Associate in Arts, Emphasis in Exercise Science

Attention: This program does not include the following courses required for completion:

1. BIO181 - This course is available at CGCC, EMCC, GWCC, GCC, MCC, PVCC, PC, SCC, SMCC.

2. EXS101 - This course is available at CGCC, GCC, MCC, PVCC, SCC, SMCC.

3. EXS290 - This course is available at CGCC, GCC, MCC, PVCC, SCC, SMCC.

Due to the pandemic, courses are being offered online or in hybrid formats. Please contact a Rio advisor for the most current information. This program of study includes in person components. All courses completed at any Maricopa Community College are transferable to Rio based on District policy. Estimated additional costs would be consistent with your current tuition rate.

The Associate in Arts (AA), Emphasis in Exercise Science provides the first two years of a four-year curriculum for students who wish to specialize in Exercise Science, Kinesiology, Clinical Exercise Physiology, Sport Science, Healthy Lifestyles Coaching, or Fitness and Wellness. With a bachelor degree, students may pursue a career as a fitness specialist or director, strength and conditioning specialist, healthy lifestyles coach, or an exercise physiologist. With a graduate degree, students may pursue careers in a number of fields, including but not limited to physical therapy, occupational therapy, athletic training, exercise physiology, medicine, and physician assistant. Certificates of Completion (CCLs) in Personal Trainer and Personal Trainer Advanced as well as an Associate in Applied Science (AAS) in Exercise Science: Health, Fitness, and Sports Performance are also available.

What You'll Learn

This pathway map will help you gain the expertise needed to:

Examine human movement using a fundamental understanding of human anatomy and physiology and the relevant scientific concepts of biology, the physical sciences, and psychology.
Integrate knowledge of the human body and psychological concepts to promote health and well-being in self and others.
Locate and critically evaluate relevant scholarly literature.
Use relevant scholarly literature, quantitative and qualitative reasoning, and statistical analysis to inform decision making and solve problems.
Interpret foundational assessments of health and human movement.
Design basic movement programs.
Effectively communicate with diverse audiences and within varied contexts.
Collaborate with diverse individuals to achieve common goals.
Integrate social and ethical responsibility in decision making and actions.
Demonstrate dependability, adaptability, and persistence to set and achieve goals.

Career Opportunities

Successful completion of this degree may lead to employment in a variety of different occupations and industries. Below are examples of related occupations with associated Arizona-based annual median wages* for this program. Education requirements vary for the occupations listed below, so you may need further education or degrees in order to qualify for some of these jobs and earn the related salaries. Please visit with an academic advisor and/or program director for additional information.

Athletic Trainers

$42,010 Show expanded career information for Athletic Trainers

Community Health Workers

$38,730 Show expanded career information for Community Health Workers

Exercise Physiologists

$51,590 Show expanded career information for Exercise Physiologists

Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors

$41,920 Show expanded career information for Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors

Health Education Specialists

$45,070 Show expanded career information for Health Education Specialists

Occupational Therapists

$90,730 Show expanded career information for Occupational Therapists

Physical Therapists

$88,840 Show expanded career information for Physical Therapists

Physician Assistants

$112,220 Show expanded career information for Physician Assistants

* Wage information sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics Program. Updated May 2019.

Course Sequence by Term

The following is the suggested course sequence by term. Please keep in mind:

Students should meet with an academic advisor to develop an individual education plan that meets their academic and career goals. Use the Pathway Planner tool in your Student Center to manage your plan.
The course sequence is laid out by suggested term and may be affected when students enter the program at different times of the year.
Initial course placement is determined by current district placement measures and/or completion of 100-200 level course and/or program requirements.
Degree and transfer seeking students may be required to successfully complete a MCCCD First Year Experience Course (FYE) within the first two semesters at a MCCCD College. Courses include AAA/CPD150, AAA/CPD150AC, CPD104, and AAA115/CPD115. Course offerings will vary by college. See an academic, program, or faculty advisor for details.

Pathway Map Options

There are multiple options available for this pathway map. These options vary depending on the available transfer institutions and what degrees you may be able to transfer into.

