Science Foundation Year: Sport and Exercise Science
Subject and course type
- Sport, Exercise and Nutrition
- Undergraduate
- Foundation
This Science Foundation Year in Sport and Exercise Science will give you the knowledge, skills and confidence you need to progress your studies towards a Sport and Exercise Science honours degree.
You are reading:
Analyse human performance in sport
Build essential skills for degree-level study
This foundation year helps you prepare for your intended degree, providing you with essential skills for success in Sport and Exercise Science.
You will progress onto one of our three Sport and Exercise courses:
- Sport and Exercise Science BSc (Hons)
- Sport and Exercise Science (Coaching and Physical Education) BSc (Hons)
- Sport and Exercise Science (Nutrition) BSc (Hons)
You'll gain extensive practical experience in brand-new laboratories, recently opened as part of a £6.8 million investment.
You will develop your problem-solving skills through project-based learning as applied to real-world scenarios.
Why choose this course
We recognise that there are many routes to success at degree level. Our Science foundation year: Sport and Exercise Science pathway specifically caters for those who lack the traditional entry qualifications to join the first year of a Sport and Exercise Science degree.
You are likely to be someone with non-science-based qualifications or a mature student, with skills and experience from employment, who wants to return to education.
The foundation year has the benefit of being part of the extended degree. It gives you access to a range of activities and staff on the degree programme that you will continue your studies on.
The Science foundation year: Sport and Exercise Science pathway is taught at the University and you'll have access to all its facilities. Subject materials and teaching are tailored to degrees at Kingston and you'll develop practical, technical and communication skills, and apply knowledge to real-life problems.
What’s more, Kingston’s TEF Gold award recognises our commitment to teaching excellence, ensuring you receive quality support throughout your studies.
Apply for this course
Select your chosen degree programme and apply for the including foundation year course. The corresponding UCAS codes are listed below.
- Sport and Exercise Science BSc (Hons)
UCAS code: C608 - Sport and Exercise Science (Coaching and Physical Education) BSc (Hons)
UCAS code: CX6D - Sport and Exercise Science (Nutrition) BSc (Hons)
UCAS code: CB64
Course content
The foundation year provides a supportive environment in which you can build your confidence, whilst developing the academic and practical skills alongside the subject knowledge to continue on the degree of your choice.
Foundation year
Core modules
30 credits
This module is designed to provide you with the essential skills for academic success in your degree. This module emphasises developing independence, resilience, reflective practice and critical thinking. It focuses on four key areas crucial for student success. For Academic Study Skills, you will learn effective strategies for information retrieval, reading, writing, note-taking, and time management to enhance your ability to engage with academic and professional material.
You will develop hands-on skills in scientific inquiry, including how to design experiments, collect data, and critically evaluate scientific results. The module covers fundamental mathematical concepts and techniques for analysing and interpreting data, which are essential for success in scientific fields. In terms of digital competences, the module focuses on the effective use of technology, including online research tools, use of AI, software for data analysis, digital communication platforms and basic programming. By the end of the module, you will have a solid foundation to approach your future studies with confidence, equipping you with the tools to succeed in your academic and professional journeys.
30 credits
This module focusses on project-based learning approaches to create real-world outputs. You will develop essential skills such as critical thinking, oral and written communication skills, teamwork, problem-solving and reflective practice. The module emphasises collaborative learning, requiring students to work together to brainstorm, plan, and execute projects that address a range of real-world scenarios specific to your chosen degree. You can choose the individual projects you undertake.
You will be introduced to the concept of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), their importance and how project-based problem solving can address such goals.
This module is designed to introduce and start to equip you with the skills and mindset needed to address real-world challenges in a dynamic and reflective way.
30 credits
This 30-credit module forms a core part of the Sport and Exercise Science foundation route across all pathways. You will explore the core aspects of athlete development for fitness and health. This module will help you understand how Sport and Exercise Science can support individual development through focused training/exercise, mental/psychological support and optimisation of nutritional strategies. The module will directly link to core aspects of Sport and Exercise Science expanded upon in the BSc programme. You will reflect on the impact of sport and exercise science and how the understanding of the multi-discipline nature of the subject area can direct your employability and future development.
You will explore the underpinning multi-disciplinary nature of Sport and Exercise Science through individually focused disciplines of Anatomy and Physiology, Psychology and Nutrition.
You will undertake testing and analysis of data from physiology, psychology, and nutrition with the aim of enhancing knowledge of performer development.
30 credits
This 30-credit module forms a core part of the Sport and Exercise Science foundation route across all pathways. The module will explore the multi-dimensional support system available to support athlete/individual development. You will be tasked with exploring how Sport and Exercise Science disciplines of Performance Analysis, Coaching and Biomechanics for technique analysis, can support individual development through focused training and support of key mechanisms available to aid understanding of sporting performance.
The module will also offer you the opportunity to reflect on the impact of Sport and Exercise Science and how the understanding of the multi-discipline nature of the subject area can direct your employability and future development.
