• Description of Program
• Degree Requirements
• Special Opportunities
• Careers

Description of Program

Exercise physiology is broadly based on basic sciences: human anatomy, physiology, chemistry, and biology. The primary goal of this field is to understand how the various cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems respond to challenges posed by exercise and physical training. Exercise physiology focuses on optimal performance such as that attained by elite and highly trained athletes. Unlike many fields, exercise physiology has remained integrative, examining how the failure or enhancement of one physiological system can influence another. The field also considers how the environment imposes limits on the body during exercise through such means as heat, cold, humidity, and altitude.

Degree Requirements

Courses required for this degree are prescribed by an advisory committee for each individual student. Degree requirements include:

• A minimum of 90 graduate-level credits beyond the bachelor’s degree are required.
• A minimum 3.0 GPA is required for graduation.
• A minimum grade of C is required in each course used to satisfy the major, minor, and elective requirements of the course prescription.
• A minimum grade of B is required in each course used to satisfy the research skills requirement of the course prescription.

Common Prerequisite

All Ph.D. degree students in the School of Public Health-Bloomington are required to complete a basic, graduate-level statistics course, such as SPH-Q 501, Introduction to Statistics in Public Health (3 cr.). This course, or its equivalent from another Indiana University department or from another university, must be completed as a prerequisite to major course work. Credit for SPH-Q 501 or any statistics course at the same basic level, may not count toward a Ph.D. degree student’s 90 required credits. However, a student's faculty advisory committee may waive this prerequisite requirement upon successful completion of a more advanced, graduate-level, statistics course at Indiana University, or at another institution. At the discretion of the student's faculty advisory committee, credit for statistics courses, which are more advanced than SPH-Q 501, may count in the 90 required credits for the degree.

Common Requirements

All Ph.D. degree students in the School of Public Health-Bloomington are required to complete the following three requirements:

• SPH-X 590, Introduction to Research in Health, Kinesiology, and Recreation (3 cr.), or its equivalent. (Note: This course must be completed as a prerequisite to major course work.)
• SPH-X 505, Principles and Foundations of Public Health (3 cr.), or its equivalent. (Note: Students who have previously completed an MPH degree from an accredited school of public health, or accredited public health program, are exempt from this requirement. Students who are completing requirements concurrently for an M.P.H. degree and a Ph.D. degree are also exempt from this requirement.)
• SPH-E 651, Epidemiology (3 cr.), or its equivalent.

Common Course Prescription Components

The elements of the course prescription for all Ph.D. degree students in the School of Public Health are arranged as follows:

• Research Skills (9 credits minimum). A minimum of 9 credits of coursework providing required skills to conduct research, such as advanced courses in biostatistics. These credits count toward the 90 credits for the degree. Courses counted in this area require a minimum grade of B.
• Major Area of Study (30 credits minimum). A minimum of 30 credits in the major area of study. These courses must be taken within the School of Public Health-Bloomington. Courses transferred from previous graduate work outside the School of Public Health-Bloomington, if within the major area of study, can be used to fulfill the major areas of study requirement, contingent upon the committee’s approval.
• Minor Area of Study (9 credits minimum). A minimum of 9 credits of coursework in a designated area outside the department in which the major is being pursued.
• Electives (0 to 28 credits). Elective credits may range between 0 and 28. An optional second minor may be included in the elective credit hours.
• Dissertation (20 – 30 credits)

Special Opportunities

Students at the undergraduate and graduate levels can assist in a wide variety of ongoing research experiments in the exercise physiology laboratories.

Careers

• Careers for M.S.: Preparation toward Ph.D. programs; research-related positions at research laboratories.
• Careers for Ph.D.: Graduates are qualified for research and teaching positions at universities, sports organizations, and medical centers.