These pathway map options may share some common coursework. To explore what additional coursework may be required, select your desired option from the list below. Once selected, the list of courses and any associated details will be automatically updated.

Additional courses that are specific to your selected option will be highlighted with a blue border. Depending on your selected option, the blue bordered courses may replace the gray bordered courses found in the other options.

Associate in Arts, Emphasis in Exercise Science
General Pre-Physical Therapy Pathway
Arizona State University (College of Health Solutions), Kinesiology, Bachelor of Science

Full-time
Part-time

Full-time Sequence

Full-time status is 12 credits to 18 credits per semester.

A list of additional requirements for this pathway map
Awareness Areas
In addition to the requirements identified in the sequence below, students must complete the following awareness areas if not otherwise met by other program requirements: Cultural [C] and Global [G] or Historical [H] Students are strongly encouraged to visit with an academic advisor to ensure completion of all graduation requirements.

Term 1

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 1
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
EXS101	Introduction to Exercise Science		Critical course Gateway course		3
HES100	Healthful Living		Critical course	SB	3
ENG101 or ENG107	First-Year Composition or First-Year Composition for ESL	Prerequisites: Appropriate writing placement test score, or a grade of C or better in ENG091 or ESL097 or WAC101, or a grade of B or better in ALT100, or (a grade of C in ALT100 AND Corequisites: ENG101LL or ENG107LL OR WAC101 OR ENG100A+). or Prerequisites: Appropriate writing placement test score, or a grade of C or better in ENG091 or ESL097 or WAC101, or a grade of B or better in ALT100, or (a grade of C in ALT100 AND Corequisites: ENG101LL or ENG107LL OR WAC101 OR ENG100A+).	Critical course	FYC	3
MAT15+ or MAT187	College Algebra/Functions or Precalculus	No requisites or Prerequisites: A grade of B or better in MAT12+, OR an appropriate district placement.	Critical course	MA	3–6
PSY101	Introduction to Psychology			SB	3
AAA/CPD115 or AAA/CPD150 or AAA/CPD150AC or CPD104	Creating College Success or Strategies for College Success or Educational and Career Planning or Career and Personal Development				0–3

Term 2 Term 2

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 2 Term 2
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
ENG102 or ENG108	First-Year Composition or First-Year Composition for ESL	Prerequisites: Grade of C or better in ENG101. or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in ENG107.		FYC	3
BIO181	General Biology (Majors) I	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in RDG100, or RDG100LL, or higher, or eligibility for CRE101. One year of high school or one semester of college-level biology and chemistry is strongly recommended.	Critical course	SQ	4
COM100 or COM110 or COM225 or COM230	Introduction to Human Communication or Interpersonal Communication or Public Speaking or Small Group Communication	No requisites or No requisites or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in ENG101, or ENG107, or equivalent. or No requisites		SB or L	3
CHM151	General Chemistry I	Prerequisites: C or better in [(CHM130 and CHM130LL), or CHM130AA, or 1 yr high school chemistry taken in last 5 yrs] and (C or better in MAT151 or higher level math course, or satisfactory placement), or permission of Instructor/Departmnt/Division Chair	Critical course	SQ	3
CHM151LL	General Chemistry I Laboratory	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in CHM150 or CHM151 or Corequisites: CHM150 or CHM151	Critical course	SQ	1
CRE101	College Critical Reading and Critical Thinking	Prerequisites: (A grade of C or better in ENG101 or ENG107) and (appropriate reading placement test score or a grade of C or better in RDG095 or RDG100 or RDG111 or RDG112 or RDG113 or permission of Instructor).		L	0–3
Transfer Option	Transfer Option				0–3
EXS125	Introduction to Exercise Physiology	Prerequisites or Corequisites: EXS101 or permission of Instructor.			3

Term 3 Term 3 Term 3

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 3 Term 3 Term 3
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
MAT182	Plane Trigonometry	Prerequisites: Grade of "C" or better in MAT150, or MAT151, or MAT152, or equivalent, or concurrent registration in MAT150, or MAT151, MAT152, or satisfactory score on District placement exam.	Complete MAT182 only if MAT150 was selected in Term 2.	MA	0–3
BIO201	Human Anatomy and Physiology I	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in (BIO156, or BIO156XT, or BIO181, or BIO181XT, or one year of high school biology) and (RDG100, or RDG100LL, or higher, or eligibility for CRE101). CHM130 or higher or one year of high school chemistry suggested but not required.		SG	4
MAT206 or PSY230	Elements of Statistics or Introduction to Statistics	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in MAT14+, or MAT15+, or MAT187, or equivalent, or an appropriate District placement, or permission of Department/Division Chair. or Prerequisites: (A grade of "C" or better in PSY101 and MAT092 or higher MAT course) or (a grade of "C" or better in PSY101 and eligibility for MAT112 or higher as indicated by appropriate mathematics placement test score) or permission of Instructor.		CS	3
HU	Humanities, Fine Arts & Design		For transfer to NAU, recommend selecting a course that satisfies Awareness Areas	HU	3
Transfer Option	Transfer Option				0–2
Transfer Option	Transfer Option				3–4
EXS210 or EXS211 or EXS212	Assessment and Program Design: Muscular Fitness or Assessment and Program Design: Flexibility and Balance or Assessment and Program Design: Cardiorespiratory Fitness	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in EXS125. or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in EXS125. or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in EXS125.			2
HES210 or FON241	Cultural Aspects of Health and Illness or Principles of Human Nutrition		FON241 is recommended for transfer to NAU	C, G	3
BIO182	General Biology (Majors) II	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in BIO181 or BIO181XT.		SG	4

Term 4 Term 4 Term 4

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 4 Term 4 Term 4
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
EXS290	Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice	Prerequisites: C or better in [(RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113 or District reading placement) and (MAT090, or MAT091, or MAT092, or District math placement) and (ENG101 or ENG107)] or permission of Instructor. EXS101 recommended.		L	3
BIO202	Human Anatomy and Physiology II	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in BIO201 or BIO201XT.		SG	4
PHY111	General Physics I	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in MAT182 or MAT187 or MAT220 or MAT221 or eligibility for MAT220 as indicated by appropriate placement or one year high school Trigonometry with a grade of C or better or permission of Department or Division.		SQ	4
HU	Humanities, Fine Arts & Design		For transfer to NAU, recommend selecting a course that satisfies Awareness Areas	HU	3
Transfer Option	Transfer Option				2–4
EXS214 or EXS216 or EXS218	Instructional Competency: Flexibility and Mind-Body Exercises or Instructional Competency: Muscular Strength and Conditioning or Instructional Competency: Cardiorespiratory Exercises and Activities	Prerequisites: RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113, or satisfactory District reading placement and (EXS125 and HES100) or permission of Instructor. or Prerequisites: C or better in RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113 or satisfactory District reading placement and MAT120 or satisfactory District math placement and (EXS125 and HES100) or permission of Instructor. or Prerequisites: C or better in RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113 or satisfactory District reading placement and MAT120 or satisfactory District math placement and (EXS125 and HES100) or permission of Instructor.			2
CHM152	General Chemistry II	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in [(CHM150 or CHM151) and CHM151LL], or CHM150AA, or CHM151AA, or permission of the Instructor, or Department or Division Chair.		SQ	3
CHM152LL	General Chemistry II Laboratory	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in CHM152 or Corequisites: CHM152.		SQ	1

Part-time Sequence

Part-time status is 11 credit hours or less.

A list of additional requirements for this pathway map
Awareness Areas
In addition to the requirements identified in the sequence below, students must complete the following awareness areas if not otherwise met by other program requirements: Cultural [C] and Global [G] or Historical [H] Students are strongly encouraged to visit with an academic advisor to ensure completion of all graduation requirements.

Term 1

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 1
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
HES100	Healthful Living		Critical course	SB	3
ENG101 or ENG107	First-Year Composition or First-Year Composition for ESL	Prerequisites: Appropriate writing placement test score, or a grade of C or better in ENG091 or ESL097 or WAC101, or a grade of B or better in ALT100, or (a grade of C in ALT100 AND Corequisites: ENG101LL or ENG107LL OR WAC101 OR ENG100A+). or Prerequisites: Appropriate writing placement test score, or a grade of C or better in ENG091 or ESL097 or WAC101, or a grade of B or better in ALT100, or (a grade of C in ALT100 AND Corequisites: ENG101LL or ENG107LL OR WAC101 OR ENG100A+).	Critical course	FYC	3
AAA/CPD115 or AAA/CPD150 or AAA/CPD150AC or CPD104	Creating College Success or Strategies for College Success or Educational and Career Planning or Career and Personal Development				0–3

Term 2

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 2
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
EXS101	Introduction to Exercise Science		Critical course Gateway course		3
MAT15+ or MAT187	College Algebra/Functions or Precalculus	No requisites or Prerequisites: A grade of B or better in MAT12+, OR an appropriate district placement.	Critical course	MA	3–6
CRE101	College Critical Reading and Critical Thinking	Prerequisites: (A grade of C or better in ENG101 or ENG107) and (appropriate reading placement test score or a grade of C or better in RDG095 or RDG100 or RDG111 or RDG112 or RDG113 or permission of Instructor).		L	0–3

Term 3 Term 3

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 3 Term 3
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
ENG102 or ENG108	First-Year Composition or First-Year Composition for ESL	Prerequisites: Grade of C or better in ENG101. or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in ENG107.		FYC	3
MAT182	Plane Trigonometry	Prerequisites: Grade of "C" or better in MAT150, or MAT151, or MAT152, or equivalent, or concurrent registration in MAT150, or MAT151, MAT152, or satisfactory score on District placement exam.	Complete MAT182 only if MAT150 was selected in Term 2.	MA	0–3
Transfer Option	Transfer Option				0–3
EXS125	Introduction to Exercise Physiology	Prerequisites or Corequisites: EXS101 or permission of Instructor.			3

Term 4

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 4
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
PSY101	Introduction to Psychology			SB	3
PHY111	General Physics I	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in MAT182 or MAT187 or MAT220 or MAT221 or eligibility for MAT220 as indicated by appropriate placement or one year high school Trigonometry with a grade of C or better or permission of Department or Division.		SQ	4

Term 5

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 5
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
CHM151	General Chemistry I	Prerequisites: C or better in [(CHM130 and CHM130LL), or CHM130AA, or 1 yr high school chemistry taken in last 5 yrs] and (C or better in MAT151 or higher level math course, or satisfactory placement), or permission of Instructor/Departmnt/Division Chair	Critical course	SQ	3
CHM151LL	General Chemistry I Laboratory	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in CHM150 or CHM151 or Corequisites: CHM150 or CHM151	Critical course	SQ	1
COM100 or COM110 or COM225 or COM230	Introduction to Human Communication or Interpersonal Communication or Public Speaking or Small Group Communication	No requisites or No requisites or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in ENG101, or ENG107, or equivalent. or No requisites		SB or L	3

Term 6 Term 6 Term 6

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 6 Term 6 Term 6
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
BIO181	General Biology (Majors) I	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in RDG100, or RDG100LL, or higher, or eligibility for CRE101. One year of high school or one semester of college-level biology and chemistry is strongly recommended.	Critical course	SQ	4
Transfer Option	Transfer Option				3–4
HES210 or FON241	Cultural Aspects of Health and Illness or Principles of Human Nutrition		FON241 is recommended for transfer to NAU	C, G	3
CHM152	General Chemistry II	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in [(CHM150 or CHM151) and CHM151LL], or CHM150AA, or CHM151AA, or permission of the Instructor, or Department or Division Chair.		SQ	3
CHM152LL	General Chemistry II Laboratory	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in CHM152 or Corequisites: CHM152.		SQ	1

