25 Best Bachelor’s in Sports Management Degree Programs

Key Infor­ma­tion:

• Top bach­e­lor’s in sports man­age­ment degrees inte­grate busi­ness, social sci­ences, phys­i­cal edu­ca­tion, and law to pro­vide a well-round­ed education.
• Many pro­grams include intern­ships and real-world projects to pre­pare stu­dents for careers in the sports industry.
• Best pro­grams are often accred­it­ed by the Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion (COSMA), ensur­ing high edu­ca­tion­al standards.

Sports man­age­ment shows up in the movies and on TV as one of those glitzy, glam­orous careers that seem total­ly out of reach. In real­i­ty, though, sports man­age­ment is a grow­ing career field that offers a wide range of oppor­tu­ni­ty for pro­fes­sion­als of all kinds. Accord­ing to the Bureau of Labor Sta­tis­tics, the ath­let­ics indus­try is grow­ing faster than aver­age, and some occu­pa­tions in the field are even high­er – like coach­es and scouts, which are grow­ing by 9% over the next decade. But how do you find your way into a sports man­age­ment career? A bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment could be the first step.

The Top 10 Sports Man­age­ment Pro­grams are:

• Louisiana State University
• St. John Fish­er College
• Uni­ver­si­ty of Louisville
• Uni­ver­si­ty of North Florida
• West­ern New Eng­land University
• Slip­pery Rock University
• Cen­tral Michi­gan University
• Endi­cott College
• York Col­lege of Pennsylvania
• Uni­ver­si­ty of Mount Union

Keep read­ing for the full top 25!

Getting a Bachelor’s in Sports Management

When it comes to sports man­age­ment, fig­ures like the fic­tion­al Jer­ry Maguire or the semi-fic­tion­al Don King might spring to mind, but the ath­let­ics indus­try is huge, and there are man­age­ment roles through­out the field. From pro­fes­sion­al and minor league sports to parks and recre­ation or pub­lic schools, man­agers in ath­let­ics keep the busi­ness hum­ming. A sports admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­vides the foun­da­tions in areas a diverse as sports med­i­cine and kine­si­ol­o­gy to account­ing, eco­nom­ics, human resources, and even sports psy­chol­o­gy. Very few occu­pa­tions have quite as many facets, and a sports man­age­ment major offers a huge vari­ety in opportunity.

The best col­leges for sports man­age­ment usu­al­ly approach the bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment as an inter­dis­ci­pli­nary pro­gram, bring­ing togeth­er fac­ul­ty from busi­ness, social sci­ences, phys­i­cal edu­ca­tion, and law. A sports man­age­ment major is a major in every­thing relat­ed to sports, and the col­leges with sports majors know that a good man­ag­er needs to know every­thing that is going on – the num­bers, the peo­ple, and the business.

Methodology: How We Ranked the Best Colleges for Sports Management

Search­ing out the best col­leges for sports man­age­ment degree pro­grams start­ed at the most obvi­ous place: COSMA accred­i­ta­tion. The Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion is the nation’s most trust­ed agency for over­see­ing sports man­age­ment edu­ca­tion. So, all of the insti­tu­tions on the Bachelor’s Degree Cen­ter 25 Best rank­ing are accred­it­ed by COSMA. These are the top col­leges with sports man­age­ment majors. From there, we ranked pro­grams based on a wide selec­tion of criteria:

• Rep­u­ta­tion
• Cost
• Return on Investment
• Grad­u­a­tion Rate
• Employ­ment Rate

To put togeth­er these num­bers, we con­sult­ed sources like IPEDS, Col­lege Score­card, and Niche, using the most cur­rent, rep­utable data avail­able. These pro­grams will pro­vide finan­cial aid and more. Sports man­age­ment degree pro­grams are ranked accord­ing to their aver­age score in all five cri­te­ria. The best sports man­age­ment col­leges fol­low now!

1. Louisiana State University — Baton Rouge, LA

Louisiana State University’s BS in Sport Admin­is­tra­tion degree offers con­cen­tra­tions in Sport Com­merce or Sport Lead­er­ship. This sports man­age­ment degree pro­gram allows stu­dents to gain fun­da­men­tal knowl­edge in the quick­ly chang­ing sports world and how to man­age it. Stu­dents take an in-depth look at lead­ing indus­try best prac­tices and dis­cussing real-world expe­ri­ences in the class­room. Stu­dents are immersed in real sports set­tings with an intern­ship in the New Orleans area, as well as nationwide.

In LSU’s sports admin­is­tra­tion degree, stu­dents devel­op mar­ket­ing strate­gies, learn to orga­nize and facil­i­tate sport­ing events, and man­age facil­i­ties. They gain an under­stand­ing of the eth­i­cal con­cerns sur­round­ing sports and gain knowl­edge of the legal ram­i­fi­ca­tions of poor choic­es. Stu­dents take gen­er­al sports edu­ca­tion class­es as well as the admin­is­tra­tion of sports to gain a stronger foun­da­tion in the finances relat­ed to sports admin­is­tra­tion. LSU’s COS­MA-accred­it­ed bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment is a mod­el program.

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Sci­ence in Sport Admin­is­tra­tion, Con­cen­tra­tions in Sport Com­merce or Sport Leadership

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2. St. John Fisher University — Rochester, NY

St. John Fish­er University’s BS in Sports Man­age­ment degree is accred­it­ed by the Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion (COSMA) and rec­og­nized as a leader in the field. The sports man­age­ment degree pro­gram at St. John Fish­er helps stu­dents find their niche, whether it’s in edu­ca­tion, ama­teur sports, or the pro­fes­sion­al lev­el. Stu­dents will gain fun­da­men­tal knowl­edge of the sports world, includ­ing mar­ket­ing, legal and finance.

Stu­dents in St. John Fisher’s sports admin­is­tra­tion degree will gain an under­stand­ing of soci­ety and its impact on sports and play­ers. They will take a deep­er look at drugs, vio­lence, and gam­bling. They will also have a broad­er under­stand­ing of dis­crim­i­na­tion in the sports indus­try based on race, gen­der, and eth­nic­i­ty. Course work for the bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment blends the­o­ry with real-world exam­ples and requires tan­gi­ble expe­ri­ence through an intern­ship before com­ple­tion of the pro­gram. Stu­dents will improve oral and writ­ten com­mu­ni­ca­tion skills in addi­tion to com­put­er skills which are becom­ing a neces­si­ty in today’s world of sports management.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

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3. University of Louisville — Louisville, KY

The Uni­ver­si­ty of Louisville’s BS in Sports Admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­gram can be pur­sued on cam­pus or online. UL’s sports man­age­ment degree is accred­it­ed by the Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion (COSMA) and intends to ready stu­dents for jobs in the sports world. This pro­gram focus­es on the busi­ness side of the indus­try with atten­tion to lead­er­ship, mar­ket­ing, finance, fundrais­ing, event plan­ning, and orga­ni­za­tion­al behavior.

Uni­ver­si­ty of Louisville stu­dents ben­e­fit from intern­ships, vol­un­teer work, and real world expe­ri­ence with ser­vice projects with­in the com­mu­ni­ty. It is rec­om­mend­ed that stu­dents select a minor to enhance their sport admin­is­tra­tion knowl­edge. Minor choic­es are eco­nom­ics, well­ness coach­ing, com­mu­ni­ty health, com­mu­ni­ca­tions, or exer­cise sci­ence. Stu­dents gain a foun­da­tion in the the­o­ries and prin­ci­ples of admin­is­tra­tion and man­age­ment of sports and fit­ness, and recre­ation­al ser­vices and pro­grams. They learn the val­ue of eth­i­cal deci­sion mak­ing and study mod­ern con­cerns that influ­ence sports.

Degree: BS in Sports Administration

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4. University of North Florida — Jacksonville, FL

The Uni­ver­si­ty of North Flori­da BS in Sport Man­age­ment degree pro­gram ifast-paced­ed to meet the grow­ing needs with­in the sports indus­try. Uni­ver­si­ty of North Flori­da’s mis­sion is to give stu­dents a foun­da­tion in sports man­age­ment. Stu­dents will par­tic­i­pate in intern­ships local­ly with ath­let­ic pro­grams, recre­ation­al agen­cies, and pro­fes­sion­al sports teams. UNF’s bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment pro­gram has been accred­it­ed through the Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion (COSMA).

The pur­pose of UNF’s sports admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­gram is to pro­vide oppor­tu­ni­ties to stu­dents for pro­fes­sion­al devel­op­ment and the abil­i­ty to apply knowl­edge and research. Stu­dents learn the ben­e­fits of mar­ket­ing, con­fer­ence, event, and pro­mo­tion­al plan­ning. They devel­op skills to help them become stronger pub­lic speak­ers, as well as improve writ­ing skills.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

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5. Western New England University — Springfield, MA

West­ern New Eng­land University’s BS in Sports Man­age­ment degree comes from the AACSB-accred­it­ed Col­lege of Busi­ness. As part of the pro­gram, stu­dents will take core busi­ness class­es along­side the sports man­age­ment spe­cial­ized cours­es, devel­op­ing a wider under­stand­ing of busi­ness than the aver­age bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment. Stu­dents may also choose to take a dou­ble major with Mar­ket­ing. They will also have access to the 3 + 3 Law cours­es which will improve nego­ti­a­tion and arbi­tra­tion skills.

With its long tra­di­tion as a leader in busi­ness edu­ca­tion, West­ern New Eng­land stu­dents will learn the fun­da­men­tals of facil­i­ty plan­ning, sports mar­ket­ing, man­ag­ing of inter­na­tion­al sports, busi­ness law as it relates to sports. Stu­dents will par­tic­i­pate in trips to venues and sports facil­i­ties. The will learn the details of scout­ing, devel­op­ing play­ers, ana­lyz­ing sports, event man­age­ment, and ath­let­ic coaching.

