Pre-Sports Medicine

The Pre-Sports Medicine Certificate of Achievement will give students exposure to the principles,techniques, and ethics used in sports medicine, in the prevention and care of athletic injuries. Students will evaluate human movement, identify causes of athletic injuries, prepare for athletic emergencies, and understand the steps of appropriate follow-up care. Students will compare the various aspects and roles of a Sports Medicine Team. The Pre-Sports Medicine Certificate of Achievement is not an accredited athletic training program that leads to an Athletic Training Credential. However, the program will align with the APTA, NATA and CAATE educational guidelines. Students are recommended to have basic English writing and speaking skills, and the ability to perform moderate physical activity before beginning this program.

At Los Angeles City College, we have a high percentage of first-generation college students that are interested in kinesiology, who are unaware that many of the kinesiology related career pathways all require graduate school. Further we have many kinesiology students who have a desire to work in sports medicine as they explore kinesiology career pathways in our Kin Maj 100 Introduction to Kinesiology course. However, students at this level are not able to participate in any meaningful course work that might expand upon a potential career in sports medicine such as becoming an Athletic Trainer (AT) because the National Athletic Trainer Association (NATA) has pushed the “goal line” of becoming an AT further away. What was once a bachelor’s degree in program, is now master’s degree program and kinesiology students’ express disappointment upon learning that they now need a master’s degree to work as an Athletic Trainer. 

LACC Kinesiology has also had several conversations with our kinesiology colleagues at both Cal State Northridge and Los Angeles.  Their kinesiology department faculty have told us that community college students transferring with their ADTs in Kinesiology,are ill prepared and struggle in upper division kinesiology course work. Both CSUN and CSLA recommended that introductory courses in Functional Anatomy, Biomechanics and Exercise Physiology be developed to better prepare kinesiology transfer students. Based on their recommendations, LACC has developed and added new courses that imbed the above recommended subject content in the required curriculum.  

The Pre-Sports Medicine Certificate of Achievement program has been designed to not only expose kinesiology students to the growing career of athletic training, but also better prepares students for their kinesiology bachelor’s degree work while inspiring them to aim higher towards a graduate degree. 

Students are required to take 21 units of required core courses.

1.There are no inventory records that need adjusting. 2.This is a new program and doesn’t replace any existing programs. 3.Los Angeles City Colleges currently does not offer any related programs to this proposal.

Below is the list of Community College programs in Los Angeles County that offer a similar program to the one we are proposing. However, none are in the service area of Los Angeles City College and will therefore not be impacted by this proposed Pre-Sports Medicine Program. College Program Cerritos college Athletic Training Aide Certificate College of the CanyonsSports Medicine Certificate Mt. San Antonio CollegeAthletic Training Aid Certificate Rio Hondo College Athletic Training Aide Certificate West Los Angeles CollegeAssociate Science – Athletic Training

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