Visit the MSc Paediatric Exercise and Health page on the University of Exeter website for more details!
After completing my Undergraduate degree at the School of Sport and Health Sciences, I chose to do a Masters there also because of its worldwide reputation in children’s exercise physiology and health at the Children’s Health and Exercise Research Centre (CHERC). I knew that the staff would support me through the course and help me with anything I needed. I hope for a career in health and physical activity promotion in children - encouraging children to be active and understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle - working towards a healthier nation.
After attending the St. Luke’s careers day 2007 and talking to guest speaker Jon Pitts, I was offered a job at Motive8 Health and Fitness. Working in the schools department, I carried out research with staff at St. Luke’s on physical activity levels during PE lessons in primary schools. Then I progressed to department manager, with the aim to improve the quality of sport and health provision offered in schools. After a year at Motive8, I moved to Wales and became coordinator of the ‘5 for life’ project at Newport Local Health Board. Under the Going for Gold scheme, the project targets children and families through school, community learning and festivals to promote healthy living.
This job offers a range of experiences from working on partnership with public health agencies, organising community events as well as delivering healthy workshops to children in schools. I have to give full praise to the support that Sport and Health Sciences staff provide. Exeter University offers so much, from community action to sports and the various societies, and it's reputation enhances job prospects.
I have worked with children for a number of years as a teacher and coach, and would like to continue working with them in the future, hopefully in a hospital or organisation that uses physical activity interventions to rehabilitate children who suffer from chronic diseases like obesity and diabetes. In the words of Dr Neil Armstrong, ‘Children are not mini adults’, and by doing this degree I will be able to better comprehend how growth and maturation affects children, and design training programmes to suit their stage of development and particular health needs.
I recommend the School of Sport and Health Sciences because the facilities and lecturers are all world class. Classes are small and interactive and there’s always someone you can turn to for support when you need it. There are lots of opportunities for you to work independently and you are given a degree of autonomy in terms of choosing an area of research that interests you. The small friendly campus means you do not get lost in the crowd, unlike big universities.
The University offers a Full Fees Masters Scholarship as well as other scholarships and bursaries which cover part of your tuition. The School of Sports and Health Sciences also has a dedicated careers advisor who keeps us up to date on sports related jobs and courses on a weekly basis. The sports guild runs a community schools coaching programme which may be beneficial to coaches and those interested in working with children who want hands on experience.
I chose to study my MSc at Exeter due to the state-of-the-art facilities, the wealth of top-level researchers/professors involved in the course, and also to be able to take part in many cutting-edge research projects that are run throughout the year here. Ultimately, I hope to be involved in childhood health promotion and involve myself in key research crucial to the future health of our children.
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