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Sports management professor education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a sports management professor. Sports management professors usually study kinesiology, business, or health education. 73% of sports management professors hold a bachelor's degree, and 15% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 218 real sports management professor resumes to see exactly what sports management professor education sections show.

The most common colleges for sports management professors are the Flagler College and the Flagler College.

There are also many online sports management professor courses to help get the education required to be a sports management professor.

What education do you need to become a sports management professor?

What degree do you need to be a sports management professor?

The most common degree for sports management professors is bachelor's degree, with 73% of sports management professors earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 15% and master's degree degree at 6%.
  • Bachelor's, 73%
  • Master's, 15%
  • Associate, 6%
  • High School Diploma, 3%
  • Other Degrees, 3%

What should I major in to become a sports management professor?

You should major in kinesiology to become a sports management professor. 46% of sports management professors major in kinesiology. Other common majors for a sports management professor include business and health education.

Most common colleges for sports management professors

Sports management professors often get their degrees at Flagler College, York College of Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania State University. Here are the most common colleges for sports management professors in the US based on their resumes.
Sports management professor common collegePercentages
Flagler College10.64%
York College of Pennsylvania10.64%
Pennsylvania State University6.38%
James Madison University6.38%
Alcorn State University4.26%

Best majors for sports management professors

RankMajorPercentages
1Kinesiology46.0%
2Business13.9%
3Health Education5.1%
4Marketing4.4%
5Communication3.6%

Best colleges for sports management professors

The best colleges for sports management professors are Northwestern University, University of Southern California, and George Washington University, The.

A sports management professor 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 management professors. 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 management professors.

1. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

3. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

4. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Champaign, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$15,094

Enrollment

32,974

5. Howard University

Washington, DC • Private

In-state tuition

$26,756

Enrollment

6,166

6. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

7. SUNY College at Plattsburgh

Plattsburgh, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,369

Enrollment

5,229

8. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Enrollment

31,503

9. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

10. Pennsylvania State University

University Park, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$18,454

Enrollment

40,108

20 best online courses for sports management professors

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1. Sports Turf Management: Best Practices

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2. Data Analytics in Sports Law and Management

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3. Sports Management: The Essentials Course

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A Comprehensive Overview at How the Sports Industry Operates and the Challenges Facing the Modern Sports Industry Today...

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Master the fundamentals of sport psychology to improve performance and gain a mental edge...

5. Sports Performance Analytics

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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. Sports Marketing

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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...

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8. Introductory Sport Psychology

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Developing sport psychology skills that you can use when you train, compete or coach...

9. Sales Operations/Management

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12. Become a Professional Football (Soccer) Coach

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13. Product Management Fundamentals

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Case-based practical course on product management to build strong foundations in product concepts, process & frameworks...

14. Management - Leadership, Negotiating, Assertiveness, Sales

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15. Project Management: Simple Software Project Management

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Project Management for NEW Project Managers - knowledge, tools, techniques, skills, checklists, guidelines, pitfalls...

16. Business Fundamentals: Management and HR Management

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17. Leading & Managing People [Effectively]

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18. Event Management for Beginners

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Learn the process for creating great events...

19. Customer Service Training: Dealing with Difficult Customers

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Learn how to deal with difficult customers Master customer relationship management Gain conflict management skills...

20. Operations Management: Supply Chains, Products and Services

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Master Supply Chain Management and Product and Service Development in Manufacturing and Service Organizations...

Top 10 most affordable universities for sports management professors

The most affordable schools for sports management professors are California State University - Long Beach, university of florida, and brigham young university.

If the best universities for sports management professors 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 management professors.

1. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

2. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

3. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

4. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

5. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

6. USF Sarasota-Manatee

Sarasota, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,587

Cost of attendance

13,043

7. California State University - Fresno

Fresno, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,587

Cost of attendance

16,915

8. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

9. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

10. Lehman College of the City University of New York

Bronx, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,210

Cost of attendance

14,359

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for sports management professors

The hardest universities for sports management professors to get into are Northwestern University, University of Southern California, and George Washington University, The.

Some great schools for sports management professors 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 management professors 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. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

3. George Washington University, The

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

42%

SAT average

1,380

4. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

5. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

6. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

7. Clemson University

Clemson, SC • Private

Admissions rate

47%

SAT average

1,337

8. University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, MD • Private

Admissions rate

47%

SAT average

1,390

9. University of Tulsa

Tulsa, OK • Private

Admissions rate

41%

SAT average

1,321

10. Baylor University

Waco, TX • Private

Admissions rate

39%

SAT average

1,307

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for sports management professors

The easiest schools for sports management professors to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, barry university, and felician university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a sports management professor 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 management professors.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

3. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

4. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

5. Ottawa University

Ottawa, KS • Private

Admissions rate

78%

SAT average

1,024

6. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,044

7. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

8. The University of Texas Permian Basin

Odessa, TX • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,046

9. Saint Joseph's College of Maine

Standish, ME • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,069

10. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

Average sports management professor salary by education level

According to our data, sports management professors with a Doctorate degree earn the highest average salary, at $68,460 annually. Sports management professors with a Master's degree earn an average annual salary of $56,538.
Sports management professor education levelSports management professor salary
Master's Degree$56,538
Doctorate Degree$68,460

Sports management professor education FAQs

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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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