Exercise Science, BS

What You'll Learn | Program Details | Career Outcomes | FAQ

Why an Exercise Science Degree at Belmont?

You do not have to choose between science and people. Exercise science is about the future of health, keeping people well, helping them move and perform, and helping them live fully. If that draws you, there is a place for you here, whether or not you ever pictured yourself in a health career.

Belmont’s Exercise Science degree prepares you for that future, and the outcomes show it. 100% of Class of 2025 graduates reached a positive career outcome, and 65% went on to graduate school. You graduate job-ready through hands-on internships and embedded professional certifications, and prepared for where the field is heading, including the data-analytics skills the industry increasingly demands.

You learn it in the right place. Belmont sits in Nashville, one of the country’s leading healthcare markets, and the Exercise Science program is housed in a college with graduate programs in physical and occupational therapy, so you collaborate across disciplines the way health care teams do in practice.

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Learn in a National Healthcare Hub

You train in one of the best places in the country to study health. Nashville is widely recognized as a healthcare capital of the United States, home to hundreds of healthcare companies and major systems including HCA Healthcare and Vanderbilt University Medical Center. That gives you off-campus internships, clinical and performance settings, and professional networks across the city, plus the sports venues and teams that create additional training and internship settings.

Graduate Job-Ready, or Grad-School Ready

You leave prepared for your next step, whichever it is. Hands-on internships and embedded professional certifications make you more prepared to enter the field directly than many graduates, and the same foundation positions the 65% who continue to graduate school for programs in physical therapy, occupational therapy and beyond.

Built for the Future of the Field

Exercise science is changing, and you train for where it is going. Your coursework builds the data-analytics skills the industry increasingly uses to assess performance, prevent injury and guide care, so your preparation stays relevant well beyond graduation.

Certifications That Make You Marketable

You prepare for nationally recognized certifications through organizations including the American College of Sports Medicine, the National Strength and Conditioning Association and Functional Range Systems. Your curriculum aligns with the standards these leading organizations set, which strengthens your marketability when you graduate.

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Is Exercise Science Right for You?

This program fits several kinds of students:

The future clinician headed toward physical therapy, occupational therapy or another graduate health program.
The performance-minded student drawn to strength and conditioning, sports performance or exercise physiology.
The health-curious student who wants a career keeping people well and did not think a health career was open to them without a biology degree and med school.

You will thrive here if you are curious about how the body moves, performs and stays healthy, and you want hands-on preparation for a growing field.

Understand How the Body Moves and Performs

In Belmont’s Exercise Science degree, you learn to:

Analyze how the body responds and adapts to exercise
Conduct fitness assessments and prescribe exercise based on the results
Prevent and treat common exercise-related injuries
Apply nutrition principles to health and performance
Use data and analytics to evaluate movement and performance

You build a thorough understanding of proper movement and human physiology, then apply it through hands-on assessment, internships and preparation for professional certification.

Program Details

Curious about your coursework? View requirements for this degree in the course catalog.

Exercise Science 3+3 to OT or PT

Belmont University provides an opportunity for high-achieving students majoring in Exercise Science to gain guaranteed admission into one of the university’s doctoral programs in Occupational Therapy (OTD) or Physical Therapy (DPT) after only 3 years of undergraduate study (one less year of a traditional undergraduate experience).

Both the OTD and DPT programs can be completed within three additional years for a total of 6 years (“3+3”) at Belmont. Students should indicate intent to pursue the 3+3 program in their initial application for admission. To complete all required coursework within the first three years, students must confirm their intent to pursue the 3+3 program before the start of their freshman year for PT or before their second semester for OT.

Learn more about Exercise Science 3+3

There is no better place to learn Exercise Science than in Nashville. In fact, many of our students have found full-time employment from the required internship they complete while in college. All Exercise Science students must complete a 150-hour internship, and placement can be chosen based on a student’s career interests. Hours can be used to satisfy Occupational or Physical Therapy observation hours (a graduate application requirement).

We support our students in their efforts to secure their required internship and have located placements with professional, minor league and collegiate sport environments. Over the years, students continue to point to their internship experience as one of their most valuable, as it validates the curriculum and helps students realize how much they’ve learned.

Internship partners include:

Career Possibilities

A licensed health care professional who helps patients reduce pain, prevent disability and improve or restore mobility.

An accredited health care professional who treats injured, ill, disabled patients to improve their ability to perform daily living activities.

Professionals who create customized exercise plans to attain clients’ goals, teach clients correct technique, motivate and keep them accountable and have fun.

Professionals who work within corporate environment to prioritize the health of an organization’s employees and community.

Professionals who work in educational environments to provide recreation and fitness programming.

Physical performance professional who works with athletes and teams to improve performance through exercise.

Clinical Exercise Physiologist: Develops exercise programs for patients with chronic diseases and conditions.
Rehabilitation Specialist: Designs and implements rehabilitation programs for individuals recovering from injuries.
Health and Wellness Coach: Provides guidance for clients seeking to improve overall health through lifestyle changes.
Sports Performance Specialist: Assesses athletic performance and develops training protocols for enhanced sport-specific abilities.

Student and Alumni Testimonies

Chelsea Miller

Class of 2027

Exercise Science Major

“I chose exercise science because I wanted to help people...Our class is really tight-knit and does a lot together. That community aspect is really rewarding. We've been able to go through every class together, and all of us have great relationships with our professors.”

Molly Robinson

Class of 2014

Bachelor of Science, Exercise Science

Licensed Massage Therapist for the Philadelphia Eagles

“Everything I learned in my exercise science studies is what propped me up to be confident enough to assert my intentions for working with athletes. Because of my background, I have such a detailed understanding of the body and things that athletes are going through.”

Cavin Hornback

Class of 2024

Exercise Science and Spanish Double Major

“The support is incredible. You can't overstate how much is matters to have professors that care.”

Learn from Experienced Faculty

Expert faculty with extensive industry experience and advanced degrees provide personalized attention in our program. Professors maintain active research agendas and professional connections throughout Nashville's healthcare community, bringing real-world insights directly to the classroom. Our faculty includes certified strength and conditioning specialists, clinical exercise physiologists, and rehabilitation experts who are committed to mentoring students and helping them build professional networks before graduation.