Psychology in Sport & Exercise BSc (Hons) (with Foundation Year)
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UCAS Code: C894|Duration: 4 years|Full Time|Hope Park
UCAS Campus Code: L46
Accredited|Work placement opportunities|International students can apply|Study Abroad opportunities
About the course
Psychology in Sport & Exercise blends with how people view the world. It explores their thoughts, problem-solving skills, and interactions in sports and exercise. Our Psychology in Sport & Exercise degree merges Psychology with Sport and Exercise Science. This blend helps you learn key psychological theories and apply them in various sport and exercise settings.
You’ll use an interdisciplinary approach. This will help you get ready for roles in elite sports, exercise, and community health. The curriculum features high-quality, research-informed teaching from skilled lecturers who share their expertise. The degree emphasises a tailored, skills-based experience with a strong foundation in knowledge and research. You’ll gain key skills that you can use in many areas. This lets you see how Psychology in Sport & Exercise affects different groups and situations.
You'll learn in our excellent research facilities. These include labs for cognition and perception experiments, an eye tracker lab, an EEG lab, and an fNIRS lab. You’ll also have access to observational and transcription labs. Your lecturers will support you in becoming an independent learner, encouraging you to question the world around you. Ethical issues related to wellbeing, competition, and research will also be emphasised.
Course structure
Teaching on the Psychology in Sport & Exercise degree is structured into lectures, where all students are taught together, seminars in smaller groups of around 15–20 students, and tutorials typically with no more than 10 students.
In the first year of the course, students have approximately 12 teaching hours each week, which reduces to around 10 hours in the second and third years. In addition to face-to-face teaching, you are expected to dedicate a number of hours each week to independent study, including group work to prepare for any collaborative assessments.
Accreditation
Our single honours degree is accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and upon completion of your studies you will become eligible for Graduate Basis of Chartered Membership (GBC). This will give you access to the postgraduate training courses of the BPS and will be your first major step in becoming a professional psychologist.
Assessment and feedback
You will complete a number of formative and summative assessments both individually and working in groups. This includes written exams, essays, reports, portfolios, presentations, and assessed laboratory work. In the final year all students complete an individual empirical research project (dissertation).
Written feedback is provided for all coursework, along with the opportunity to discuss this in more detail with your tutor.
Foundation Year
The Foundation Year is a great opportunity if you have the ability and enthusiasm to study for a degree, but do not yet have the qualifications required to enter directly onto our degree programmes. A significant part of the Foundation Year focuses upon core skills such as academic writing at HE level, becoming an independent learner, structuring academic work, critical thinking, time management and note taking.
Successful completion of the Foundation Year will enable you to progress into the first year (Level C) of your chosen honours degree. Further details can be found here.
Year One
In the first year of the Psychology in Sport & Exercise course, you will explore What is Psychology to develop an understanding of the historical and conceptual issues related to psychology as a scientific discipline. You will learn how to ask questions and consider whether humans are more than a set of psychological processes. Following this, the Individual and Group Perspectives module develops awareness of social psychology, personality, and individual differences. You will study topics such as conflict, attitudes, altruism and prosocial behaviour, and discrimination. You will also engage in Research Design and Analysis, developing key skills around ethical considerations, research design, and methods of analysis.
The course provides a broad knowledge of the key themes underpinning sport psychology, including the psychology of sport, sport sociology, coaching and teaching, motor behaviour, and sport management. Students explore the four main principles of coaching—talent ID, development, children and young people, and community—and consider these from both coaching and teaching perspectives using differing approaches to learning, such as Teaching Games for Understanding.
You will also study the codification and history of sport, the development of sport in the community, and differing ideologies of sport, as well as the impact of sport on local and national identity. Key psychological theories about motivation, confidence, and personality are assessed in relation to their impact on participation and performance in sport.
Year Two
In the second year of the Psychology in Sport & Exercise course, the focus shifts to cognitive and developmental psychology while continuing the training provided in research design and analysis. In Vision and Cognition, you will study visual perception, memory, attention, and language. The Developmental Psychology module covers maturational changes, biological factors in development, and emotional influences across the lifespan. Research Design and Analysis 2 introduces more complex research designs in quantitative psychology and also explores qualitative methods (e.g., observation, thematic analysis) and mixed-methods approaches to research. A key emphasis is placed on developing a critical awareness of ethics in psychological research.
