College of Education Health and Human Services
School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies
www.kent.edu/ehhs/tlcs

About This Program

The B.S. in Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology equips athletes, coaches and sport professionals with the mental strategies to enhance focus, motivation and resilience. Unlike traditional sport programs, this major focuses on the psychological aspects of peak performance. You will learn how confidence, anxiety and mindset impact success in sports, exercise and the performing arts. Graduates are prepared for careers in sport psychology, coaching and performance training or can pursue certification and advanced study in the field. Read more...

Contact Information

• Marta Guivernau, Ph.D.​ | mguivern@kent.edu | 330-672-7121
• Speak with an Advisor
• Chat with an Admissions Counselor

Program Delivery

• Delivery
  • Online
  • Mostly Online
• Location
  • Kent Campus

Examples of Possible Careers

• Sports Performance Psychologist
• Strength and Performance Conditioning Coach
• Sports Performance Coach
• Mental Health Counselor/Athletics Embedded
• Sports Nutritionist
• Sports Medicine Fellow
• Performance Enhancement Specialists (PESs)

Admission Requirements

The university affirmatively strives to provide educational opportunities and access to students with varied backgrounds, those with special talents and adult students who graduated from high school three or more years ago.

First-Year Students on the Kent Campus: First-year admission policy on the Kent Campus is selective. Admission decisions are based upon cumulative grade point average, strength of high school college preparatory curriculum and grade trends. Students not admissible to the Kent Campus may be administratively referred to one of the seven regional campuses to begin their college coursework. For more information, visit the admissions website for first-year students.

First-Year Students on the Regional Campuses: First-year admission to Kent State’s campuses at Ashtabula, East Liverpool, Geauga, Salem, Stark, Trumbull and Tuscarawas, as well as the Twinsburg Academic Center, is open to anyone with a high school diploma or its equivalent. For more information on admissions, contact the Regional Campuses admissions offices.

International Students: All international students must provide proof of English language proficiency (unless they meet specific exceptions to waive) by earning a minimum 71 TOEFL iBT score, minimum 6.0 IELTS score, minimum 47 PTE score or minimum 100 DET score, or by completing the ELS level 112 Intensive English Program. For more information, visit the admissions website for international students.

Former Students: Former Kent State students or graduates who have not attended another college or university since Kent State may complete the reenrollment or reinstatement form on the University Registrar’s website.

Transfer Students: Students who have attended any other educational institution after graduating from high school must apply as undergraduate transfer students. For more information, visit the admissions website for transfer students.

Admission policies for undergraduate students may be found in the University Catalog's Academic Policies.

Students may be required to meet certain criteria to progress in their program. Any progression requirements will be listed on the program's Coursework tab

Program Requirements

Major Requirements

Graduation Requirements

Students considering admission into a sport psychology graduate program should attain a higher GPA, as admission to those programs are competitive.

Roadmap

This roadmap is a recommended semester-by-semester plan of study for this major. However, courses designated as critical (!) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation.

University Requirements

All students in a bachelor's degree program at Kent State University must complete the following university requirements for graduation.

NOTE: University requirements may be fulfilled in this program by specific course requirements. Please see Program Requirements for details.

Kent Core Requirements

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of this program will be able to:

1. Explain the role of the individual and the environments in sport and exercise behavior.
2. Demonstrate understanding of the foundation of motivation in sport sciences, learning and personal life.
3. Define and illustrate the concepts, tools and application of mental skills and performance enhancement.
4. Design and evaluate an applied research study from inception to conclusions.
5. Define the standards for competence, domestic and global diversity and ethical principles (i.e., AASP and APA) and its role in sport psychology professional practice.

Admission GPA for Undergraduate Students

For admissions, the College of Education, Health and Human Services considers a student to have established a Kent State University GPA after the student has successfully completed a minimum of 12 Kent State University credit hours. Undergraduate students who have not completed a minimum of 12 Kent State University credit hours will be evaluated for admission into programs, Advanced Study, and the Professional phase based on their high school GPA for new freshmen, or transfer GPA for transfer students. Once a student has successfully completed a minimum of 12 Kent State University credit hours, only the student’s Kent State cumulative GPA will be considered for admission into a program, Advanced Study, and Professional Phase.

Students who have completed 12 or more credit hours of previous college-level coursework, either at Kent State University or at another accredited institution, need an overal GPA of 2.00 or higher to declare a College of Education, Health and Human Services majors, minors or certificates unless a higher minimum GPA is specified by the program. See specific programs in this catalog for more information on required minimum GPA to declare. Non-degree EHHS General can be declared without a minimum 2.00 overall GPA.

Transfer applicants who have completed fewer than 12 semester hours of college-level coursework will be evaluated on both collegiate and high school records.

Full Description

The Bachelor of Science degree in Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology provide students, athletes and those preparing for careers as coaches and sport practitioners with the knowledge of psychological theory and skills to enhance human behavior in the sport and exercise settings and the performing arts. The major differs from existing sport-related bachelor's degree programs due to its focus on psychological processes related to sport performance, as opposed to existing programs that focus on pedagogical, physiological or the business aspects of sport performance.

The Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology major explores social-psychological concepts such as motivation, self-confidence, anxiety or burnout, and how these concepts interact with the sport environment to influence athletes (e.g., losing focus under pressure or having self-doubts during a game) and performance. The program prepares students with essential knowledge of psychological aspects of sport performance and ethical practice to work in wide-ranging sport-related fields or to further their education in their chosen careers via graduate programs and mental performance certification by the Association of Applied Sport Psychology.