What You’ll Learn

You’ll gain an understanding of general sports medicine along with specialized knowledge in a wide variety of topics essential for careers in Athletic Training. These include rehabilitation and prevention of injuries, therapeutic exercise, strategies to facilitate optimal performance, and the physiology of body constitution, among many others. You’ll be ready for graduate study en route to a career as a Certified Athletic Trainer.

Outside the Classroom, In the Community

Pre-AT students will complete four semesters of clinical once they enter the MAT program.  Clinical opportunities include working with athletic training preceptors within sports medicine clinics at VTSU Castleton, Middlebury College, and area high schools, as well as medical rotations at the Vermont Orthopedic Clinic, Rutland Regional Medical Center Emergency Department, Rutland Regional Ambulance Service, and the Community Health Center Castleton.   

Special Facilities

Vermont State’s research-quality exercise physiology laboratories provide a location for laboratory activities, faculty research, and student research, and contain specialized equipment including metabolic carts, a military-grade treadmill with harness, electrocardiograms, a Veletron cycle ergometer, and a BodPod.   

Our on-campus fitness facilities provide a location for students to train, practice, and apply techniques and programming learned in the classroom, and our athletic training rooms provide an opportunity for students to assist our head athletic trainers and gain unique hands-on experience.  

Certifications

Students in the Pre-Athletic Training Concentration also prepare for national certification examinations, including the National Strength and Conditioning Association Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS). The CSCS national certification is focused on working with the athletic population and is a unique opportunity to set yourself apart from other Athletic Training graduate school or job applicants.