Health Fitness Management
Unparalleled education in a competitive industry
The Health Fitness Management program is a major designed to equip you with the skills and knowledge you need to flourish in both the physical fitness and business aspects of the health fitness management industry. Graduates pursue a variety of career choices, including personal training, strength and conditioning, corporate wellness, clinical exercise, facility management, and sports operations.
Major
Minor
Business Foundations Courses 15 credits
- ACCT 211 Financial Accounting
- MKTG 221 Marketing Principles
- LAW 241 Legal Environments in Business
- MGMT 328 Management and Organizational Behavior
- ECON 420 Healthcare Economics and Reimbursement
Athletic Training Foundations Courses 28 credits
- ATHT 105 Perspectives in Athletic Training
- ATHT 110 Medical Sciences
- ATHT 111 Emergency Medicine in Athletic Training
- ATHT 190 Principles of Strength and Conditioning
- ATHT 205 Structural Kinesiology
- ATHT 215 Personal Health and Wellness
- ATHT 222 Nutrition for Human Performance
- ATHT 242 Sports, Society, and Ethics
- ATHT 392 Biomechanics
- ATHT 393 Physiology of Exercise
- ATHT 432 Organization & Administration of Athletics
- ATHT 459 Research Methods I
- ATHT 469 Research Methods II
Health and Fitness Management Courses 17 credits
- HFMT 305 Field Experience
- HFMT 405 Program Design & Implementation Lab
- HFMT 420 Health Assessment of Special Populations
- HFMT 410 Exercise Prescription and Lab
- HFMT 485 Health Fitness Management Internship
- HFMT 490 Senior Seminar in Health Fitness Mgmt
- HFMT 495 Health Promotion Program Design
General Education Courses 23 credits
- BUSI 113 Business Statistics (Quantitative Skills)
- COMM 101 Intro to Communications (Social Sciences)
- ENGL 101 Writing I (Communication Skills)
- ENGL 102 Writing II (Communication Skills)
- BIOL 150 Biological Foundations (Natural Sciences)
- Humanities Elective
Required Liberal Arts and Sciences Courses 22-24 credits
- BIOL 119 Physiology of Aging
- BIOL 207 Intro to Anatomy & Physiology I
- BIOL 208 Intro to Anatomy & Physiology II
- GERO 108 Introduction to Adult Aging and Development
- PSYC 101 Intro to Psychology
- PSYC 322 Health Psychology
- Liberal and Science Additional Electives
In addition to completing the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences general education requirements as well as the College's First Year Experience Program or Transfer Student Program, students must also complete the coursework requirements for the BS in Health Fitness Management, the Alfred University requirements for Physical Education and Global Perspective Requirements, and enough electives to reach at least 120 credit hours.
- Provide a quality, up-to-date educational curriculum.
- Provide leadership and service to the university community through continuing education.
- Promote self-directed learning and critical thinking as desirable professional behavior.
- Exploration of a variety of health, fitness, and wellness settings to allow students the opportunity to determine specific career goals.
Saxon Fit
A program run through our Exercise Prescription class for senior-level students, Saxon Fit provides an experiential learning opportunity, fusing classroom concepts with hands-on, independent application. Senior-level students work with Alfred University faculty and staff members to achieve individual physical fitness and wellness goals through individualized personal training.
Students meet with their clients to obtain baseline information before developing a vetted program that runs for several weeks before conducting post testing to determine effectiveness and improvement. This program has already generated immense interest and students leave with a sense of accomplishment and understanding of how to apply classroom information.
Spring Health & Wellness Tips
As a community service and health/wellness promotional ideal, students in Health Promotion Program Design create weekly "Health and Wellness Tips" which are shared with the campus community via the University's internal daily electronic newsletter, Alfred today.
The task allows students to provide sound information about all things health and wellness. The students also learn how to reach broad populations while making information visually desirable and easy to access.
Field Experience
Each Fall semester, students enrolled in the Health Fitness Management Field Experience course (HFMT 305) are tasked with earning observation hours with industry professionals and assisting in aspects pertaining to the daily operation of the profession.
Parents Night Out: Kids Skill Competition
The 2020 cohort paired with the Hornell YMCA again in the Fall of 2018. They put together a proper warm-up and stretching routine with a skills competition for ages that included a teaching module, a reinforcement and skills practice and, finally, a competition in that skill. A variety of skills, such as passing (football), shooting (soccer and basketball), hand-eye coordination, along with stretching and recovery were put to the test in a "free-range" atmosphere.
The community activity was paired with the existing program "Parents Night Out" to increase attendance and sports exposure. Overall, it was a great event and kept the students active and engaged while allowing for free play after the initial program. Our students were able to gain valuable experience in community pairing and small/large group child/adolescent coaching.
Age Avengers
The 2019 cohort worked with the Hornell YMCA on program development in hopes of engaging current patrons and enticing current non-members to consider the importance of physical activity in their daily lives.
Their program, Age Avengers, brought together multiple generations from caregivers to children, to promote the joy and importance of physical activity and healthy lifestyles. Through initial development to meetings with YMCA staff, the students created and conducted the program on November 10th, with the hope that the Hornell YMCA will continue this program on a monthly basis.
- Understanding and illustrating the practical application of mechanical, physical, and kinematic concepts of musculoskeletal anatomy.
- Understanding business and management concepts as they pertain to sporting, physical wellness and facility operations.
- Improving critical thinking as it pertains to assessing, analyzing and developing programming to address patient/community needs.
- Improving oral communication skills by using verbal, nonverbal and media techniques to illustrate comprehension of classroom concepts and analyze clinical questions.
- Improve knowledge and application of content: The students can design and implement fitness programs based on scientific principles and individual client goals and needs of special populations.
- Improve knowledge and application of content: The student can demonstrate proficiency in instructing, analyzing and prescribing proper resistance training techniques
- Improve knowledge and application of content: The student can demonstrate first aid, CPR, AED
- Demonstrate an understanding of reading or developing scholarly clinical research and analyzing the results to apply towards clinical questions
The Health Fitness Management program at Alfred University is recognized by the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) Education Recognition Program (ERP), underscoring that the HFM program meets academic standards in line with NSCA certifications.
Students graduating as health and fitness managers may pursue careers in corporate wellness, public and private fitness and wellness, or special population fitness and wellness. Students will also be prepared for a variety of health-related graduate studies, ranging from Physical Therapy to Exercise Science.
Student Stories
Similar Programs
Students interested in pursuing a career in health and fitness management should consider double majoring or minoring in one of the following related fields: