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What does a kinesiologist do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
Quoted expert
Yuri Feito Ph.D.
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Kinesiologist responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real kinesiologist resumes:

  • Achieve high level of patients satisfaction due to sound clinical management, quality of care and compassion.
  • Assist patient with training on DME's design for their protocols.
  • Perform evaluations and interventions to enhance strength, endurance, and mobility of veterans with impair movement or extensive deconditioning.
  • Employ at an out-patient orthopedic clinic with primary goal for patient return to work, ADL, or sports/recreation activities.

Kinesiologist skills and personality traits

We break down the percentage of Kinesiologists that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Rehabilitation, 85%

    Instruct injury specific exercises to patients undergoing rehabilitation Perform assessment of functional abilities and document functional progress of clients on reports

  • Patient Care, 15%

    Coordinate patient care with physical therapy assistants.

Dexterity. The most essential soft skill for a kinesiologist to carry out their responsibilities is dexterity. This skill is important for the role because "physical therapists must use their hands to provide manual therapy and therapeutic exercises." Additionally, a kinesiologist resume shows how their duties depend on dexterity: "full time physical therapist at a busy outpatient clinic focused on manual therapy and hands-on care for a variety of diagnoses. "

Physical stamina. Many kinesiologist duties rely on physical stamina. "physical therapists spend much of their time on their feet, moving to demonstrate proper techniques and to help patients perform exercises," so a kinesiologist will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways kinesiologist responsibilities rely on physical stamina: "developed physical rehabilitation programs coordinating with physical therapists performed ergonomic assessments for return-to-work eligibility"

Compassion. kinesiologists are also known for compassion, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to kinesiologist responsibilities, because "physical therapists spend a lot of time interacting with patients, so they should have a desire to help people." A kinesiologist resume example shows how compassion is used in the workplace: "provided compassionate care to patients. "

Detail oriented. For certain kinesiologist responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "detail oriented." The day-to-day duties of a kinesiologist rely on this skill, as "like other healthcare providers, physical therapists should have strong analytic and observational skills to diagnose a patient’s problem, evaluate treatments, and provide safe, effective care." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what kinesiologists do: "performed detailed assessments, including the oasis to determine the appropriateness of rehabilitation interventions, often times referring for additional services. "

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Compare different kinesiologists

Kinesiologist vs. Certified athletic trainer

A certified athletic trainer is a health and medical expert who specializes in providing health care assistance to athletes. They typically devise strategies to prevent injuries during training sessions and other activities, develop health care plans, and provide immediate care or first aid when injuries occur. There are also instances where they work together with physicians and other health care professionals, such as when diagnosing and treating injuries, developing rehabilitation structures, and administrating other health care services.

If we compare the average kinesiologist annual salary with that of a certified athletic trainer, we find that certified athletic trainers typically earn a $7,659 lower salary than kinesiologists make annually.While their salaries may differ, the common ground between kinesiologists and certified athletic trainers are a few of the skills required in each roleacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities. In both careers, employee duties involve skills like rehabilitation, medical professionals, and patient care.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between kinesiologists and certified athletic trainer. For instance, kinesiologist responsibilities require skills such as "functional assessments," "blood pressure," "pt," and "mva." Whereas a certified athletic trainer is skilled in "patients," "injury prevention," "athletic events," and "resuscitation." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Certified athletic trainers tend to reach similar levels of education than kinesiologists. In fact, certified athletic trainers are 4.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.2% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Kinesiologist vs. Physical therapy internship

Physical therapist interns work with patients to determine and improve their function and movement. The interns assist in the rehabilitation process through body system development and storage. They promote the wellbeing and health of the patients through internship programs. Through the physical therapy internship, interns learn about nutrition, treatment, and the general rehabilitation procedure of patients. It also provides support not just for the patients but also with the staff.

On average, physical therapy interns earn a $16,781 higher salary than kinesiologists a year.A few skills overlap for kinesiologists and physical therapy interns. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "rehabilitation," "patient care," and "traction. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, kinesiologist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "functional assessments," "medical professionals," "blood pressure," and "pt." Meanwhile, a physical therapy internship has duties that require skills in areas such as "patients," "physical therapy assistants," "ultrasound," and "occupational therapy." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Average education levels between the two professions vary. Physical therapy interns tend to reach lower levels of education than kinesiologists. In fact, they're 8.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for kinesiologists in the next 3-5 years?

Yuri Feito Ph.D.Yuri Feito Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Associate Professor of Exercise Science, Kennesaw State University

If 2020 is any indication of the years to come, I would say online platforms and the online environment will be essential. The COVID pandemic has demonstrated that we can do many of the things we typically did in-person virtually, so that may shift how work is done in the future. For example, some cardiac rehabilitation programs, which were usually an in-person event 3-days/week, mainly moved to "online coaching" to maintain patients' engagement. The online environment and activity apps that would allow seamless communications between individuals and healthcare providers will see significant growth in the years to come.

Kinesiologist vs. Athletic trainer

An athletic trainer is a healthcare professional who works with physicians to improve a patient's quality of life. Their profession encompasses the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of chronic medical conditions involving disabilities, functional limitations, and impairments. As an athletic trainer, you will typically do various tasks, including recognizing and evaluating injuries, providing emergency care or first aid, and developing and implementing rehabilitation programs. You are also responsible for planning and implementing programs to help prevent sports injuries among athletes.

On average, athletic trainers earn lower salaries than kinesiologists, with a $7,815 difference per year.kinesiologists and athletic trainers both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "rehabilitation," "patient care," and "traction," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from kinesiologist resumes include skills like "functional assessments," "medical professionals," "blood pressure," and "pt," whereas an athletic trainer is more likely to list skills in "patients," "student athletes," "compassion," and "athletic events. "

Athletic trainers typically earn similar educational levels compared to kinesiologists. Specifically, they're 3.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Kinesiologist vs. Director of physical therapy

A Director of Physical Therapy manages physical therapy services through developing strategies, policies, and procedures for a hospital, clinic, managed care organization, or similar organization. They supervise and assess the activities of medical, nursing, technical, and other personnel.

Directors of physical therapy tend to earn a higher pay than kinesiologists by an average of $52,916 per year.According to resumes from kinesiologists and directors of physical therapy, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "rehabilitation," "traction," and "pta. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between kinesiologists and directors of physical therapy, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a kinesiologist might have more use for skills like "functional assessments," "medical professionals," "patient care," and "blood pressure." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of directors of physical therapy require skills like "patients," "physical therapy," "physical therapy clinic," and "treatment programs. "

In general, directors of physical therapy hold similar degree levels compared to kinesiologists. Directors of physical therapy are 2.7% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 8.5% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of kinesiologist

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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