Sports courses

About Sports Strength & Conditioning – Bsc (honours) in Limerick Institute of Technology

What is the programme about?

The programme is built around two pillars: strength/conditioning and business/technology. This combination places the programme in a unique position among sports programmes offered in Ireland. Practical sports strength and conditioning competencies are growing areas of interest and employment, both in Ireland and internationally. The Strength and Conditioning Coach is becoming a central and key figure in preparing and advancing the fitness and performance status of the individual athlete and team both in professional sport and also in amateur and recreational sport. Strength and conditioning coaches people towards optimal performance and injury prevention through the application of knowledge gained through many discipline areas such as sports science and exercise physiology. 

Students are prepared for the UK Strength and Conditioning Association, ITEC Gym Instruction and the United States National Strength and Conditioning Association exams. This ensures successful graduates have the highest international standing. The programme also has strong links for work placement and research with Ireland’s leading sporting organisations. 

A modern Strength and Conditioning Coach will also have additional skills that utilise advances in technology to impact on the development of the athlete, player and team; as well as requiring the core elements of business to be flexible in applying his/her strength and conditioning skills. 

The Thurles campus has an elite state-of-the-art sports strength and conditioning facility. Among the facilities in the 2,000 square metre SportsLab are a unique 3D Organic Motion Capture System for motion analysis; a 45m, six lane sprint track especially designed to improve speed; a Paralympic area; cable machines; a range of sport technology systems, including micro electro mechanical systems and GPS systems; Olympic lifting platform; five functional screening kits; weights and the full range of exercise machines. The 3D ‘marker-less’ Motion Capture System is a key component of the facility as it is the only unit of its kind in Europe and among the most advanced in the world. The unit tracks athlete’s motion to pin point technique issues and also identify injury risks. It also has applications for non-sport movement analysis. The SportsLab will greatly enhance students’ practical learning on the programme.

​Who is the programme suited to?

The programme is suited to students who wish to become members of sports training professional bodies and pursue careers as top sports strength and conditioning coaches or entrepreneurs in the growing fitness industry.

Top 3 Reasons

1 Our lecturers are practitioners in their fields of expertise and have experience of Sports Strength and Conditioning at the top level of Irish and international sport.

2 The Strength and Conditioning Coach is becoming a central and key figure in preparing and advancing the fitness and performance status of the individual athlete and team in professional and amateur sport.

3 This unique combination of both sports and business skills equips students to participate in the highly competitive and increasingly commercial world of sport.

Class Contact Hours

Year 1: 24 hours 
Year 2: 22 hours 
Year 3: 20 hours 
Year 4: 18 hours

Did You Know?

Exchange Opportunities

Students can attend Canadore College as exchange students in Year 2. 

http://www.canadorecollege.ca/programs-courses/strength-and-sport-conditioning ​

Graduate Profile

“The launch by Setanta College and LIT-Tipperary of a BSc (Hons) in Sports Strength and Conditioning, which will be delivered in partnership by the two colleges in Thurles is a welcome development for sport in Ireland. As this degree is open to both school leavers and mature learners, there is a real opportunity for those GPA members who wish to return to full time education and learn the science behind their sport. Once qualified, graduates will be at the cutting edge of the future development and advancement of Gaelic games, utilising the knowledge gained from progressive modules such as; Sports Psychology, Speed Development and Coaching Technology, which will provide important long-term benefits for our games and our players."

Dessie Farrell ,CEO, Gaelic Players’ Association (GPA)

Further Studies

The programme aims to equip students with a qualification that has an international competitive standing in the marketplace and the skills that are pivotal to the Strength and Conditioning practitioner. On completion of the programme, graduates are expected to gain employment in sports organisations, sports’ national governing bodies, sporting clubs and colleges, health and fitness industry, community activity programmes and private enterprise.

Entry Requirement

Leaving Certificate: A minimum of 2 H5 & 4 O6/H7 grades in six Leaving Certificate subjects, including Mathematics and English or Irish. FETAC Applicants and Mature Applicants: Refer to section ‘Entry Requirements’ for further information.

​​​CAO

Please visit www.cao.ie for further information on how to apply to this course.

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