Sport Therapy and Rehabilitation

Why study Sport Therapy and Rehabilitation at Derby?

• Choose a course recognised for its high academic quality and study a degree accredited by The Society of Sports Therapists
• Join a course where the teaching team has both sports therapists and physiotherapists working together to provide a vast professional experience in sports therapy and rehabilitation
• Gain hands-on experience in inspiring placements, supporting national sporting events, and through our in-house Student-led Sports Injury Clinic, so you gain practical experience in a real-world industry environment
• Your learning will be varied and inspirational, with real case studies, laboratory work and problem-solving exercises
• As a graduate of this course, you can be equipped to use sport and exercise principles to help boost performance, devise injury prevention and rehabilitation programmes, and provide assessments and treatments in recreational, training and competitive settings

Real-world learning in action

Our focus throughout this course is preparing you to be an independent and confident sport therapist. We do this by integrating clinical placements into this course. Throughout your final year of study, you will be required to undertake 250 hours of clinical placement. Gain practical experience in our Student-Led Sports Injury Clinic, open to University staff and students. With guidance from expert supervisors, you can build the skills and confidence needed to practice effectively after graduation.

During your final year of study, you will have the opportunity to put your theoretical knowledge into practice through one of the outstanding external clinical placements available, including:

• Derby County Football Club
• Derbyshire County Cricket Club
• Sheffield Steelers Ice Hockey
• Derbyshire Institute of Sport
• Burton Albion Football Club
• Port Vale Football Club

Throughout your studies, you will have the opportunity to support a variety of local and national sporting events. We are proud of our expanding events portfolio, which provides students with outstanding opportunities to gain real-world experience. Previous events include supporting the BBC’s Children in Need, the London Marathon, the Derby 10K, the Think Pacific Project, England Futsal events, Scotland Touch Rugby and England Walking Football.

Throughout your studies you will have the opportunity to strengthen your CV by undertaking a variety of additional discounted qualifications. These have previously included Kinesio Taping, Sports Massage Level 3, Fitness Instructor Level 2, Acupuncture, among others.

You can find out more about being s Sport Therapy student at Derby by following us on Instagram.

Professional Accreditation

Our degree has been designed in partnership with The Society of Sports Therapists to ensure you graduate with a nationally recognised qualification and a professional standing within the world of sports therapy.

On this course, you will have the opportunity to become a member of the society and upon graduation, you will be eligible to apply for full membership as a graduate sports therapist. Many jobs within the sports therapy and rehabilitation arena require applicants to be registered with the Society of Sport Therapists, so this will help you to stand out in the graduate job market.

Get involved in research

Our teaching team are active in research and incorporate their latest findings into their teaching to ensure you have the most up-to-date course content to underpin your practice as a therapist. Previous students have taken part in developing the Fit2Go Screening Project, which identifies and tracks a targeted approach to physical activity, training and general wellbeing.

The team are also conducting a study in collaboration with Nottingham Trent University examining the utility of thermal imaging as a tool to assess and monitor musculoskeletal injury to aid the rehabilitation process.

Boost your employability with a placement year

Take an optional placement year to put your skills into practice in a real-world setting. We will support you in finding a placement and throughout your time in industry. It is a great way to gain valuable experience for your CV, build contacts, and explore career options before you graduate.

Please note that our modules are subject to change - we review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects.

You will learn through a combination of:

• clinics
• lectures
• practical sessions
• seminars
• laboratories
• workshops
• tutorials
• guided self-study

During your studies, you will have the opportunity to apply your growing knowledge and skills to evaluate research, sharpen your clinical decision-making, and shape your approach as a professional sports therapist.

How you will be assessed

The course is designed to develop the professional, academic, and scientific skills essential for becoming a research-informed, industry-ready sports therapist and rehabilitator. Assessment methods include:

• oral presentations
• structured clinical examinations
• written projects, problem solving exercises
• professional development work
• exercise prescription tasks
• essays
• practical viva voce
• case studies

After graduation, you will be equipped for a rewarding and challenging role in sports therapy and rehabilitation. As our course is aligned to the professional guidelines set out by The Society of Sports Therapists, you will be fully prepared to operate as an injury and exercise-based rehabilitation and fitness specialist.  You may also be capable of working in multi/inter-disciplinary healthcare teams.

If you want to take your knowledge of sport to the next level, this degree also acts as a gateway to postgraduate education, with opportunities for you to progress to masters level courses such as our innovative MSc Clinical Exercise Science and MSc Applied Sport and Exercise Science.

Contextual offers may apply to students who meet certain criteria.

If you're an international student and want to improve your English language skills before you start your course, the Derby English Language Centre's pre-sessional English course can help you. 

Further information about our fees and support you may be entitled to

Additional costs and optional extras

Additional information about your studies

Teaching hours

Like most universities, we operate extended teaching hours at the University of Derby, so contact time with your lecturers and tutors could be anytime between 9am and 9pm. Your timetable will usually be available on the website 24 hours after enrolment on to your course.

Course updates

The information provided on this page is correct at the time of publication but course content, costs and other individual course details do change from time to time and are updated as often as possible, so please do check these pages again when making your final decision to apply for a course. Any updated course details will also be confirmed to you at application, enrolment and in your offer letter.

If you are thinking about transferring onto this course (into the second year for example), you should contact the programme leader for the relevant course information as modules may vary from those shown on this page.