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.
Details
Students must earn a grade of C or better in each course in the program.
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.
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
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.
Full-time Sequence
Full-time status is 12 credits to 18 credits per semester.
Awareness Areas |
---|
|
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 | Critical course | FYC | 3 | |
MAT15+ or MAT187 | College Algebra/Functions or Precalculus | 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
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ENG102 or ENG108 | First-Year Composition or First-Year Composition for ESL | FYC | 3 | ||
BIO181 | General Biology (Majors) I | 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 | SB or L | 3 | ||
CHM151 | General Chemistry I | Critical course | SQ | 3 | |
CHM151LL | General Chemistry I Laboratory | Critical course | SQ | 1 | |
CRE101 | College Critical Reading and Critical Thinking | L | 0–3 | ||
Transfer Option | Transfer Option | 0–3 |
Term 3
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
MAT182 | Plane Trigonometry | Complete MAT182 only if MAT150 was selected in Term 2. | MA | 0–3 | |
BIO201 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I | SG | 4 | ||
MAT206 or PSY230 | Elements of Statistics or Introduction to Statistics | 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 |
Term 4
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
EXS290 | Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice | L | 3 | ||
BIO202 | Human Anatomy and Physiology II | SG | 4 | ||
PHY111 | General Physics I | 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 |
Part-time Sequence
Part-time status is 11 credit hours or less.
Awareness Areas |
---|
|
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 | 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
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 | Critical course | MA | 3–6 | |
CRE101 | College Critical Reading and Critical Thinking | L | 0–3 |
Term 3
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ENG102 or ENG108 | First-Year Composition or First-Year Composition for ESL | FYC | 3 | ||
MAT182 | Plane Trigonometry | Complete MAT182 only if MAT150 was selected in Term 2. | MA | 0–3 | |
Transfer Option | Transfer Option | 0–3 |
Term 4
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
PSY101 | Introduction to Psychology | SB | 3 | ||
PHY111 | General Physics I | SQ | 4 |
Term 5
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CHM151 | General Chemistry I | Critical course | SQ | 3 | |
CHM151LL | General Chemistry I Laboratory | 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 | SB or L | 3 |
Term 6
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
BIO181 | General Biology (Majors) I | Critical course | SQ | 4 | |
Transfer Option | Transfer Option | 3–4 |
Term 7
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
BIO201 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I | SG | 4 | ||
Transfer Option | Transfer Option | 0–2 |
Term 8
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
MAT206 or PSY230 | Elements of Statistics or Introduction to Statistics | CS | 3 | ||
BIO202 | Human Anatomy and Physiology II | SG | 4 |
Term 9
Course Number | Course Name | Requisites | Notes | Area | Credits |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
EXS290 | Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice | L | 3 | ||
HU | Humanities, Fine Arts & Design | For transfer to NAU, recommend selecting a course that satisfies Awareness Areas | HU | 3 |
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 |
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
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).
At Maricopa, we strive to provide you with accurate and current information about our degree and certificate offerings. Due to the dynamic nature of the curriculum process, course and program information is subject to change. As a result, the course list associated with this degree or certificate on this site does not represent a contract, nor does it guarantee course availability. If you are interested in pursuing this degree or certificate, we encourage you to meet with an advisor to discuss the requirements at your college for the appropriate catalog year.