Degree: BS in Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion — Sport Man­age­ment concentration

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6. Slippery Rock University — Slippery Rock, PA

Slip­pery Rock University’s BS in Sport Man­age­ment degree is one of the old­est pro­grams of its kind, in exis­tence since 1977, and it has helped set the bar for sports admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­grams for more than 40 years. The first COS­MA-accred­it­ed pro­gram in the nation, Slip­pery Rock’s bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment devel­ops stu­dents in prepa­ra­tion for sports mar­ket­ing, facil­i­ty man­age­ment, minor league sports, and sports event management.

Stu­dents in Slip­pery Rock’s sports man­age­ment pro­gram will devel­op their crit­i­cal think­ing skills, while gain­ing hands on expe­ri­ence. They will gain a foun­da­tion in sports man­age­ment and be able to apply the knowl­edge they gained. Stu­dents will gain a broad under­stand­ing in oth­er areas such as mar­ket­ing, eco­nom­ics, com­mu­ni­ca­tions, finance and how those areas relate and inter­act with sports man­age­ment. And with four decades of net­work­ing, stu­dents can trust their degree to pay off on the job market.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

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7. Central Michigan University — Mount Pleasant, MI

Cen­tral Michi­gan University’s Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram offers three option for stu­dents to earn their bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment. Cen­tral Michi­gan offers a Bach­e­lor of Sci­ence in Sport Man­age­ment, or a Bach­e­lor of Arts in Sport Man­age­ment, or Bach­e­lor of Applied Arts in Sport Man­age­ment. In any ver­sion, CMU’s pro­gram gives stu­dents a foun­da­tion in the field of sport man­age­ment, with a slight­ly dif­fer­ent empha­sis in each.

Accred­it­ed by the Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion (COSMA), stu­dents in the CMU sports admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­gram will dis­cuss the nature, sig­nif­i­cance, and scope of the indus­try. Upon the con­clu­sion of this pro­gram, stu­dents can pur­sue employ­ment in var­i­ous types of sport man­age­ment from high school to pro­fes­sion­al sports, or non prof­it orga­ni­za­tions. Stu­dents learn the ben­e­fits of morals, val­ues, and ethics and how they influ­ence the way a law is inter­pret­ed, while also learn­ing the impor­tance of mer­chan­dis­ing, jour­nal­ism, event man­age­ment, and sports retail.

Degree:
Bach­e­lor of Sci­ence in Sport Man­age­ment
Bach­e­lor of Arts in Sport Man­age­ment
Bach­e­lor of Applied Arts in Sport Management

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8. Endicott College — Beverly, MA

Endi­cott College’s Bach­e­lor of Edu­ca­tion in Sport Man­age­ment degree pro­vides stu­dents the knowl­edge and real world expe­ri­ence in sports man­age­ment. Endi­cott Col­lege gives stu­dents an envi­ron­ment that is stu­dent cen­tered while pro­mot­ing pro­fes­sion­al­ism and schol­ar­ships. This pro­gram requires an intern­ship as part of the course work, which often pro­pels stu­dents into a job after grad­u­a­tion. Intern­ships are typ­i­cal­ly with sports teams, orga­ni­za­tions, health and fit­ness clubs, and sport mar­ket­ing firms.

In Endicott’s sports admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­gram, stu­dents learn the best indus­try prac­tices in sports man­age­ment. Stu­dents devel­op effec­tive writ­ten and oral com­mu­ni­ca­tion skills, and study the chal­lenges in man­age­ment with strong crit­i­cal think­ing and sound deci­sion mak­ing abil­i­ties. They learn how to devel­op ana­lyt­i­cal and crit­i­cal abil­i­ties to enable stu­dents to be rel­e­vant and effec­tive lead­ers in sports management.

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Edu­ca­tion in Sport Management

9. York College of Pennsylvania — York, PA

In York Col­lege of Pennsylvania’s BS in Sport Man­age­ment degree pro­gram, stu­dents study a com­plete cur­ricu­lum in sports man­age­ment while obtain­ing knowl­edge in cours­es in oth­er dis­ci­plines to pre­pare them for jobs across all area of the sports man­age­ment indus­try. The mis­sion of the pro­gram at York Col­lege is to cre­ate a pro­fes­sion­al and pos­i­tive envi­ron­ment where stu­dents can grow and learn the skills need­ed for sports management.

In York College’s bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment pro­gram, stu­dents will gain a work­ing knowl­edge of the tools to allow them to be fis­cal­ly respon­si­ble and bud­get savvy in their role with­in a sports orga­ni­za­tion. They will improve their com­mu­ni­ca­tion skills and learn to think crit­i­cal­ly in deci­sions relat­ed to sports man­age­ment. Stu­dents will gain a foun­da­tion in best prac­tices found with­in today’s sports indus­try, espe­cial­ly the val­ue of apply­ing ethics to make sound deci­sions as they relate to cur­rent issues with­in the sports world. Stu­dents will gath­er data and learn to use evi­dence to cre­ate a safe envi­ron­ment with­in any organization.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

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10. University of Mount Union — Alliance, OH

Uni­ver­si­ty of Mount Union’s BS in Sport Busi­ness degree pro­vides stu­dents an oppor­tu­ni­ty to gain a bet­ter under­stand­ing of the sport world and indus­try, specif­i­cal­ly how sports and busi­ness inter­sect. This is pro­gram is accred­it­ed through the Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion (COSMA). Upon grad­u­a­tion stu­dents will be pre­pared to enter the work­force in sports orga­ni­za­tions, col­lege coach­es, and event man­age­ment and sup­port, to name just a few.

Bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment stu­dents are trained to take a deep­er look into the sports indus­try and the unique inter­ac­tions it has with the busi­ness world. They will do in depth stud­ies of cre­at­ing pro­pos­als, cre­at­ing bids, busi­ness plans, and sales train­ing. Stu­dents will learn the fun­da­men­tals of pub­lic rela­tions, finance, mar­ket­ing, and busi­ness admin­is­tra­tion. Stu­dents will have many oppor­tu­ni­ties for hands on expe­ri­ence through the extend­ed intern­ship pro­gram. Includ­ed in this pro­gram is career train­ing, work­shops and job fairs, as well as attend­ing con­fer­ences that pro­vide net­work­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties; Mount Union’s prox­im­i­ty to met­ro­pol­i­tan Cleve­land offers a wide range of intern­ship and job opportunities.

Degree: BA in Sport Business

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11. Ohio University — Athens, OH

Ohio University’s Bach­e­lor of Sports Man­age­ment degree is offered by the Col­lege of Busi­ness. This gives stu­dents a leg up because they are able to blend a busi­ness foun­da­tion with sports man­age­ment. Each day, the sports indus­try becomes more com­plex as it moves into a more glob­al envi­ron­ment. Stu­dents in sports man­age­ment need to remain flex­i­ble and have a strong foun­da­tion in sports, man­age­ment prin­ci­ples, and admin­is­tra­tive theory.

Ohio Uni­ver­si­ty believes the best way to pre­pare stu­dents for employ­ment in sports man­age­ment is with real world hands on expe­ri­ence. As a result, they pro­vide to stu­dents numer­ous paths to get involved with their Cen­ter for Sports Admin­is­tra­tion. This Cen­ter pro­vides a place for stu­dents to find intern­ships, apply for employ­ment, and allow the oppor­tu­ni­ty for inter­ac­tions such as the San Diego Con­sult­ing Project. In addi­tion, stu­dents receive a lot of sup­port through the robust and focused course work of this pro­gram. Stu­dents are able to gain expe­ri­ence cre­at­ing events by work­ing with school orga­ni­za­tions to devel­op and pro­mote events.

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Sport Management

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12. Winthrop University — Rock Hill, SC

Winthrop University’s BS in Sport Man­age­ment degree is an inter­dis­ci­pli­nary pro­gram offered in col­lab­o­ra­tion by the fac­ul­ty of sev­er­al depart­ments, includ­ing the Col­lege of Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion, Col­lege of Edu­ca­tion, and Depart­ment of Phys­i­cal Edu­ca­tion, Sport and Human Per­for­mance. This pro­gram helps stu­dents improve their writ­ten and oral com­mu­ni­ca­tion skills, learn to think crit­i­cal­ly, and encour­age intel­lec­tu­al inquiry. Stu­dents are giv­en a foun­da­tion in the his­to­ry of the sports indus­try, back­ground on busi­ness aspects for man­age­ment, as well as prepa­ra­tion for suc­cess­ful inte­gra­tion into any of the var­i­ous pieces of the sports indus­try. Stu­dents also take an in depth look at the way orga­ni­za­tions func­tion and operate.

Winthrop sports admin­is­tra­tion degree stu­dents are giv­en the skills, knowl­edge and eth­i­cal foun­da­tion to become effec­tive lead­ers in the world of sports man­age­ment. Neigh­bor­ing states of Winthrop Uni­ver­si­ty are the homes of at least six pro­fes­sion­al sports teams. This pro­gram is the only one in the Char­lotte metro area, which puts their stu­dents in the per­fect posi­tion to pro­cure employ­ment at the com­ple­tion of this pro­gram. Winthrop’s mis­sion is to cre­ate lead­ers in sports management.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

13. Bowling Green State University — Bowling Green, OH

Bowl­ing Green State University’s BS in Edu­ca­tion-Sport Man­age­ment Pro­gram is one of the old­est ded­i­cat­ed sports man­age­ment degree pro­grams in the nation. At Bowl­ing Green State, stu­dents blend real world expe­ri­ence with time in the class­room to empha­sis sound deci­sion mak­ing based on eth­i­cal val­ues, intel­lec­tu­al inquiry, and vol­un­teer­ing. Stu­dents will also get a foun­da­tion in mar­ket­ing, com­mu­ni­ca­tion, and man­age­ment. Upon grad­u­a­tion from this pro­gram, stu­dents are able to obtain employ­ment as cor­po­rate admin­is­tra­tors, col­lege direc­tors, busi­ness man­agers, facil­i­ty man­agers, sales reps, and account exec­u­tives, just to name a few.

