Gustavus offers first ever master's program focused on athletic training
Jan. 28—ST. PETER — Students interested in careers in athletic training and related fields can now pursue their master's degree at Gustavus Adolphus College.
The Master of Athletic Training is the college's first-ever master's degree program. It will address current and projected labor shortages and changing national certification requirements for athletic training while capitalizing on the school's nearly 50-year history of athletic training education.
Gustavus will begin accepting applications for the program in the fall of 2023, and the first cohort of students will begin in the summer of 2024.
"I'm so excited," said program director Mary Westby. "This has been a long time coming."
The push to create the program came about several years ago when national certification requirements for athletic trainers had changed. No longer could students sit for the national certification exam with a bachelor's degree. They needed, at minimum, a master's degree.
With Gustavus' long and successful history of athletic training education — graduating 334 students from its undergraduate athletic training program since it was established in 1976 — and with athletic training quickly growing as a profession, the college decided to step up to meet the demands.
The masters program also will allow the college to reach a wider audience of students seeking graduate studies.
Gustavus MAT students will get the foundations of a liberal arts education while also getting to work closely with the college's faculty to gain hands-on experience with student athletes across all 23 sports at Gustavus.
The program is structured as a 3+2 program, meaning students can obtain both a bachelor's and a master's degree from Gustavus in five years.
Current Gustavus sophomores will be eligible to apply to the MAT program in the fall of their junior year as part of the first 3+2 cohort.
Students now at other schools may apply to the two-year program during their junior year and begin at Gustavus after they've received their bachelor's degree.
The program will have up to 20 slots, with first-priority seats reserved for current Gustavus students.
"Being at the master's level allows that flexibility for us to schedule classes around clinicals," Westby said. "We've created a two-year program where our second year students will do all of their coursework online, allowing them to have clinical experiences anywhere in the country."
Prior to that, as first-year graduate students, they will be exposed to a foundation of skills during on-campus coursework and local clinical experiences.
Gustavus will be the only college in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference currently offering this degree.
"We're just really excited and welcome anyone who has any questions to reach out at any time," Westby said.
