Performance Analysis and Coaching Science
Performance analysis and coaching science are disciplines that sit at the intersection of sports science, psychology, and the practical craft of developing athletes and teams. Performance analysis uses video, data, and statistical methods to examine how athletes and teams actually perform, identifying patterns, strengths and weaknesses that are invisible to the naked eye in real time. Coaching science provides the theoretical and practical frameworks for translating that analysis into improved performance, drawing on exercise physiology, sport psychology, pedagogy and coaching practice.
At the University of Derby this three-year programme includes a foundation year option for students who need additional preparation before the main curriculum, and includes a sandwich year, a year abroad, and a work placement, giving you substantial professional and international experience alongside your academic study. You will develop specialist skills in both performance analysis and coaching, learning to use the analytical tools and technologies that professional sports organisations depend on, and developing the coaching knowledge and communication skills needed to work effectively with athletes at all levels. The combination is designed to prepare you for specialist roles in elite sport and the growing performance analytics industry.
Graduates work in professional sports clubs, national governing bodies, elite academies, university sports programmes, and performance analysis companies as performance analysts, assistant coaches, sports scientists, and video analysts. The growing use of data analytics in sport has significantly expanded the job market for graduates with these skills, and the breadth of the programme, which combines practical coaching ability with analytical expertise, makes graduates distinctively employable. Some graduates go on to postgraduate study in sports science, coaching, strength and conditioning, or sports psychology, deepening their expertise in a particular area of elite performance.