research project to demonstrate your advanced learning.
Core modules
Professional Planning Training in Sport and Exercise Science
30 credits
This short module is intended to introduce the programme and support you in self audit and planning professional research activity. It aims to:
- enable you to critically evaluate your current status with respect to relevant competencies for Applied Sport and Exercise Scientists
- provide evidence of a systematic plan for your own development, more specifically a plan relating to the development of your professional practice
Sport and Exercise Science Professional Practice
270 credits
This module comprises 2,100 of the course's 2,700 work-based activity hours. It aims to capture the competencies associated with applied research:
• professional skills and standards important for research • strategies to support the completion of independent research projects • key themes in disseminating applied research
Reflection in Sport and Exercise Science
60 credits
This module prepares you for the future by closing the loop on your research training, reflecting on your original plan and experiences and looking towards future practice. The module lets you demonstrate your:
- overall professional skills development
- ability to critically analyse, reflect and meta-reflect on your development and the decisions and choices you have made during training
Teaching
An insight into teaching on your course
Study hours
You will be required to attend the University for five days of staff-supported learning in the first five months of the course (January to May). A development day following this initial period will be held approximately every eight weeks. The remaining delivery will largely be focused upon individually negotiated contact sessions with your supervisor.
Teaching methods
The programme is designed around individual professional requirements to ensure all students receive the tailored, specific support that best facilitates their own professional development.
Applied learning
Staff have extensive networks with numerous elite and professional sporting and exercise organisations providing our students with research and placement opportunities. We have contacts in: professional UK and European football, cricket and rugby teams; Olympic sports and UK institutes of sport; local councils; hospitals and clinics.
Assessment
How learning is monitored on your programme
To cater for the wide-ranging content of our courses and the varied learning preferences of our students, we offer a range of assessment methods on each programme.
Assessment on this course includes: a professional training audit, a systematic review, scientific and professional reports, reflections and a viva voce exam at the end of the programme.
Course tutors
Our staff are committed to the highest standards of teaching and learning
Dr Simon Roberts
Programme Leader
Dr Roberts joined LJMU in 2004. In 2014 he was conferred as a Reader in Sport and Exercise Pedagogy. He has held a number of research positions within the university, such as being a member of the Faculty Research Degrees Committee and the University Degrees Committee. Dr Roberts' research interests are pragmatic and applied in professional contexts. His research crosses traditional sub-discipline boundaries. He is more interested in solving the question than adhering to a specific scientific discipline. In 2020 Simon was appointed as a Justice of the Peace and currently sits on the criminal bench of the Merseyside Magistrates court.
The most enjoyable aspect of my role is watching how emergent postgraduate student research ideas translate into credible, applied solutions that make a real difference in practice.
School facilities
What you can expect from your School
The programme is delivered in the City Campus, in the £28 million Tom Reilly Building, which provides world-class sport and exercise science facilities. These include: 12-lead ECG and cardiopulmonary stress exercise testing equipment, ultrasound machines, echocardiography and vascular physiology. The School also houses 800m2 of exercise physiology laboratory space and 100 m2 of molecular/biochemistry laboratory space.
Entry requirements
You will need:
Qualification requirements
Postgraduate degree (required for research programmes)
- a sport science related Masters or an appropriate MPhil award in a sport science related area
International requirements
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IELTS
- IELTS 7.0 (minimum of 6.5 in each component)
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Other international requirements
- If you have applied to study a full-time taught Masters, MRes, MPhil or PhD at LJMU, you should check if you require an Academic Technology Approval Scheme or ATAS certificate
- International students entering on a Tier 4 visa cannot study part-time
Further information
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Extra Requirements
The Professional Doctorate in Applied Sport and Exercise Science is not eligible for the LJMU Alumni Award if the 20% discount has already been used for an alternative LJMU programme
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RPL
- RPL is accepted on this course
Application and selection
Securing your place at LJMU
To apply for this programme, you are required to complete an LJMU online application form. You will need to provide details of previous qualifications and a personal statement outlining why you wish to study this programme.
You should also provide two programme relevant references, at least one of which must be an academic reference.
The University reserves the right to withdraw or make alterations to a course and facilities if necessary; this may be because such changes are deemed to be beneficial to students, are minor in nature and unlikely to impact negatively upon students or become necessary due to circumstances beyond the control of the University. Where this does happen, the University operates a policy of consultation, advice and support to all enrolled students affected by the proposed change to their course or module.