Term 7 Term 7

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 7 Term 7
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Area	Credits
BIO201	Human Anatomy and Physiology I	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in (BIO156, or BIO156XT, or BIO181, or BIO181XT, or one year of high school biology) and (RDG100, or RDG100LL, or higher, or eligibility for CRE101). CHM130 or higher or one year of high school chemistry suggested but not required.	SG	4
Transfer Option	Transfer Option			0–2
EXS210 or EXS211 or EXS212	Assessment and Program Design: Muscular Fitness or Assessment and Program Design: Flexibility and Balance or Assessment and Program Design: Cardiorespiratory Fitness	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in EXS125. or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in EXS125. or Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in EXS125.		2

Term 8

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 8
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
MAT206 or PSY230	Elements of Statistics or Introduction to Statistics	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in MAT14+, or MAT15+, or MAT187, or equivalent, or an appropriate District placement, or permission of Department/Division Chair. or Prerequisites: (A grade of "C" or better in PSY101 and MAT092 or higher MAT course) or (a grade of "C" or better in PSY101 and eligibility for MAT112 or higher as indicated by appropriate mathematics placement test score) or permission of Instructor.		CS	3
BIO202	Human Anatomy and Physiology II	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in BIO201 or BIO201XT.		SG	4

Term 9

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 9
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
EXS290	Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice	Prerequisites: C or better in [(RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113 or District reading placement) and (MAT090, or MAT091, or MAT092, or District math placement) and (ENG101 or ENG107)] or permission of Instructor. EXS101 recommended.		L	3
HU	Humanities, Fine Arts & Design		For transfer to NAU, recommend selecting a course that satisfies Awareness Areas	HU	3

Term 10 Term 10 Term 10

A sequence of suggested courses that should be taken during Term 10 Term 10 Term 10
Course Number	Course Name	Requisites	Notes	Area	Credits
HU	Humanities, Fine Arts & Design		For transfer to NAU, recommend selecting a course that satisfies Awareness Areas	HU	3
Transfer Option	Transfer Option				2–4
EXS214 or EXS216 or EXS218	Instructional Competency: Flexibility and Mind-Body Exercises or Instructional Competency: Muscular Strength and Conditioning or Instructional Competency: Cardiorespiratory Exercises and Activities	Prerequisites: RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113, or satisfactory District reading placement and (EXS125 and HES100) or permission of Instructor. or Prerequisites: C or better in RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113 or satisfactory District reading placement and MAT120 or satisfactory District math placement and (EXS125 and HES100) or permission of Instructor. or Prerequisites: C or better in RDG100, or RDG100LL, or RDG111, or RDG112, or RDG113 or satisfactory District reading placement and MAT120 or satisfactory District math placement and (EXS125 and HES100) or permission of Instructor.			2
BIO182	General Biology (Majors) II	Prerequisites: A grade of C or better in BIO181 or BIO181XT.		SG	4

Pathway Map Option Details

No pathway map option has been selected. Please select from the pathway map options listed above.

Course Area Key

Gateway Course = Generally the first major-specific course in a pathway.

Critical Course = A course that is highly predictive of future success in a pathway.

C = Cultural Diversity in the US
CS = Computer/Statistics/Quantitative Application
FYC = First Year Composition
G = Global Awareness
H = Historical Awareness
HU = Humanities, Fine Arts, and Design

L = Literacy & Critical Inquiry
MA = Mathematics
SB = Social-Behavioral Sciences
SG = Natural Sciences General
SQ = Natural Sciences Quantitative

Disclaimer

Students must earn a grade of C or better for all courses required within the program.

Course Sequence total credits may differ from the program information located on the MCCCD curriculum website due to program and system design.

View MCCCD’s curriculum website for the Associate in Arts in Associate in Arts, Emphasis in Exercise Science (http://aztransmac2.asu.edu/cgi-bin/WebObjects/MCCCD.woa/wa/freeForm10?id=163324).

Other Versions

The pathway map presented above is for the current catalog year and is the intended pathway map for new students. Other versions of this pathway map from different catalog years are available below:

Catalog Year	Effective Dates
2020-2021	5/26/2020 – 5/24/2021
2019-2020	5/28/2019 – 5/25/2020