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Football Science - Part Time at Southampton, Solent University - UCAS

Course options

2024 - 20252025 - 2026
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Course summary

Designed specifically for those working in a professional football environment, this master’s degree will enable you to develop and enhance your existing knowledge and skills in elite football. We’ve been at the forefront of football education for nearly two decades and our football programmes have emerged as leading supplier of graduates to the football industry. Our graduates have gone on to careers in the English Premier League as well as national federations overseas. If you are already working in a professional football environment, this master’s degree is perfect for you. You'll apply your skills in four main strands of study: Talent identification and recruitment (performance analysis) Training and competition demands (sports science) Rehabilitation and return to play (strength and conditioning) Team leadership and management dynamics (coaching and leadership) This will help to enhance your experience and knowledge with the application of a multidisciplinary age-appropriate programme for the development of academy through to professional players. In addition, you’ll develop your supervisory and people management skills by gaining greater insight into leadership, providing you with further career opportunities. You'll take advantage of the University's extensive professional network in the game and attend regular lectures from guest speakers, including players, coaches, analysts and performance staff, allowing you to learn from and interact with experts who have first-hand, high-level experience within the game. You'll benefit from the University's official partnership with Southampton FC, with access to real-world industry experience as part of the curriculum, including professional coaching and development from coaching, recruitment and performance staff. And the course team has close connections with a number of professional football clubs in the UK and overseas, as well as professional bodies within the sport. The team also has strong links with professional bodies and industry experts in other sports, as well as with governing and regulatory bodies. As part of the course you’ll also be eligible to enrol onto BASES Supervised Experience, the recognised path to full BASES-accredited Sport and Exercise Scientist and Chartered Scientist status. If appropriate, some students with prior experience may choose to receive guidance and support in the application for direct entry to accreditation. This course is specifically for those currently connected with the professional football industry in the UK, Europe and further afield in sport science support, coaching and player development, performance analysis and talent ID and performance departments.

Modules

• Year one modules Core modules

  • Training and Competitive Demands
This module investigates the concept of periodisation - specifically the division of a yearly training plan into training phases which apply to the principles of training. Students will examine the intricacies and considerations of sequential planning, including the factors influencing the demands of a player, such as physical capacity, technical qualities, playing position, tactical role and style of playing, as well as ball possession of the team, quality of opponent, importance of the game, season period, playing surface and environmental factors.
  • Team Leadership and Management
This module is designed to advance football practitioners and provide the necessary skillset to becoming a departmental lead or head.
  • Talent Identification and Recruitment
In this module, students will explore and understand the roles and responsibilities of a talent and recruitment department. Students will develop an awareness of good practice and identify various techniques, processes, and procedures commonly used within the talent ID field to promote successful player recruitment. • Year two modules Core modules
  • Rehabilitation and Return to Play
This module will develop skills in football injury rehabilitation. The aim is to introduce the concepts of injury and rehabilitation management, supported by evidence-based practice. The module also offers the opportunity to develop students' knowledge and understanding of physiology to an applied sport-specific setting.
  • Independent Project
This is a student-led module with the content largely determined by the student under the guidance of their supervision tutor. Students have the opportunity to undertake a sustained, intensive and independent investigation into a theme of their choosing and present their work in a peer reviewed journal format.
  • Supervised Experience
Students will undertake a placement (up to 150 hours) in a sport science/football science setting to improve and enhance their scientific knowledge, technical and problem-solving skills, and professional competencies, and to understand the roles and responsibilities of a talent and recruitment department. The module will enable students to start to construct a portfolio, which will begin to demonstrate key competencies required to attain BASES Accredited Sport and Exercise Scientist status.

How to apply

International applicants

PART-TIME: Please note that we are unable to sponsor international students who require a Student Route Visa on part-time courses due to UKVI regulations. Applicants who do not have English as their first language will be required to demonstrate an approved level of proficiency in the use of the English language

Entry requirements

• Minimum 2:1 from a sport science or other related degree • Applicants will be required to interview • Applicants must be working in a professional football environment Language Requirements Applicants who do not have English as their first language will be required to demonstrate an approved level of proficiency in the use of the English language. The agreed minimum requirements for this course are: • IELTS minimum 6.0 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each individual component • TOEFL IBT 92 with a minimum of 22 in writing and a minimum of 20 in reading, listening and speaking • Duolingo English Language Test - 115 overall with minimum of 100 in each component or equivalent. Qualifications are checked before enrolment, and international students must bring their original certificates or certified copies when coming to study at the University.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

Northern Ireland £5200 Year 1
Scotland £5200 Year 1
Wales £5200 Year 1
Channel Islands £5200 Year 1
England £5200 Year 1

Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .

Additional fee information

While most course costs are covered by your tuition fees, some essential resources and optional extras may need to be paid for separately. These additional costs are listed below. For advice on budgeting and managing your money, please contact [email protected]. The 2025/26 other costs are not yet available, for guidance the 2024/25 costs were: Compulsory costs Students must purchase a Solent sports kit. As a package, this will cost approximately £135. Students are required to undertake DBS criminal records checks as part of their enrolment. This is compulsory and is payable by the student at a cost of £60. The DBS check is organised by the University.

Sponsorship information

Solent University offers a range of bursaries and scholarships that provide financial assistance or waive fees for tuition or accommodation. Each bursary or scholarship has specific eligibility criteria. Check out our bursaries and scholarships pages to find out more.

Football Science - Part Time at Southampton, Solent University - UCAS