How Can You Specialize a Master’s in Sports Management?

Staff picture
Staff
Updated August 4, 2020

Students who want to specialize a Master's in Sports Management have many different academic options available. Sport management professionals with a master's degree will possess the unique skills that ensure that sports organizations are successful. Students will be prepared for careers as head coaches, athletic directors, marketing managers, sports agents and facility service managers with a master's degree in sport-based management. The best programs will offer academic and professional development services as well as alumni programs that offer support through mentoring, networking, internship and career opportunities.

Resource: Top 30 Most Affordable Online Master's in Sports Management

Kinesiology Leadership

These degree programs offer a business-centered curriculum that includes courses in sports finance, law, marketing, brand strategy, economics, organizational evaluations and HR management. Students learn about union management, race relations, cultural diversity and urban development. Classes are taught by faculty who have experience in sports research and consulting. Students pursuing this master's degree take liberal arts and business prerequisite during their freshmen and sophomore years. During the final two years, students take advanced classes in sports science that teach them about legal liability issues in sport, theories and techniques of sport leadership and planning events and managing sporting facilities. Electives may explore the economics of sport, the psychology of exercise and the historical and sociological bases of human movement. Many programs offer hands-on internships or opportunities to produce in-depth theses regarding sports

MBA Specialization

MBA students of sports-based management will study the economics and business operations of the sports industry. Students will learn about the economics of sports through analyzing how professional athletes have entered the entertainment industry. Professional sports are now one of the highest grossing forms of entertainment. In order to successfully function as an administrator, students must have a comprehensive understanding of the dynamic role of sports economics. Learning about the essentials of law in sports introduces students to current and emerging legal issues through the examination of regulations, government oversight and public feedback. Classes on diversity in sports are designed to teach students how diversity applies to sports through race, gender and culture. Classes on sport finance will help students develop an analytical portfolio of various tools, ratios, formulas and techniques used to understand and utilize complex financial information.

Additional Concentration Options

An event management concentration will help students understand how to manage all aspects of planning, promoting and executing sporting events. Learning scenarios analyze everything from professional league games to international events, such as the Olympic Games. Students may also pursue an organizational management concentration that will prepare them to accept leadership positions with collegiate sports, professional leagues and sports venue companies. Students will gain an understanding of the organizational and operational structures within the sports entertainment industry. A sports law concentration will help students acquire theoretical and operational knowledge of sports legal concepts. This includes antitrust laws, contractual relations, unionization and collective bargaining. This degree also teaches about license, publicity, copyright and ownership issues. A sports media concentration is a rare degree that allows students to study the integration of social media, communications, new technologies and sports media strategies.

Those who specialize a Master's in Sports Management will enjoy career stability and growth. The field of sports management is highly competitive, but the BLS projects continual job growth trends through the year 2022. The BLS states that the demand for coaches and scouts will continue growing at six percent, which is as fast as average.

Latest Posts