Why study our Sport and Exercise Medical Science degree?

Our BSc Sport and Exercise Medical Sciences degree prepares you to become a leading professional and/or scientist in the field of exercise and health.

It offers a distinct advantage over sport science or physiotherapy programmes for anyone seeking comprehensive knowledge in human health, clinical exercise applications, and the psychology and neuroscience behind exercise.

What you'll study

• Medical sciences, and how the human body works in health and in disease.
• How to prevent and manage specific diseases through physical activity (such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease).
• How to prevent and manage sports injuries.
• How to optimise performance in elite sport.
• How our mind and body interact, and the psychology and neuroscience of physical activity.

You get an in-depth grounding in medical sciences, with a focus on exercise medicine, sports injuries, human health and performance, and disease.

We cover the foundations of human biology and medicine, such as how the body works, what goes wrong in disease, and how to treat it. We introduce you to how the body responds during exercise.

What's different compared to a standard Sports Science course?

On our degree, you'll explore how exercise is used to prevent and manage disease, assess injury, and inform rehabilitation and performance. You'll get a strong understanding of injury management.

A new module in Exercise Neuroscience (starting 2025) from the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience will provide a deep understanding of the interaction between the brain and body during exercise.

You'll explore topics including psychology, behaviour change, and how we can use physical activity to prevent and manage cognitive decline or neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's.

All these elements are not usually taught on standard sport science courses. Our degree provides the ideal background for careers across healthcare, industry, academia, and elite sport.

What's different compared to a standard Physiotherapy course?

With our degree, you'll cover biomechanics, injury assessment, prevention, rehabilitation, and strengthening. All of these are crucial for restoring athletes to peak performance levels.

We give you a strong advantage in the field with a comprehensive grounding in sport and performance, which is not normally the focus of standard physiotherapy degrees.

Many of our graduates do continue onto a master’s in physiotherapy and become registered physiotherapists.

Collaborative expertise

All your subjects are taught by world-renowned experts from various departments at UCL. 

Our partnership with the Institute of Sport, Exercise, and Health (ISEH) provides access to an extensive network in elite sport and public health, along with valuable opportunities for internships and employment.

You also benefit from world-class teaching on the psychology and neuroscience modules, which are delivered by experts from the UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences.