Warning! This is a restricted degree. Subject enrolment is only available to students admitted into this degree.
Postgraduate ACU-HPS-GCE-2021
Graduate Certificate in High Performance Sport
Dive into the world of coaching sports stars
Learn what it takes to condition an athlete – including overcoming hurdles like fatigue and injury. Cover the ethics of testing protocols. Build communication skills to problem-solve with high-performance teams.
Available loans
Australian Higher Education Loan Program (HELP)
Total subjects
4
Price
$10,136
Study method
100% online
Assessments
100% online
Credit available
Yes
Applications Close
- 14 Feb 21
- 11 Jul 21
- 07 Nov 21
Established in 1991 after amalgamating four eastern Australian Catholic tertiary institutes, Australian Catholic University now has seven campuses, from Brisbane to Melbourne and welcomes students of all beliefs. Specialising in arts, business, education, health sciences, law, theology and philosophy, ACU encourages its students to think critically and ethically and bring change to their communities and offer this online through Open Universities Australia.
QS RANKING 2021
34
Times Higher Education Ranking 2021
18
Degree structure
Degree details
Graduates of the Graduate Certificate in High Performance Sport should be able to:
- Use specialised technologies and techniques to collect, analyse, interpret and report meaningful data for monitoring the health, performance and training interventions of high performance athletes
- Design and deliver meaningful interventions to athletes that enhance performance and reduce the likelihood (and/or duration) of injury and illness
- Work in an ethical manner that promotes the dignity of the athlete and communicate effectively in high performance sport contexts
Examples of the types of work settings the course prepares graduates for:
- Sports scientist
- High performance manager
- Strength and conditioning coach
- Professional coach
- Fitness coach
- Rehabilitation coach
- Performance analyst
- Fitness advisor
- Sports science manager
- Football or other sport manager
- Team manager
Higher education
To be eligible for admission to the course, an applicant must:
- hold a Bachelor degree or higher in Exercise Science, Sports Science, Human Movement or a related discipline
OR
- hold a Bachelor degree or higher AND have evidence of relevant industry experience
OR
- submit a resume alongside a formal application, demonstrating suitability for study and evidence of relevant industry experience and/or prior learning over a sustained period.
Work and Life
An applicant must comply with the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy.
Students who do not hold a Bachelor degree or higher in Exercise Science, Sports Science, Human Movement or a related discipline may apply if they:
- hold a Bachelor degree or higher AND have evidence of relevant industry experience.
OR
- submit a resume alongside a formal application, demonstrating suitability for study and evidence of relevant industry experience and/or prior learning over a sustained period.
English Proficiency Requirements
Students must meet English Language requirements as follows:
- IELTS: Overall score 6.5, Individual score of 6.0 in all test
- PTE: 58 with a minimum of 50 in all four communicative skills
- TOEFL: Internet based total of 79: minimum 21 in writing, 18 in speaking, 13 in reading and 12 in listening
- ACU English Language Test: B (65-74%)
- CAE: Overall CAE of 176, Minimum individual score of 169 in all tests
ACU will consider requests for advanced standing based on prior studies to a maximum equivalence of 2 subjects (or 20cp).
For further information see https://www.acu.edu.au/study-at-acu/credit-and-prior-learning.
The high performance sport industry is a global, multi-billion dollar entity that provides employment opportunities for a range of professions, including sport scientists, coaches and managers. In Australia, there are employment opportunities in professional and semi-professional sporting teams, Australian and state institutes of sport, academies of sport, and other sporting organisations. These opportunities extend to the international market. At the heart of this industry is the conditioning of the athlete, with the aim of optimising individual and team performance for successful outcomes. A professional working in this industry needs to know about testing protocols to assess athlete performance, principles of strength and conditioning, and the technologies available for monitoring and training the high performance athlete. They will need to understand the relationships between fatigue, adaptation, performance and injury, how to acquire meaningful performance data, and how to work within the culture of a high performance industry. The application of this knowledge and understanding to the planning and delivery of meaningful interventions for athletes to enhance performance and reduce the likelihood (and/or duration) of injury and illness, using appropriate techniques of analysis to accurately interpret competition and training information, and using advanced information literacy skills to communicate ideas and outcomes to specialist and non-specialist audiences is essential for a professional working in the high performance sport environment. Professionals in this area also need to be equipped with problem solving and self-management skills that promote independent learning and thinking and for pursuing further learning if they are to maintain relevance in an industry that is, by definition, fiercely competitive and constantly evolving.
The Graduate Certificate in High Performance Sport aims to help students develop the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to enhance the conditioning of high performance athletes, with the aim of optimising individual and team performance, within the context of a multidisciplinary environment and its culture and leadership structures, and to do so in an ethical manner characterised by a concern for respect, equity and social justice.
The Graduate Certificate in High Performance Sport will provide career and industry relevant knowledge and skills. The degree is delivered online, with a single intensive on-campus component for hands-on practical experience and for networking opportunities. Its curriculum will provide knowledge and skills immediately applicable to the employment situations of the students, thereby having a focus of developing an applied skill base in each student.
Recommended Study Pattern
Students are required to follow the pattern of unit enrolment set out in the relevant Course Enrolment Guide, unless otherwise approved by the Course Coordinator. In all aspects of progress through the course, students will be advised by the Course Coordinator.
For this course students are allowed to enrol in up to 4 subjects per study term. To enrol in more than 3 subjects please contact us.
To qualify for the degree, a student must complete a total of 4 subjects, comprising four of the Coursework Units below. These units are to be selected as stipulated in the Course Enrolment Guide and/or in consultation with the
Course Coordinator, and must include:
Strength and Conditioning for the High Performance Athlete
and
Data Analysis and Interpretation for High Performance Sport.
Specified Unit Offerings include:
- Strength and Conditioning for Performance and Rehabilitation
- Leadership and Culture in High Performance Settings
- Data Analysis and Interpretation for High Performance Sport
- Fatigue, Recovery, Adaptation and Performance
- Sports Injury Prevention
- Performance Nutrition
Award Requirements
Completion of 4 subjects from the Specified Units in the Graduate Certificate in High Performance Sport
Submission of Application to Course Complete form to ACU
Choose subjects to begin.
You can apply for government funding or pay up-front.