You will further broaden your understanding of sport psychology by exploring themes centred on health and wellbeing and their impact on sport performance, participation, and psychological wellbeing. Topics include theories of exercise behaviour, body image, and motivation/barriers to exercise. You will study motor control and the importance of attention in both performance and learning. The course also examines key contemporary issues in the field, including the globalisation and commercialisation of sport, the influence of outside agencies such as the media, and the management and governance of sport. In addition, you will investigate guidelines and strategies for promoting physical activity.
Year Three
In the final year of the course, you will examine psychological functioning at a biological and cellular level in Biological Psychology, connecting this knowledge back to societal and individual issues studied in years one and two. Topics include brain plasticity, reward circuits, and neuroscientific methods. In Motivation and Emotion, you will explore the principles and processes associated with motivational goals, including growth mindsets, social-emotional intelligence, and aggression. You will also have the opportunity to study Future Challenges for Psychology, critically reflecting on the discipline’s future and the challenges and opportunities related to identity and wellbeing, an aging population, globalisation, and environmental changes.
All students on the BSc Psychology in Sport & Exercise course complete an independent empirical research project, the Dissertation. This allows you to explore an area of personal interest in-depth under the supervision of a lecturer in sport psychology. A series of lectures and workshops support the dissertation, helping you develop the skills needed to conduct independent research.
The final year also emphasises psychophysiology, with practical work examining motor control using state-of-the-art equipment. You will study psychological skills training and its application to enhance preparation and sport performance, as well as topics such as perfectionism, mental health and wellbeing, and effective career transitions. Additionally, you can tailor your degree by selecting one of the 12-week Specialist Seminars, which may include topics such as Cognition and Wellbeing, Forensic Psychology, Psychology of Addictions, or Perception and Action in Training and Rehabilitation.*
*Subject to change
Entry requirements
There may be some flexibility for mature students offering non-tariff qualifications and students meeting particular widening participation criteria.
Careers
The Psychology in Sport & Exercise degree represents the first step towards a professional career in Sport Psychology. As the course is accredited by the British Psychological Society, it allows students to apply for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC). Graduates of Sport Psychology go on to work as Sport Psychologists in professional sports, work on health-based exercise intervention programmes, and wider community-based projects. Other career routes of past graduates have included performance enhancement specialists and lifestyle consultants.
Additionally, the degree provides an excellent foundation for postgraduate study, especially for those who are interested in careers in teaching, research, and academia. With their interest in working with people and their good research, problem-solving, and communication skills, graduates of Sport Psychology are also well placed in many other areas such as health and social care, business, management, and marketing.
Enhancement opportunities
SALA
The Service and Leadership Award (SALA) is offered as an extra-curricular programme involving service-based experiences, development of leadership potential and equipping you for a career in a rapidly changing world. It enhances your degree, it is something which is complimentary but different and which has a distinct ‘value-added’ component. Find out more on our Service and Leadership Award page.
Study Abroad
As part of your degree, you can choose to spend either a semester or a full year of study at one of our partner universities as part of our Study Abroad programme. Find out more on our Study Abroad page.
Tuition fees
The 2026/27 tuition fee for this course is £9,790.
Additional costs
On top of your tuition fees, you need approximately £200 to cover the cost of any fieldtrips and to buy key textbooks.
There is a small cost for student BPS membership, and once you graduate, there is a registration fee and annual fee thereafter for Graduate Membership – full details of costs can be found on the BPS website.
Many students find it useful to have a laptop during their studies. Any laptop will be fine; however, we do not recommend a Chromebook as this does not support some of the psychology-specific software that you will need in your degree.
You will also need to consider the cost of your accommodation each year whilst you study at university. Visit our accommodation pages for further details about our Halls of Residence.
Scholarships
We have a range of scholarships to help with the cost of your studies. Visit our scholarships page to find out more.
International tuition fees
The International Tuition fees for 2026/27 are £15,225.
Visit our International fees page for more information.
Course combinations
With Foundation year, this degree is only available to study as a Single Honours course.
Course Enquiry
Got a question about the course? Complete the form below and a member of our team will be in touch.