The undergraduate program in Movement Science emphasizes the cross-disciplinary study of the causes and consequences of movement from biological, biomechanical, and motor control perspectives. Successful completion of the program can lead to careers in such diverse areas as athletic training, cardiac rehabilitation, worksite wellness, sports biomechanics, personal fitness training, performance evaluation and injury prevention. Students earn a BS in Movement Science which also provides preparation for continuing training in the allied medical profession. Biomechanics applies the principles of classical mechanics to the study of the human body in motion. Students develop the skills to analyze movement and to quantify the internal and external forces acting on or within the body during normal or pathological movement.
Exercise physiology focuses on the body's response to exercise and movement.
The curriculum emphasizes the integration of knowledge in such areas as muscle mechanics, anatomy, endocrinology, microbiology, biochemistry, nutrition and systems physiology as they relate to human movement. Exercise physiology lays a foundation for graduate studies and certification for careers in personal fitness training, athletic training, strength and conditioning, coaching and worksite wellness. Motor control examines the ways movement is learned and controlled through both neural and behavioral mechanisms. Students study such issues as skill acquisition, coordination and motor disorders with respect to balance and locomotion, and eye, head and limb movements. Motor control knowledge is applied in clinical settings such as physical and occupational therapy, the instructional fields of physical education, coaching, music and the arts, as well as ergonomics and human engineering in a variety of industries.