Program Purpose

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The purpose of the Exercise and Wellness program is to provide educational and learning opportunities in a spirit-filled environment and to prepare our students to:

1. Work in a private or community fitness center, hospital wellness or rehabilitation program, or work-site health-promotion program
2. Attend professional school
3. Attend graduate school
4. Be an example of lifelong learning by living and promoting a healthy lifestyle across the lifespan.

 

This preparation includes:

1. Study of health appraisal and fitness testing, disease prevention, stress management, nutrition, obesity/weight control, lifestyle management, and exercise physiology
2. The opportunity to participate in undergraduate research and associated activities such as conference presentations and publications
3. The opportunity to certify through the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) as a Health/Fitness Instructor (HFI), and other certifying organizations
4. Learning in a Gospel-oriented environment.

Alignment with BYU Aims

The BS Exercise and Wellness program supports Brigham Young University's mission to assist individuals in their quest for perfection and eternal life and the AIMS of a BYU education (BYU Mission Statement).

Spiritually Strengthening: The Exercise and Wellness program will strive to improve student, faculty, and staff spiritual strength through participation in a program where the program faculty and administrators keep [their] subject matter bathed in the light and color of the restored gospel.

Intellectually Enlarging: Exercise and Wellness students will be challenged to acquire essential academic learning skills related to critical thinking, effective communication, and quantitative reasoning. The Fitness and Wellness program will support the university aim of helping students develop an informed awareness of the peoples, cultures, languages, and nations of the world.

Character Building: The understanding that the intellectual integrity of fine academic discipline with the spiritual integrity of personal righteousness will be demonstrated by teachers and faculty in the Exercise and Wellness program. The characteristics of integrity, reverence, modesty, self-control, courage, compassion, and industry will be included in the classroom curriculum and will be exemplified by the teachers and faculty in the program.

Lifelong Learning and Service: The Exercise and Wellness program emphasizes that the degree is a beginning, not an end, pointing the way to constant learning. Certifications and continuing education requirements for professional practice are an important part of the education process and future employment opportunities. Faculty and students will set an example of righteous living, appropriate fitness, and healthy lifestyle while encouraging others to live likewise.

BYU Mission Statement

Career Opportunities

Exercise and Wellness professionals find employment primarily in commercial or community fitness centers, but may also work in hospital wellness programs or corporate health-promotion programs. A few students, with entrepreneurial desire, go on to open their own fitness and wellness business. Job responsibilities typically involve teaching clients how to achieve optimal wellness through effective exercise, wholesome nutrition, and successful stress management strategies.

Exercise and wellness professionals may function at a staff or management level. Staff personnel often conduct one-on-one counseling sessions on a variety of health-related topics as well as perform fitness testing and exercise prescription. They also may conduct workshops, conferences, or seminars on exercise, nutrition, stress management, weight control, and many other topics.

Program directors typically possess a master's degree with several years of experience functioning as an exercise and wellness professional. As a director, additional responsibilities often include financial budgeting, marketing, program administration and evaluation, and personnel acquisition and training.

Students pursuing a degree in Exercise and Wellness are usually more successful in their profession if they gain expertise in the following areas: counseling, public speaking, behavior change, business, first aid, gerontology, and/or aerobic dance teaching. It is also strongly encouraged that students certify as a Health and Fitness Instructor (through the American College of Sports Medicine or via another reputable certifying organization).

The salary for exercise and wellness professionals varies considerably. Entry level full-time positions usually command a yearly salary from $38,000 - $55,000 with possible salaries as high as $43,000 - $63,000 for experienced program directors.

Curricular Structure

The coursework requirements for this major provide an educational experience that is progressive and prepares the students to move from a lower- to higher-level of thinking and understanding. The students' capstone experience is to 1) take the Fitness Instructor Workshop course during their senior year to prepare to certify as a Health and Fitness Instructor in the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and 2) complete on-the-job experience by participating in an internship experience (4-credit hours).