Future Skills and career opportunities
Embedded within every course curriculum and throughout the whole Kingston experience, Future Skills will play a role in shaping you to become a future-proof graduate, providing you with the skills most valued by employers such as problem-solving, digital competency, and adaptability.
As you progress through your degree, you'll learn to navigate, explore and apply these graduate skills, learning to demonstrate and articulate to employers how future skills give you the edge.
After you graduate
Success on the course will qualify a student for progression to Year 1 of a bachelors degree at Kingston University. Career opportunities are dependent upon the chosen degree route and are included on the relevant course page.
At Kingston University, we're not just keeping up with change, we're creating it
For more information on how Kingston prepares you for the future job market, visit our Future Skills page.
Teaching and assessment
Teaching uses a variety of approaches including lectures, seminars and tutorials, workshops and laboratory practical work. Sessions are designed to be active, involving students undertaking small projects and working in groups to solve problems. The use of technology to enhance learning is an important way in which students are supported. Particular emphasis is placed on developing study skills that will help mature applicants who are returning to education and those from non-science backgrounds.
Assessment includes a mixture of coursework and examination. Coursework may take the form of report writing, practical data reports, case studies and presentations with emphasis on real world problems. Examinations take place at the end of the year, giving you the opportunity to settle back into education and the course. The style of assessment provides a natural progression to Year 1 of your chosen degree.
When not attending timetabled sessions, you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. This typically will involve reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group projects, undertaking preparing coursework assignments and presentations, and preparing for final assignments. Your independent learning is supported by a range of excellent facilities including online resources, the library and CANVAS, the online virtual learning platform.
Our academic support team here at Kingston University provides help in a range of areas.
When you arrive, we'll introduce you to your personal tutor. This is the member of academic staff who will provide academic guidance, be a support throughout your time at Kingston and show you how to make the best use of all the help and resources that we offer at Kingston University.
25% of your time is spent in timetabled learning and teaching activity.
- Scheduled learning and teaching: 302 hours
- Guided independent study (self-managed time): 898 hours
Assessment typically comprises exams (e.g. test or exam), practical (e.g. presentations, performance) and coursework (e.g. essays, reports, self-assessment, portfolios and dissertation).
The approximate percentage for how you will be assessed on this course is as follows:
- Coursework: 100%
We aim to provide feedback on assessments within 20 working days.
Your individualised timetable is normally available to students within 48 hours of enrolment. Whilst we make every effort to ensure timetables are as student-friendly as possible, scheduled learning and teaching can take place on any day of the week between 9am and 6pm. For undergraduate students, Wednesday afternoons are normally reserved for sports and cultural activities, but there may be occasions when this is not possible. Timetables for part-time students will depend on the modules selected.
Fees and funding
Fees are included on the relevant webpage for the degree course you would like to study.
- Sport and Exercise Science BSc (Hons)
UCAS code: C608 - Sport and Exercise Science (Coaching and Physical Education) BSc (Hons)
UCAS code: CX6D - Sport and Exercise Science (Nutrition) BSc (Hons)
UCAS code: CB64
Facilities
There is a wide range of facilities for practical work at our Penrhyn Road campus, where this course is based. You will have access to a modern environment with the latest equipment, including:
- the £9.8 million Eadweard Muybridge building with state-of the art laboratories
- an exercise physiology and biomechanics lab
- modern applied biology and chemistry laboratories specialist equipment, such as electron microscopes and spectrometers
- computing laboratories and a team of IT technicians to offer assistance
- a newly refurbished state-of-the-art nutrition kitchen.
The libraries offer:
- subject libraries, plus a free inter-library loan scheme to other libraries in the Greater London area
- online database subscriptions
- a growing selection of resource material.
Additional course costs
Depending on the programme of study, there may be extra costs that are not covered by tuition fees which students will need to consider when planning their studies. Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessment and operating University facilities such as the library, access to shared IT equipment and other support services. Accommodation and living costs are not included in our fees.
Where a course has additional expenses, we make every effort to highlight them. These may include optional field trips, materials (e.g. art, design, engineering), security checks such as DBS, uniforms, specialist clothing or professional memberships.
Our libraries are a valuable resource with an extensive collection of books and journals as well as first-class facilities and IT equipment. You may prefer to buy your own copy of key textbooks; this can cost between £50 and £250 per year.
There are open-access networked computers available across the University, plus laptops available to loan. You may find it useful to have your own PC, laptop or tablet which you can use around campus and in halls of residence. Free WiFi is available on each campus. You may wish to purchase your own computer, which can cost between £100 and £3,000 depending on your course requirements.
In the majority of cases, written coursework can be submitted online. There may be instances when you will be required to submit work in a printed format. Printing, binding and photocopying costs are not included in your tuition fees, this may cost up to £100 per year.
Travel costs are not included in your tuition fees but we do have a free intersite bus service which links the campuses, Surbiton train station, Kingston train station, Norbiton train station and halls of residence.
Course changes and regulations
The information on this page reflects the currently intended course structure and module details. To improve your student experience and the quality of your degree, we may review and change the material information of this course. Find out more about course changes
Programme Specifications for the course are published ahead of each academic year.
Regulations governing this course can be found on our website.
