Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Sports instructor education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a sports instructor. Sports instructors usually study kinesiology, business, or health education. 69% of sports instructors hold a bachelor's degree, and 14% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 1,586 real sports instructor resumes to see exactly what sports instructor education sections show.
The most common colleges for sports instructors are the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Colorado at Boulder.
There are also many online sports instructor courses to help get the education required to be a sports instructor.
There are certain sports instructor certifications that you should consider. These sports instructor certifications include First Aid, CPR and AED Instructor and Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS).
What education do you need to become a sports instructor?
What degree do you need to be a sports instructor?
- Bachelor's, 69%
- Associate, 14%
- High School Diploma, 8%
- Master's, 6%
- Other Degrees, 3%
What should I major in to become a sports instructor?
- Kinesiology, 25%
- Business, 12%
- Health Education, 9%
- Communication, 7%
- Other Majors, 47%
Most common colleges for sports instructors
| Sports instructor common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Colorado at Boulder | 9.00% |
| Rowan University | 7.00% |
| Pennsylvania State University | 6.00% |
| San Diego State University | 6.00% |
| Towson University | 6.00% |
Best majors for sports instructors
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kinesiology | 24.6% |
| 2 | Business | 12.3% |
| 3 | Health Education | 9.0% |
| 4 | Communication | 6.5% |
| 5 | Psychology | 5.4% |
Best colleges for sports instructors
The best colleges for sports instructors are Northwestern University, Stanford University, and University of Southern California.
A sports instructor with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for sports instructors. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become sports instructors.
1. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$56,225
Enrollment
19,548
4. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Enrollment
9,142
5. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,488
Enrollment
30,018
6. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,354
Enrollment
7,083
7. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, MN • Private
In-state tuition
$14,760
Enrollment
31,451
8. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$15,094
Enrollment
32,974
9. Howard University
Washington, DC • Private
In-state tuition
$26,756
Enrollment
6,166
10. SUNY at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$10,099
Enrollment
21,404
20 best online courses for sports instructors
Advertising disclosure
1. Activism in Sports and Culture
Sports have become an ever-present reflection of American culture, and an important symbol of the divisions and alliances in our society. Sports and political change walk hand in hand in America. The way that athletes and institutions deal with questions of race, economic hardship, nationalism, and political ties have become central to the way that we understand ourselves and our society. And yet, there are those who would prefer their sports free of controversy and opinion. Dedicated athletes,...
2. Sports Marketing
Today, there is demand for people skilled in Sports Marketing. Organizations want your expertise to strength and grow customer bases and teams want to enlarge their fan base, attract new sponsors to their sport, build strong programs with existing sponsors, and run their fan conventions and other events. In addition, a wide range of companies recognize the value sports relationships have in positioning and building their brands. In this Sports Marketing MOOC, you will learn: — Ticket pricing...
3. Applied Sport Psychology and Leadership in Sport Certificate
Enhance your knowledge of sport psychology from an athlete or coach perspective with this comprehensive applied course...
4. Introductory Sport Psychology
Developing sport psychology skills that you can use when you train, compete or coach...
5. Sports Performance Analytics
Sports analytics has emerged as a field of research with increasing popularity propelled, in part, by the real-world success illustrated by the best-selling book and motion picture, Moneyball. Analysis of team and player performance data has continued to revolutionize the sports industry on the field, court, and ice as well as in living rooms among fantasy sports players and online sports gambling.\n\nDrawing from real data sets in Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball...
6. Prediction Models with Sports Data
In this course the learner will be shown how to generate forecasts of game results in professional sports using Python. The main emphasis of the course is on teaching the method of logistic regression as a way of modeling game results, using data on team expenditures. The learner is taken through the process of modeling past results, and then using the model to forecast the outcome games not yet played. The course will show the learner how to evaluate the reliability of a model using data on...
7. Sports Management: The Essentials Course
A Comprehensive Overview at How the Sports Industry Operates and the Challenges Facing the Modern Sports Industry Today...
8. Sport Psychology for Athletes
Master the fundamentals of sport psychology to improve performance and gain a mental edge...
9. Data Analytics in Sports Law and Management
Athletes, lawyers and team executive experts provide insight in how law and regulations intersect with data analytics and sports management techniques for best practices in the sports industry. Several courses provide the basis for how data analytics function within player evaluation, team performance, and roster management. The specialization introduces various regulatory, managerial and legal frameworks that includes athlete representation, facilities, and event management and conclude with...
