Today I attended the University of East Anglia (UEA) open day with my parents and Suzie, my sister who is looking to pursue a degree in Nursing with mental health. The journey back on the M25 gave me time to reflect on my own degree and whether or not I would choose to undertake the same degree with the new £9,000 price-tag alongside it.
A survey conducted by Prospects in 2010 found that roughly 8,000 individuals were graduating with a degree in Sports Science! This is an astonishing amount when you consider how many PAID jobs are available within the Sports Science community. However, many graduates do end up changing direction and working within an industry that requires no knowledge of sports science whatsoever. With the new £9,000 tuition fees coming into action this September, it has been estimated that some 200,000 young people will graduate each year with average debts of £45,000. Can this really be justified when colleagues of mine both at Exeter and other ''top end'' institution's manage to only have as low as 4 hours of contact time per week in some semesters? Consequently, even with the rise in tution fees, Sports Science is currently the eleventh most popular option in the UCAS course choice league table.
An example of jobs which a degree in Sports Science can lead to are listed below, this list is not exhaustive by far:
- Physiotherapist
- Personal Trainer
- Police Constable
- Gym Instructor
- Multi-Sports Coach
- Sports Instructor/Life Guard
- PE Teacher
- Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science
- Sports Psychologist
- Physical Therapist
- Nutritionist
- Performance Analyst
- Sports Development Officer
- Strength and Conditioning
- Sports Medicine
Is there a realistic opportunity for graduates to attain a full time paid job with such a small market of jobs available?
My overall experience studying at Exeter is one of overwhelming enjoyment and satisfaction. On a academic level I feel I have learnt a great deal of knowledge that I can practically bring into the academic arena. With regards to work experience, both the school and its staff were instrumental in helping me gain internships within my 2nd and 3rd year, of which I strongly believe is a huge asset to any graduate. Although I am sure many other graduates are pleased with the way their degree was conducted, future students will demand more - this is common sense due to the added money spent on their studying. The following list is a description of what I would personally like to see change in order for the Top 10 Sports Science institutions to justify their increase in fees:
- Smaller seminar sizes; maximum of 10 people
- An increase in the average amount of contact hours per week, I personally would like to see a 9-5 schedule adopted 4 days of the week
- Compulsory attendance in masters and PhD experiments, this is an area that not many undergraduates take part in and would greatly effect their leaning experience
- Smaller year group sizes so lectures can be as interactive as possible
- Greater links with professional clubs/organisations to help gain work experience for the undergraduates
If you have any more suggestions please feel free to comment below
Conclusion
Yes, I would take the opportunity to undertake the course again; however, this is probably greatly influenced by my previous experience of studying at Exeter, which I can only describe as fantastic. If, on the other hand I, like my sister, was looking to undertake a degree in the £9,000 category, then I would hope the above points would be addressed and put in place. Sadly, the new era of Sports Science at University is going to see many potential students not undertake this path due to the fear of increased debt.
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