Pepperdine, a Christian university in Malibu with about 7,700 students, offers undergraduate majors and minors in sports medicine. The sports medicine program is designed to prepare students for graduate level study in medicine and physical therapy and careers in health promotion and fitness-related professions. The program also allows students to publish original research and to participate in internship opportunities.
Pepperdine University
24255 Pacific Coast Highway
Malibu, CA 90263
310-506-4000
pepperdine.edu
The kinesiology department of Vanguard University offers majors in kinesiology and athletics training to undergraduates, but does not offer bachelor's degrees in physical therapy or medicine. Classes are small. Students also take three to six units of internships at fitness facilities, according to their area of interest. Clinical experience and field experience are part of the internships, which allow students to hone their classroom skills in a work setting. An athletics training major prepares students for the National Athletics Trainers Association Board of Certification exam, which is required to become a certified athletics trainer. The kinesiology major has three concentrations: pre-physical therapy, sports science and teaching/coaching. Pre-physical therapy classes prepare students for graduate programs in physical therapy. The sports science track gets students ready for careers in research and personal training, and the teaching track prepares students to teach physical education at all levels except college, where a master's degree is preferred.
Vanguard University
55 Fair Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626-9601
714-966-0397
vanguard.edu
The Movement and Science (MSS) Department at the University of La Verne, in LaVerne, California, offers undergraduate courses with three tracks of study. An MSS education major prepares students to teach physical education in the California public schools. An athletics training major prepares students to take the Board of Certification exam to become certified athletics trainers. An MSS general studies major is required for aspiring physical therapists to fulfill the entry requirements for graduate-level physical therapy programs.
University of LaVerne
2035 Bonita Ave.
La Verne, CA 91750
909-392-2740
laverne.edu