10. Sports Turf Management: Best Practices
The Sports Turf Management: Best Practices course will cover the construction, management, and challenges in maintaining athletic fields intended for football, soccer, and baseball. You will learn the fundamental management practices for maintaining athletic fields, such as fertilization, irrigation, mowing, and pest control. An overview of athletic field construction, highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of native soil versus modified soil fields, will be provided. Lastly, you will...
11. Sports Massage: The Technique Masterclass
Learn the most effective sports massage techniques for the entire body (2 CEUs)...
12. Internationally Accredited Diploma in Sports Nutrition
Learn About The Fundamentals Of Sport Nutrition Science And How To Fuel Your Athlete Client...
13. Introduction to Machine Learning in Sports Analytics
In this course students will explore supervised machine learning techniques using the python scikit learn (sklearn) toolkit and real-world athletic data to understand both machine learning algorithms and how to predict athletic outcomes. Building on the previous courses in the specialization, students will apply methods such as support vector machines (SVM), decision trees, random forest, linear and logistic regression, and ensembles of learners to examine data from professional sports leagues...
14. Build Sports Management System using JavaFX
By the end of this project, you will create a Sport Club Management System using JavaFX. This project will give you a great push towards mastering one of the most used programming languages in the world which is Java. In this project, you will be able to identify and apply many functions and features in JavaFX using SceneBuilder, which is a third-party application used to create a JavaFX GUI easily. You will also learn how to create controller classes in Eclipse that consist of methods that...
15. Sports Nutrition for Athletes and Fitness Enthusiasts
Learn all about sports nutrition with 7 hours of online video content and start training SMARTER instead of HARDER...
16. Sports Massage: Positional Release Certificate Course
Learn Sports Massage Positional Release Techniques to produce profound pain relief and improve bodily function (2 CEUs)...
17. Ashiatsu or Shiatsu Barefoot Sports Massage Therapy
Let your feet do the work for you!...
18. Sports Massage: Muscle Energy Technique Certificate Course
Grow your practice by learning sports massage the power of muscle energy techniques (2 CEUs)...
19. Become a Professional Football (Soccer) Coach
The Complete Guide on how to become a Professional Football (Soccer) Coach...
20. Sports & Action Photography For Beginners
A foundational course for beginner and novice level photographers who want to learn how to photograph dynamic subjects...
Top 10 most affordable universities for sports instructors
The most affordable schools for sports instructors are California State University - Bakersfield, suny farmingdale, and brooklyn college of the city university of new york.
If the best universities for sports instructors are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for sports instructors.
1. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
2. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Cost of attendance
16,091
3. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York
Brooklyn, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,240
Cost of attendance
13,991
4. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
5. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
6. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
7. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
8. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
9. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Cost of attendance
25,527
10. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez
Mayaguez, PR • Private
In-state tuition
$4,094
Cost of attendance
14,302
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for sports instructors
The hardest universities for sports instructors to get into are Northwestern University, Stanford University, and University of Southern California.
Some great schools for sports instructors are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for sports instructors based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
2. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
13%
SAT average
1,445
4. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
Admissions rate
23%
SAT average
1,398
5. George Washington University, The
Washington, DC • Private
Admissions rate
42%
SAT average
1,380
6. Washington University in St Louis
Saint Louis, MO • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,506
7. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
22%
SAT average
1,420
8. University of Tulsa
Tulsa, OK • Private
Admissions rate
41%
SAT average
1,321
9. Baylor University
Waco, TX • Private
Admissions rate
39%
SAT average
1,307
10. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for sports instructors
The easiest schools for sports instructors to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, wayland baptist university, and holy names university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a sports instructor without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for sports instructors.
1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
2. Wayland Baptist University
Plainview, TX • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
1,003
3. Holy Names University
Oakland, CA • Private
Admissions rate
70%
SAT average
849
4. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
5. Felician University
Lodi, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
999
6. Life University
Marietta, GA • Private
Admissions rate
94%
SAT average
979
7. Ottawa University
Ottawa, KS • Private
Admissions rate
78%
SAT average
1,024
8. Holy Family University
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
72%
SAT average
1,017
9. Saint Joseph's College of Maine
Standish, ME • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,069
10. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
Average sports instructor salary by education level
| Sports instructor education level | Sports instructor salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $37,175 |
| High School Diploma or Less | $33,802 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $36,431 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $34,554 |
Sports instructor education FAQs
Have more questions? See all answers to common personal care and attendants questions.
Search for sports instructor jobs
Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025