The basic matriculation of the major is as follows:

Freshman Year

Students take required Brigham Young University general education courses to gain a broad understanding of core educational disciplines.

Sophomore Year

Students complete general education courses and take introductory courses in anatomy and human physiology.

Junior Year

Students take required and elective major courses in the area of biomechanics, exercise physiology, human development and aging, pathophysiology and risk factors, human behavior and psychology, health appraisal and fitness testing, safety and injury prevention, exercise programming, nutrition and weight management, and program administration.

Senior Year

Students complete required and elective major courses in the area of biomechanics, exercise physiology, human development and aging, pathophysiology and risk factors, human behavior and psychology, health appraisal and fitness testing, safety and injury prevention, exercise programming, nutrition and weight management, and program administration. During this year, students also complete a capstone experience as described above.

 

Catalog Information

 

Learning Outcomes

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Exercise and Wellness Knowledge

Students will demonstrate adequate knowledge acquisition and understanding in areas relating to stress management, chronic disease prevention, anatomy, exercise physiology, appraising health and fitness, worksite wellness program component design, healthy diet, and weight management.

Health Assessment, Evaluation, and Prescription

Students will conduct fitness assessments, write exercise prescriptions, evaluate health behaviors/health outcomes, and risk factors for disease and physical dysfunction.

Career and Professional Preparation Students will demonstrate an understanding of current ethical concerns in the profession leading them to successful employment or further schooling.  

Evidence of Learning

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Direct Measures

1. Students will demonstrate through course examinations the objectives and learning outcomes as indicated in individual course syllabi (Outcomes 1,3,4,5,6,7)
2. Students will complete a four credit hour internship that allows them to demonstrate knowledge and skill acquired in their didactic and laboratory learning experiences. This includes a comprehensive portfolio and supervisor evaluations that represent their experience (Outcomes 3,4,5,6,7)
3. Depending upon their program emphasis, students will be prepared to take and pass American Council on Exercise (ACE) certification examinations (Personal Trainer; Group Fitness Instructor; Lifestyle & Weight Management; and Clinical Exercise Specialist) (Outcome 8)
4. Depending upon their program emphasis, students will be prepared to take and pass American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) certification examinations (Certified Personal Trainer; Health/Fitness Instructor) (Outcome 9)
5. Measures of spiritual growth will be assessed directly using appropriate questions from course and instructor evaluations, exit interviews, and alumni surveys (Outcomes 10,11)

Indirect Measures

1. Number of undergraduate students involved in research projects, number of student publications/presentations, number of ORCA grants, MEG grants, and Fulton Awards applied for and received (Outcome 2)
2. Brigham Young University Senior Survey. (program specific) (Outcomes 2,8,9,10,11)
3. Ongoing accreditation reviews are conducted on a regular basis (at seven year intervals) for the BYU Academic Unit Self-Study review and the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities [NWCCU]) (Outcomes 1,8,9)
4. Internship supervisor midterm and terminal ratings, accommpanied by the "agency" evaluation (Outcomes 1,3,4,5,6,7)
5. Fitness and Wellness Management Exit Survey and Interview (Outcomes 8,9)
6. Brigham Young University Alumni Survey (Outcomes 10,11)
7. Brigham Young University Employer Survey (Outcomes 10,11)
8. Graduate school / Professional program school admission statistics (Outcome 11)

Learning and Teaching Assessment and Improvement

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1. The Department Chair is responsible for evaluation of teaching performance. The chair compiles results of student evaluations of courses and instructors. The chair conducts an annual stewardship interview with each faculty member, in which teaching effectiveness is addressed.
2. Exit interviews are conducted by the program director with each graduating student. Feedback is used to evaluate the program as a whole, as well as individual faculty and clinical instructors.
3. The course syllabus of each course is reviewed individually and as an overall program to determine if the desired learning outcomes are being emphasized and achieved.