Do you want your office on the field or court? The Best Online Master’s programs in Sports Administration is the first step to get there.
Getting your master’s in Sports Administration can open a wide range of possibilities for you. Your main focus is on developing and managing athletes. You could be a team manager, a coach, or even a trainer.
Who knew you could become a coach with just an online degree program? You don’t have to work exclusively for professional sports teams. You can work at fitness clubs, sports facilities, or community athletic associations. You can also choose to specialize in a certain area, like marketing or contract negotiations.
What is a Sports Administration Master’s Degree?
The overall aim of a degree in this discipline is to improve sports programs. Having a master’s degree in Sports Administration can open many more doors for you than a bachelor’s. Some careers for this degree include athletic director, compliance officer, or sports information director.
Internships are crucial for this degree, so you’ll literally be on the field. The courses you’ll take will be dependent on the industry, but they’ll definitely include some business classes. The sports and sporting events industry is a huge industry worldwide, and if you’re looking for an exciting career, Sports Administration may be the path for you.
If it’s the business side of the degree that excites you, consider a more direct path: the best online master’s in Business or Business Administration.
How Much Can you Earn with a Sports Administration Master’s Degree?
You’re probably wondering how much you can actually make with this degree. Coaches and scouts earned a median salary of $33,780 per year as of 2018, according to The Bureau of Labor Statistics. The more experience you have, the more potential salary you can make.
The projected growth rate for this field is pretty high, at 11 percent by 2026. That’s much faster than the average growth rate of 5 percent. The highest 10 percent of workers earned over $77,880 per year.
What Is Required for a Sports Administration Master’s Degree?
Before enrolling in the program, you’ll need to have a bachelor’s degree. It often doesn’t need to be in any related discipline. You will be required to gain hands-on experience before graduating from the program.
If you’re looking to be a coach, you’ll typically have to be state-certified. You’ll be required to take an exam. If you’re looking to be an athletic director, you’ll have to take the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association certification exam. Some common classes you may take include:
- Sports Medicine
- Leadership and Administration
- Public Relations
What Are the Best Sport Administration Master’s Degrees?
OSR uses six data points: three school-wide and three program-specific. For school-wide, OSR uses Student Satisfaction, Admission Rates, and the number of programs the school offers online. For program-specific, OSR checks the Median Debt of graduates from that program, how many degrees are offered within that program’s umbrella department, and what percentage of students at that school graduated from that department.
The six statistics are displayed by each school. The sliding bar under each statistic represents how that school compares to other U.S. institutions. “Not reported” means a school did not release that information to the U.S. Department of Education. A more detailed description of the OSR process can be found on the methodology page.