At the con­clu­sion of BGSU sports admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­gram, stu­dents will under­stand man­age­ment con­cepts and their roles in lead­er­ship. They will under­stand how soci­ety is impact­ed by social val­ues, cul­ture, and per­son­al expe­ri­ence. Stu­dents will under­stand how val­ues and ethics play a key role in sports. They will take a deep­er look at inter­per­son­al com­mu­ni­ca­tion, includ­ing but not lim­it­ed to pub­lic rela­tions, mass com­mu­ni­ca­tion, and pub­lic inter­ac­tions. Stu­dents will grasp the key mar­ket­ing tech­niques that helps pro­mote sports prod­ucts. They will have a bet­ter under­stand­ing of the legal ram­i­fi­ca­tions of deci­sions and behav­iors as they relate to sports.

Degree: BS in Edu­ca­tion, Sport Man­age­ment Program

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14. Southeast Missouri State University — Cape Giradeau, MO

South­east Mis­souri State University’s BS in Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram focus­es on prac­ti­cal expe­ri­ence. Learn­ers study sports man­age­ment from dif­fer­ent angles. They learn how sports impact soci­ety. They also learn all about the best mar­ket­ing tech­niques and sports-relat­ed ethics. Unlike oth­er sports admin­is­tra­tion degrees, SMSU’s pro­gram requires a Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion Minor. The busi­ness back­ground com­bined with hands-on learn­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties will pre­pare you for your career, no mat­ter where your career takes you. This Sports Man­age­ment degree will immerse you in the knowl­edge and skills that you need.

SMSU starts with a foun­da­tion in the lib­er­al arts. Stu­dents get a core lev­el of knowl­edge that they can take with them into any career. From there, this school pro­vides lots of expe­ri­ence-based learn­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties. The hands-on approach reflects real-world careers. As a result, stu­dents can grad­u­ate with con­fi­dence. By com­bin­ing class­room learn­ing and prac­ti­cal oppor­tu­ni­ties, stu­dents get the most bal­anced bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment edu­ca­tion possible.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

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15. Kutztown University — Kutztown, PA

Kutz­town University’s BS in Sport Man­age­ment degree is ready to help you get an excit­ing career. This indus­try is grow­ing almost con­stant­ly. Kutz­town Uni­ver­si­ty will help you devel­op the adapt­abil­i­ty and crit­i­cal think­ing skills that you’ll need to step up. This pro­gram pro­vides a com­bi­na­tion of gen­er­al edu­ca­tion class­es, sports man­age­ment basics, and intern­ships. When stu­dents grad­u­ate, they’re pre­pared for a wide vari­ety of career options. Kutztown’s bachelor’s in Sports Man­age­ment will open doors.

Kutz­town Uni­ver­si­ty aims to help its com­mu­ni­ty and the world at large. With an 18:1 stu­dent-fac­ul­ty ratio, KU pro­vides lots of indi­vid­u­al­ized help. Stu­dents here enjoy a beau­ti­ful cam­pus. They also get to be a part of the vibrant stu­dent life. The school boasts con­tem­po­rary facil­i­ties, research oppor­tu­ni­ties, and state of the art tech­nol­o­gy. Grad­u­ates enjoy excel­lent career out­comes. Many jump into their careers right after graduation.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

16. University of Indianapolis — Indianapolis, IN

The Uni­ver­si­ty of Indi­anapo­lis’ BS in Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram trains stu­dents to find their place in this indus­try. Though this field can get over­whelm­ing, UIndy will help you find your place. Since sports man­age­ment is such a dynam­ic and ener­getic field, UIndy’s class­es reflect that ener­gy. Stu­dents get high-qual­i­ty intern­ship oppor­tu­ni­ties. They also get to work with well-known sports orga­ni­za­tions and net­work with busi­ness pro­fes­sion­als. This way, stu­dents tran­si­tion smooth­ly into their careers after graduation. .

UIndy believes that edu­ca­tion should open doors. There­fore, they pro­vide their stu­dents with every pos­si­ble oppor­tu­ni­ty to suc­ceed. Class­es go beyond book knowl­edge. While stu­dents do get lots of core class­room expe­ri­ence, they also work with real pro­fes­sion­als. They explore the prac­ti­cal side of edu­ca­tion so that they become as pre­pared as pos­si­ble for the future. As a stu­dent, you’ll col­lab­o­rate with oth­ers. You’ll also find the best ways to impact your com­mu­ni­ty for the better.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

17. University of Southern Indiana — Evansville, IN

The Uni­ver­si­ty of South­ern Indiana’s Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram gives stu­dents lots of options. First, stu­dents can choose between a BA and a BS. Sec­ond, stu­dents can also choose from a wide array of con­cen­tra­tions. Whether you want to focus on busi­ness admin­is­tra­tion, recre­ation­al health, col­le­giate sports, or any num­ber of career choic­es, you can tai­lor a degree that will help you get there. Sports admin­is­tra­tion degree stu­dents at USI also work with the school’s ath­let­ic teams and help orga­nize events for addi­tion­al hands-on experience.

With an enroll­ment of over 11,000 stu­dents, USI pro­vides a high­ly ener­getic expe­ri­ence. With out­reach pro­grams and oth­er resources, USI helps stu­dents suc­ceed. 82% of USI grad­u­ates report that they’re employed with­in their field of study. The Uni­ver­si­ty of South­ern Indi­ana lives up to its vision: “Shap­ing the future through learn­ing and innovation.”

