Sport Management and Coaching

Sport management and coaching combines two disciplines that together cover the full spectrum of professional sport: the organisational and commercial systems through which sport is administered, marketed, and sustained, and the science and practice of developing athletes and teams to perform at their best. Management provides the strategic, financial, and operational frameworks for running sporting organisations, while coaching draws on sports science, pedagogy, and psychology to understand how performance is developed and sustained over time.

At the University of St Mark and St John, this three-year full-time programme develops both strands in parallel, giving you a practical and intellectually grounded education in the sport sector as a whole. You will study sports management principles including event management, marketing, governance, and sport development policy, alongside coaching methodology, sports science, athlete psychology, and the planning and delivery of coaching sessions across different sports and populations. The programme is taught in Plymouth, a city with a rich sporting culture and good connections to the sport and leisure sector in the South West.

A typical entry tariff of 120 points makes this an accessible and welcoming programme.

Graduates of sport management and coaching programmes work across the sport sector in roles including sports development officer, performance coach, sports administrator, events coordinator, and leisure centre manager. National governing bodies, local authorities, elite sport programmes, schools, community organisations, and commercial sport and leisure businesses all employ graduates with this combination of skills. Further study at master's level is available for those who want to specialise in high-performance coaching, sport business management, or a specific sport science discipline.

The degree is particularly suited to those who want a career that keeps them actively engaged with sport at a professional level.