Congratulations on your interest in pursuing a Masters degree in Kinesiology (or Physical Education and Exercise Science)! We hope that these web pages provide you with the information you need in order to see if the MS program at UND is right for you.

Here are a couple of useful links to get you started if you are interested in Graduate School at the University of North Dakota.

Request for Information and Graduate School Online Application

Please use the following links to help you learn about our MS in Kinesiology Graduate Program

Introduction and Mission
Program Description and Requirements
Graduate Courses and Scheduling
Admission Requirements
Assistantship Information
Faculty Information
Information for Current Graduate Students

Introduction and Mission:

The Department of PXW takes pride in its ability to offer individualized programs of study that lead to the Master of Science (MS: thesis or non-thesis option) degree in Kinesiology. The Kinesiology program provides students with opportunities to study the scientific foundations of Kinesiology as well as several of its professional applications. Faculty and students work together to develop programs of study to meet the MS degree requirements, to assist with students' academic and professional goals, and to contribute to the department's mission.

Our program is designed to individually cater to students who are interested in a variety of areas in Kinesiology (such as exercise physiology, sport and exercise psychology, fitness/wellness, sports coaching and teacher education).

The faculty in the Department of Physical Education and Exercise Science believes that individuals and society benefit from physical activity. Thus, the mission of the Department is to promote enhanced quality of life through participation in physical activity, exercise and sport for the people of North Dakota and beyond. Specifically, this mission is accomplished through:

• The provision of quality teacher education and other professional preparation programs at both the undergraduate and graduate level
• Creative and scholarly activity which leads to discovery and dissemination of professional and disciplinary knowledge
• Contribution of professional expertise and talents as a service to the community, university and profession.

Program Description and Requirements

Regardless of your specific interest area (e.g., exercise physiology, sport and exercise psychology, fitness/wellness, sports coaching and teacher education), the degree requirements for an MS in Kinesiology are:

• A major of at least 30 (thesis) or 32 (non-thesis) credits or a major with a minor or a cognate.
• Completion of PXW 501 (Research Methods in Kinesiology; 4 credits) and 561 (Critical Synthesis and Analysis in Kinesiology; 2 credits).
• Completion of a thesis (4-6 credits) or independent study (2 credits).

For those who choose the Thesis option

• Establish a Faculty Advisory Committee and submit a Program of Study early in the second semester.

For those who choose the Non-thesis option

• Select a permanent advisor and submit a Program of Study early in the second semester.
• Pass a written and oral final comprehensive examination administered by the department's graduate faculty.

Note: Thesis or Non-thesis, that is the question. The decision to complete a thesis or independent study should be made on the basis of your future goals. Generally we recommend a thesis when a student aspires to continuing their higher education.

See the section on recent graduates to read titles of thesis research completed by our graduate students.

Graduate Courses and Scheduling

NOTE:

• PXW 501, 526, and 561 are offered each year during Spring Semester
• All other courses with the exception of PXW 555 (to be determined) are offered once every two years
• During 2009-2010, course proposals for two new graduate classes (currently using PXW 555) will be submitted. These are: "Physical Activity Epidemiology" and "Sports Nutrition".

As you can see, there are more courses listed in the academic catalog than what we have included in our 2-year class rotation. There is the potential to offer a course depending on student interests at the time. We have offered some graduate courses each summer and the graduate faculty members are extremely accommodating to student needs in that they regularly supervise directed readings, individual research courses and internships when students request it. These courses are effective because they allow students to individualize their programs of study. Internships seem very effective as a lot of our students get job offers based on these experiences. In addition, internship sites have been used for thesis data collection.

Our class sizes are generally small which allows for a "hands on" orientation. Some courses, like exercise physiology and biomechanics, use labs (experiential learning). Our courses are oriented towards contemporary issues. Recent student survey responses show that students enjoyed our approach to teaching. For example, here are a few comments that were given for a question asking about the "strengths" of our graduate program: "small class sizes;" "required us to do field work observation, coaching, interviews, etc.;" "flexibility of staff to work with designing program to meet needs of individual;" "I think working with my advisor and the open discussion in class. We were all encouraged to give out opinions and views, which made learning more about thinking and not memorization."

Here are some examples of programs of studies according to students’ interest areas. Of course, each program of study is individualized, and several courses may be taken outside of our department in areas such as education, nutrition, counseling, psychology, etc. Internships, directed readings, and individual research courses can be taken for all areas.

Admission Requirements

As listed in the Academic Catalog, admission requirements are as follows:

• A minimum of 20 semester credits of undergraduate work in kinesiology, physical education and related areas
• A personal statement of academic goals, which will be used to evaluate the adequacy and appropriateness of undergraduate preparation
• An applicant without satisfactory undergraduate preparation may be admitted to the program, but will be required to remove deficiencies by completing the necessary undergraduate courses without receiving graduate credit for them
• Satisfactory test scores on the Graduate Record Examination (General test)

As you can see, we require students to have an adequate background in Kinesiology but an applicant without satisfactory undergraduate preparation may be admitted but will be required to remove deficiencies by completing necessary undergraduate courses without receiving graduate credit for them. More specifically, we require our graduate students to have at least one course in 4 areas:

• Exercise physiology or biomechanics
• Sport or exercise psychology or sport sociology
• Motor learning or motor development
• Adapted PE

We consider these courses to be reflective of adequate undergraduate preparation as they are key areas in PXW.

Our standards for admission vary but generally we pay most attention to GPA, reference letters and the statement of goals. Undergraduate GPAs should be 2.75+ or 3.0+ over the last two years. In general, GRE scores above 900 (Verbal plus Quantitative), and neither score below 400 is considered adequate.

Assistantship Information

We would like to emphasize that your decision to come to UND should be based primarily on your perception of the graduate program serving your future needs. More simply stated, chose a graduate program first, and worry about assistantships later. It is possible that if you accept an assistantship first, and then chose a program, you may find that the program does not meet your career goals.

We encourage you to apply to our graduate program as early in the year as possible. In most cases, assistantships and tuition waivers for the upcoming year are assigned by May.

The PXW department has several Graduate Teaching Assistantships to award each year. GTAs provide the graduate student with a tuition waiver and stipend.

GTA duties can range from covering Basic Instruction Program classes for the entire university community to covering undergraduate minor and major courses in PXW. In addition, some of the GTA duties include duties as lab assistants.

Our policy has been to only offer GTA support for a maximum of 4 semesters per student although exceptions are made in special circumstances (especially when we have exceptional GTAs who have the proven capacity to assist in the overall mission of the department).

We typically give priority to our second year graduate students. This is because we like our GTAs to "sit in" on a class before teaching it. However, we do have resources set aside for first year students in the form of special tuition waivers.

The PXW department offers no formal assistantships for research. Research experience has been accrued by most graduate students as part of their coursework and thesis work.

Several of our graduate students are employed by the UND Athletics Department as coaching assistants. If this is something you are interested in, you should contact the coach of the particular sport you are inquiring about to see if an opportunity will be available in your interest area.

Some of our graduate students have also held assistantships with the Wellness Center. Again, contact them if this is something you are interested in.

Information for Current Graduate Students

Here's a few links that should help you while you are here.

PXW Online Guide to Graduating
Graduate School
Graduate School Handbook
Graduate School Forms

Please contact james.whitehead@und.nodak.edu if you need Graduate program information