Degree: BA or BS in Sport Man­age­ment — Inter­col­le­giate Ath­let­ics, Recre­ation­al Sports, Sport Com­mu­ni­ca­tion, and Sport & Busi­ness Studies

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18. University of Tampa — Tampa, FL

The Uni­ver­si­ty of Tampa’s BS in Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram com­bines sports the­o­ry and prac­ti­cal expe­ri­ence. UT’s pro­gram com­bines Sports Man­age­ment class­es with busi­ness class­es. Stu­dents get the core skills that they need to start their careers. Stu­dents also get a lot of intern­ship and net­work­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties, giv­ing bachelor’s in sports man­age­ment grad­u­ates a direct line to a job after graduation.

UT pro­vides all of the lat­est tech­niques and tech­nol­o­gy in edu­ca­tion. This pri­vate uni­ver­si­ty is nei­ther too big nor too small. Stu­dents get rel­a­tive­ly small class sizes, but they also enjoy a lot of the resources that larg­er uni­ver­si­ties pro­vide. The Tam­pa Bay area pro­vides lots of oppor­tu­ni­ties for jobs and social­iz­ing. In 2022, US News and World Report ranked UT as one of the top region­al uni­ver­si­ties in the South for the oppor­tu­ni­ty and excel­lence it offers.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

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19. Wingate University — Wingate, NC

Wingate University’s BS in Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram teach­es the busi­ness side of sports. Stu­dents here go far beyond class­room knowl­edge. Every stu­dent in this pro­gram com­pletes a full-time intern­ship between junior and senior year. Wingate stu­dents have worked with the the NBA, NASCAR (thanks to Wingate’s prox­im­i­ty to Char­lotte, NC), and oth­er pres­ti­gious orga­ni­za­tions. These intern­ships often lead to full-time employ­ment after grad­u­a­tion. In any case, stu­dents grad­u­ate with the skill set that they’ll need to start work­ing right away. Over­all, Wingate Uni­ver­si­ty will help you get the most from your Bach­e­lors in Sports Management.

Wingate Uni­ver­si­ty offers all of the best ben­e­fits of a small school. 96% of class­es here have few­er than 40 stu­dents. This way, stu­dents can work direct­ly with their teach­ers. Stu­dents always have options when they need to ask for help. This school’s major strength is in the sci­ences. Near­ly 1 in 5 under­grads here are prepar­ing to go into med­i­cine. For Sports Man­age­ment stu­dents, this means that they can explore the sci­en­tif­ic side of sports and learn how to apply it to the busi­ness side of things. Con­sis­tent­ly ranked as one of the top best val­ue col­leges in the south, Wingate makes a great choice.

Degree: BS in Sport Management

20. Wichita State University — Wichita, KS

Wichi­ta State’s BA in Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram offers a thor­ough edu­ca­tion in the sports indus­try. Stu­dents learn how mar­ket­ing, law, man­age­ment, and oth­er sub­jects inter­act with the Amer­i­can sports world. The pro­gram requires an intern­ship, which pre­pares stu­dents for employ­ment after grad­u­a­tion. Grad­u­ates from this pro­gram move on to work in the pro­fes­sion­al sports busi­ness, recre­ation cen­ter man­age­ment, and much more. WSU also offers Sports Man­age­ment as a minor. Wichi­ta State’s sports admin­is­tra­tion degree will give you lots of options in your career.

WSU com­bines class­room learn­ing with real-world expe­ri­ence. This school encour­ages research, inno­va­tion, and entre­pre­neur­ship. Stu­dents learn how to carve out their own path­ways to a ful­fill­ing and suc­cess­ful life. At WSU, stu­dents learn how to rec­og­nize oppor­tu­ni­ties and take advan­tage of them. This diverse and dynam­ic cam­pus will give you a great edu­ca­tion­al experience.

Degree: BA in Sport Management

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21. North Greenville University — Tigerville, SC

As a Chris­t­ian insti­tu­tion, NGU is affil­i­at­ed with the South­ern Bap­tist Con­ven­tion. Fac­ul­ty and staff aim to change lives every day and make a pos­i­tive impact in their com­mu­ni­ty. Stu­dents here learn how to inte­grate faith and career on a dai­ly basis. This high-qual­i­ty school is per­fect for those who want a faith com­mu­ni­ty along with their edu­ca­tion­al community.

Degree: BS in Sport Man­age­ment — Tracks in Busi­ness, Coach­ing, and Sport Ministry

22. Lancaster Bible College — Lancaster, PA

Lan­cast­er Bible College’s BS in Sports Man­age­ment and Bib­li­cal Stud­ies is a unique and unusu­al pro­gram that com­bines exper­tise in sports admin­is­tra­tion with Chris­t­ian doc­trine. Stu­dents get lots of hands-on oppor­tu­ni­ties, work with pro­fes­sion­als, and orga­nize events. By the time stu­dents grad­u­ate, they have plen­ty of expe­ri­ence and con­fi­dence that they can use in their careers. With tra­di­tion­al class­es, appren­tice­ships, and intern­ships, the school pro­vides every­thing that stu­dents need to make the most of a Sports Admin­is­tra­tion degree.

