BSc (Hons) in Sports Therapy with Rehabilitation


AL841

The term sports injury refers to the kinds of injuries that most commonly occur during sports or exercise. Some sports injuries result from accidents; others are due to poor training practices, improper equipment, lack of conditioning, or insufficient warmup and stretching.

Although virtually any part of your body can be injured during sports or exercise, the term is usually reserved for injuries that involve the musculoskeletal system, which includes the muscles, bones, and associated tissues like cartilage. For example, tennis elbow, runner’s knee, breaks to bones, torn ligaments and torn tendons.

In this honours degree, the combined facets of sports therapy with rehabilitation will develop the knowledge and skills of the graduate in the key domains of sports therapy, including sports and exercise injury, injury recognition, assessment of injuries, treatment management, rehabilitation and effective counselling and education. On completion of this BSc, graduates will have the necessary skills to diagnose and treat musculoskeletal injuries in the physically active.

In first year, the basic building blocks of science are introduced, as well as a number of modules which build on transferable skills and pave the way for the transition to third level education. Sports therapy is introduced as a profession and students will be engaged in directed observational activities during the first semester and a series of field trips to sports therapy clinics and guest lectures will be arranged. In the second year, anatomy, conditions and injuries serve as the theme, while students will be introduced to clinical practice through student-led clinics. In year 3, clinical practice with student-led clinics is further developed and the main themes are injuries, diagnosis and therapies, thereby creating the foundation pillars for the clinical practice placement which takes place in the first semester in year 4. In the final year, the emphasis is on clinical and advanced therapies/rehabilitation with the clinical practice placement having an embedded research project strand. The final year is really a capstone year designed to cap all the skills acquired by the student throughout the four years of the programme, preparing them for the profession of sports therapy and employment as a professional clinical practitioner.

Sports therapy with rehabilitation students at AIT can access sports science facilities that are second to none. In addition to extensive field sport pitches for GAA, rugby and soccer, a new indoor running track and sports arena is currently under construction. The building includes comprehensive support facilities for elite athlete training, treatment rooms and medical facilities. In addition to this €12 million investment, a new sports science and performance analysis laboratory at AIT is equipped with all the necessary instruments and equipment for performance testing and analysis (treadmills, exercise bikes designed for resistance training, ergometers, Douglas bags with gas analysis systems, a blood lactate analyser, force dynamometer for vertical jumping/gait analysis and sphygmomanometers).

Minimum Entry Requirements

Leaving Certificate

Grade C3 in two higher level subjects, Grade C3 in Mathematics at ordinary level, plus three subjects at Grade D3 at ordinary level. Subjects to include Mathematics, a language English or Irish or min Foundation Level /B3 (No points awarded for Foundation Level Irish).

FETAC

FETAC applicants to this programme must hold the following award: Laboratory Techniques (CASLT) or 5M3807. They are also required to have the module Mathematics (C20139) or 5N1833 at merit level included in their award or alternatively Leaving Certificate Mathematics at OC3. They must also possess distinctions in three modules.

Garda Clearance

Students on the BSc (Hons) in Sports Therapy with Rehabilitation programme will be required to achieve the learning outcomes treating sports-related injuries. The learning process will involve treating both individuals and teams in a variety of sporting areas. Inevitably, children and vulnerable adults will form a subset of those individuals requiring treatment. In order to safeguard the rights and interests of children and vulnerable adults, students registering on the BSc (Hons) in Sports Therapy with Rehabilitation programme will be required to obtain Garda clearance through the Garda Central Vetting Unit (TGVCU).

Modules

Year 1 – Semester 1

Learning to Learn, Mathematics for Sport and Health, Introduction to Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation, Cell Biology, Human Physiology 1, Anatomy and Conditions of the Lower Quadrant.

Year 1 – Semester 2

Anatomy and Conditions of the Upper Quadrant, Human Physiology 2, Introduction to Biomechanics, Fitness Injury Prevention, Emergency First Response, Business with IT for Sports Therapy.

Year 2 – Semester 1

Injuries and Therapies 1, Anatomy and Conditions of the Head/Thorax and Abdomen, Introduction to Clinical Practice with Student-Led Clinics 1, Clinical Testing for Sports and Health Science, Human Psychology, Kinesiology Biomechanics & Motor Control.

Year 2 – Semester 2

Injuries and Therapies 2, Sports Nutrition, Applied Human Physiology, Anatomy and Conditions of the Spine, Kinesiology Biomechanics & Motor Control, Marketing and Law.

Year 3 – Semester 1

Application of Clinical Reasoning Skills with Student-led Clinics 2, Research Methods, Drugs in Sport, Nutrition in Health & Disease, Injuries and Therapies 3, Sports & Exercise Physiology 1.

Year 3 – Semester 2

Injuries and Therapies 4, Sports & Exercise Physiology 2, Trauma Management, Orthotics and Strapping, Sports Psychology, Performance Analysis.

Year 4 – Semester 1

Clinical Practice Placement.

Year 4 – Semester 2

Advanced Sports Therapies, Rehabilitation and Return to Competition, Diagnostic Imaging, Strength and Conditioning, Psychology of Sports Injuries and Rehabilitation, Legal and Ethical Issues in Sport.

Progression

Following graduation students can transfer to a wide range of postgraduate courses at both MSc and PhD level in AIT, nationally and internationally. An honours degree is an effective basis for postgraduate training and research leading to Master’s and PhD (Level 9/10) qualifications.

Professional Recognition

It is a key objective that this programme would ultimately be an accredited programme, with twin recognition from both the Society of Sports Therapists in the UK and the British Association of Sports Rehabilitators and Trainers to ensure that graduates would have professional international recognition.

Career Opportunities

As a graduate from this programme, you may expect to find rewarding careers in the areas of sports injury clinics, employment with amateur and professional sports clubs and teams, employment with national governing bodies of sports associations, and in health and fitness centres. You could also be self-employed as a sports therapist and rehabilitator. Other areas of activity include preventing, treating and the rehabilitation of injuries in sport and physical activity arenas.