Sport and Exercise Science with Foundation Year

Sport and exercise science is the systematic study of how the human body responds to physical activity, exercise, and sport, drawing on physiology, biomechanics, psychology, and nutrition to understand performance, health, and wellbeing. It is a discipline that sits at the intersection of biological science and applied practice, asking both fundamental questions about how muscles generate force or how the cardiovascular system adapts to training, and practical questions about how to optimise performance, prevent injury, or use exercise as medicine in clinical and public health settings.

Birmingham City University's four-year full-time Sport and Exercise Science with Foundation Year programme is designed for students who want a thorough preparation before engaging with the core degree. The foundation year builds the scientific and academic skills needed for the main curriculum, making the programme accessible to students who may not have the specific combination of sciences typically required for direct entry. From the foundation year you will study the core sciences of sport: physiology, biomechanics, and psychology, developing both theoretical understanding and practical laboratory skills.

You will also engage with research methods, allowing you to evaluate the evidence base for practice and eventually conduct your own investigations. The programme equips you for roles supporting athletes and exercisers across the performance spectrum, from elite competitive sport to recreational participation and clinical exercise referral.

A typical entry tariff of 88 points with the foundation year makes the programme broadly accessible, and you will build progressively toward degree-level competence in sport and exercise science over the four years.

Graduates pursue careers as sport scientists, exercise physiologists, strength and conditioning coaches, personal trainers, and health and wellbeing practitioners in professional sport, fitness, healthcare, and public health. Many also proceed to postgraduate study in sport and exercise science, physiotherapy, or strength and conditioning.