Lan­cast­er Bible Col­lege empha­sizes faith, and the unusu­al inte­gra­tion of Bib­li­cal Stud­ies pre­pares grad­u­ates to enter careers in Sports Min­istry, go out into the mis­sion field as Sports Mis­sion­ar­ies, or to become phys­i­cal edu­ca­tors and coach­es in Chris­t­ian schools. Lan­cast­er Bible Col­lege will help you find a pur­pose and live it every day. This pri­vate Bible col­lege is deeply root­ed in its faith tra­di­tion. Locat­ed in a beau­ti­ful city, LBC offers a full range of experiences.

Degree: BS in Sport Man­age­ment and Bib­li­cal Studies

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23. Saint Leo University — St. Leo, FL

Saint Leo University’s BA in Sports Busi­ness degree pro­gram ben­e­fits great­ly from its loca­tion in Saint Leo, FL, a prime city for sports man­age­ment — met­ro­pol­i­tan Tam­pa Bay, where there is no short­age of pro­fes­sion­al and minor league teams. Stu­dents get some of the best oppor­tu­ni­ties for intern­ships and prac­ti­cal expe­ri­ences here. Stu­dents also get great oppor­tu­ni­ties for net­work­ing with indus­try pro­fes­sion­als. This school has lots of con­tem­po­rary, upgrad­ed facil­i­ties so that learn­ers can get the most out of their col­lege expe­ri­ences. Grad­u­ates from this pro­gram go on to enjoy suc­cess­ful careers. For a Sports Man­age­ment degree that comes with lots of resources, look into Saint Leo University.

Saint Leo Uni­ver­si­ty it the old­est Catholic Uni­ver­si­ty in Flori­da. While it wel­comes stu­dents of all faiths, this school infus­es class­es with its Catholic beliefs and val­ues. Saint Leo is high­ly diverse and offers enrich­ing learn­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties. Small class­es mean lots of indi­vid­u­al­ized atten­tion for stu­dents who need it. Valu­ing com­mu­ni­ty ser­vice, this school is a great option for stu­dents who want to make a dif­fer­ence with their lives and careers.

Degree: BA in Sport Business

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24. Troy University — Troy, AL

Troy University’s BS in Hos­pi­tal­i­ty, Sport, and Tourism Man­age­ment is a tru­ly great Sports Man­age­ment degree pro­gram. Stu­dents get a sol­id foun­da­tion of core class­es. They also get intern­ship oppor­tu­ni­ties and chances to work with pro­fes­sion­als. Not only are stu­dents con­fi­dent in their skills by the time they grad­u­ate, but they also have a com­pet­i­tive edge in the job mar­ket. This bachelor’s in Sports Man­age­ment will give you a jump­start to pro­pel your career forward.

Troy Uni­ver­si­ty began over 100 years ago as a nor­mal school to train teach­ers. Since then, it has expand­ed to include sev­er­al cam­pus­es and lots of dif­fer­ent majors. This school pro­vides a diverse edu­ca­tion for a diverse stu­dent body. It was named as one of Prince­ton Review’s “Best in the South­east” for 14 years in a row.

Degree: BS in Hos­pi­tal­i­ty, Sport, and Tourism Man­age­ment – Sport Man­age­ment Concentration

25. Nichols College — Dudley, MA

Nichols College’s BS in Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion degree pro­gram allows stu­dents to choose a con­cen­tra­tion in Sport Man­age­ment. With a strong foun­da­tion in busi­ness, the sports man­age­ment degree pro­gram pro­vides a full pic­ture of sports lead­er­ship. Fac­ul­ty mem­bers have years of expe­ri­ence in the field, so they can offer real, prac­ti­cal advice. As a result, Nichols Col­lege helps its stu­dents gain that edge they need. With a high­ly respect­ed intern­ship pro­gram, Nichols pro­vides valu­able work expe­ri­ence with its Sports Man­age­ment degree.

Nichols Col­lege is very busi­ness-focused. Those who want to grow their busi­ness and lead­er­ship skills do well at this school. Learn­ing hap­pens both inside and out­side the class­room, giv­ing stu­dents a well-round­ed approach to edu­ca­tion. When stu­dents grad­u­ate, they’re unique­ly pre­pared for the real world. This school offers lots of sup­port and career-cen­tered classes.

Degree: BS in Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion, Con­cen­tra­tion in Sport Management

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Why Should I Choose an On-Campus Sports Management Degree?

When weigh­ing the pros and cons of sports man­age­ment major pro­grams, many ben­e­fits come to mind. This par­tic­u­lar field offers a strong sense of com­mu­ni­ty and men­tor­ship through sports admin­is­tra­tion intern­ship. The best col­leges for sports man­age­ment com­bine edu­ca­tion in sci­ence, fit­ness, nutri­tion, phys­i­ol­o­gy, med­i­cine, Kine­si­ol­o­gy, and sports med­i­cine. It also teach­es valu­able life skills such as com­mu­ni­ca­tion, lead­er­ship. resource­ful­ness, deci­sion-mak­ing, and inter­per­son­al skills.

In addi­tion to the edu­ca­tion, the best sports man­age­ment pro­grams also pre­pare stu­dents for licen­sure or cer­ti­fi­ca­tions relat­ed to sports admin­is­tra­tion. Some coach­ing jobs need cer­ti­fi­ca­tion to ver­i­fy that the coach meets all the manda­to­ry nec­es­sary stan­dards. Cer­ti­fi­ca­tion in first aid or car­diopul­monary resus­ci­ta­tion (CPR) is need­ed in cer­tain roles. Cours­es in sports safe­ty and coach­ing fun­da­men­tals may also be nec­es­sary. Spe­cial­ized train­ing in cer­tain areas, like sports media, can help to advance a career. Col­leges with sports man­age­ment degrees will often offer dou­ble majors or specializations.

Cours­es out­side of the sports man­age­ment field may be rel­e­vant for edu­ca­tion; for exam­ple, a stu­dent might take cours­es in busi­ness admin­is­tra­tion, mar­ket­ing, eco­nom­ics, account­ing, and health. Choos­ing good elec­tives opens up your poten­tial as well. In addi­tion to a bachelor’s degree in sport man­age­ment, majors can choose to pur­sue a mas­ter of sci­ence in sports man­age­ment. Sports admin­is­tra­tion intern­ships can make an impact on job oppor­tu­ni­ties, as a good intern­ship can lead to a job straight out of school for grads.

If you have an asso­ciate degree, you may con­sid­er an online pro­gram. Master’s pro­grams are often offered online as well, even at elite schools like Colum­bia in New York. Oth­er insti­tu­tions include the Uni­ver­si­ty of Flori­da, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Michi­gan, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Geor­gia, the Uni­ver­i­ty of Hous­ton, Mia­mi Uni­ver­si­ty, or the Uni­ver­si­ty of Texas. The career path offered by under­grad­u­ate degrees

What is COSMA Accreditation?

The top sports man­age­ment pro­grams need to be rec­og­nized by COSMA in order to be con­sid­ered legit­i­mate. COSMA, or the Com­mis­sion on Sport Man­age­ment Accred­i­ta­tion, is an accred­it­ing orga­ni­za­tion that reviews sports man­age­ment edu­ca­tion­al pro­grams. This is done to ver­i­fy whether a pro­gram is up to qual­i­ty edu­ca­tion­al stan­dards. The top sport man­age­ment pro­grams all have COSMA recognition.

COSMA reviews a pro­gram to eval­u­ate whether it prop­er­ly edu­cates and pre­pares peo­ple for a career in sports man­age­ment. This accred­i­ta­tion body was start­ed by NASPE (Nation­al Asso­ci­a­tion for Sport and Phys­i­cal Edu­ca­tion) and NASSM (North Amer­i­can Soci­ety for Sport Man­age­ment). COSMA has devel­oped a set of stan­dards that sports man­age­ment pro­grams need to fol­low in order to receive accreditation.

What are Some Careers in Sports Management?

Part of the appeal of this field is its broad range of work; sports man­age­ment majors can choose from a vari­ety of careers. There is no one sports man­age­ment job descrip­tion, because there are so many areas in sports. The most com­mon areas of work include

• col­lege sports management
• facil­i­ty management
• event man­age­ment
• recre­ation­al management
• sports mar­ket­ing
• sports finance
• coach­ing
• sport law
• sports analytics/sports information

Sports man­agers also have the oppor­tu­ni­ty of career advance­ment, whether it be through coach­ing, scout­ing, mar­ket­ing, enter­tain­ing, or oth­er jobs.

Your typ­i­cal sports admin­is­tra­tion job descrip­tion will depend on the type of career you pur­sue. For exam­ple, a team coach will be respon­si­ble for plan­ning, orga­niz­ing, teach­ing, and devel­op­ing ath­let­ic skills in indi­vid­ual play­ers. A sports agent will recruit tal­ent, man­age pub­lic rela­tions, man­age finances, nego­ti­ate con­tracts, and find endorse­ment deals for the client. An ath­let­ic direc­tor may over­see ath­let­ics for a school or association.

Accord­ing to the Bureau of Labor Sta­tis­tics, the aver­age annu­al wage for all occu­pa­tions that meet the sports man­age­ment job descrip­tion is any­where from $60,000 to well over six fig­ures. Man­agers for ath­letes make a medi­an of $128,470, while salaries for coach­es and scouts vary wide­ly depend­ing on whether they work in pro­fes­sion­al sports, col­le­giate ath­let­ics, local pub­lic schools, or munic­i­pal pro­grams. Sports mar­ket­ing can earn a man­ag­er as much as $64,130 per year.

With grad­u­ate pro­grams like a master’s degree, you may go even far­ther and earn even high­er salaries!

Relat­ed Rankings:

15 Best Online Sports Man­age­ment Degree Bachelor’s Pro­grams
10 Fastest Online Sports Man­age­ment Degree Bachelor’s Pro­grams
10 Most Afford­able Online Sports Man­age­ment Degree Bach­e­lor Programs