American Public University System Online Bachelor of Science in Sports and Health Sciences

American Public University's online bachelor's in Sports and Health Sciences is one of the lowest-priced routes to a four-year degree in this field. You pay $360 per credit, textbooks are free, and you can transfer up to 90 of the 120 credits. Classes start every month with no set login times. Its weak spots are accreditation for exam routes and how lab materials are handled.

American Public University System is a for-profit, online-focused system based in Charles Town, West Virginia. It runs American Public University and American Military University, and on August 4, 2026 it combined with Rasmussen University and Hondros College of Nursing. It isn't affiliated with American University or the U.S. military, despite the names.

The degree is 120 credits: 31 general education, 37 major, 18 in a concentration, 3 for a final seminar and 31 electives. You choose General, Coaching Studies, Exercise Science, Fitness and Wellness Professional Studies, or Nutrition for Health and Fitness. Admission needs a high school diploma or equivalent, with no SAT, ACT or application fee.

The full rubric is on the methodology page. A factor marked Peer Median had no published input, so it counts at half weight.

The standard rate is $360 per credit. Textbooks and ebooks, the application and the transfer evaluation cost nothing, but there's a $350 graduation fee. With no transfer credit, 120 credits is $43,200 in tuition, or $43,550 with the fee.

The Veteran Grant and Opportunity Grant both bring the rate to $324, and the military rate is $250. Transfer moves the total most. With 90 credits accepted, you'd pay for 30 credits at $360, which is $10,800 plus the $350 fee. Only one discount applies per course, and the military rate overrides the others.

120 credits at $360 a credit comes to $43,200 in tuition, before fees.

Who It Fits

• Working adults who need a start date now. Courses begin monthly and run 8 to 16 weeks with no set login times, and the next start listed is October 5, 2026.
• Students with a lot of transfer credit. APU accepts up to 90 credits and evaluates transcripts for free, so a student who arrives with 90 pays for 30 credits.
• Service members, veterans and their families. The Preferred Military Rate is $250 per credit and covers active-duty members, Guard, Reserve and family. Veterans and their families get the $324 Veteran Grant if the military rate doesn't apply.

Who Should Skip It

• Anyone who needs the American College of Sports Medicine's ACSM-EP exercise physiologist exam after August 15, 2027, or the CSCS (Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist) after January 1, 2030. APU's pages list no accreditation from CAAHEP (Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs) or CASCE (Council on Accreditation of Strength and Conditioning Education), only an American Sport Education Program (ASEP) affiliation. See certification-ready degrees.
• Students headed for physical therapy or another allied health license. APU itself says those paths need graduate coursework, clinical training or licensure beyond this bachelor's.
• People who want hands-on placements. The final course is a portfolio seminar, and no internship is listed.

The major has real science. You take chemistry, physics and two semesters of anatomy and physiology, each with a lab, plus SPHE314 Exercise Physiology, SPHE421 Kinesiology, SPHE322 Sports Nutrition, SPHE250 Sports First Aid and Safety, SPHE470 Psychology of Sport and SPHE295 Foundations of Nutrition. SPHE420 Exercise Programming and Testing prepares you for the National Academy of Sports Medicine's Certified Personal Trainer (NASM-CPT) exam.

The Exercise Science concentration adds MATH302 Statistics, SPHE315 Training and Conditioning, SPHE317 Sports Medicine, SPHE324 Biomechanics, SPHE423 Advanced Strength and Conditioning and SPHE426 Principles of Corrective Exercise. The last course, SPHE490 Senior Seminar, builds a graduation portfolio and resume rather than a research paper.

Courses the School Names

• SPHE314 Exercise Physiology
• SPHE421 Kinesiology
• SPHE420 Exercise Programming and Testing
• SPHE322 Sports Nutrition
• SPHE470 Psychology of Sport
• SPHE250 Sports First Aid and Safety
• SPHE324 Biomechanics
• SPHE423 Advanced Strength and Conditioning
• SPHE426 Principles of Corrective Exercise
• SPHE317 Sports Medicine

Standout Features

• Five concentrations including Exercise Science (Training and Conditioning, Sports Medicine, Biomechanics, Advanced Strength and Conditioning, Principles of Corrective Exercise)
• Transfer up to 90 credits; monthly starts

Everything is online with monthly starts, and assignments can be done any time during the week. That suits shift workers, parents and anyone who can't commit to a Tuesday evening lecture. There's no cohort schedule holding you to a pace.

APU says its faculty include athletic trainers, collegiate head coaches and a strength and conditioning coach in the NFL. The lab courses are the piece to ask about. The program page says courses include laboratory exercises, while the catalog says lab materials are supplied once and replacements are yours to buy.

American Public University System is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), a regional accreditor. The bachelor's carries no programmatic accreditation. ASEP affiliation means the coaching content follows ASEP guidelines, which isn't the same as being accredited.

The NASM-CPT route is real, since SPHE420 makes you eligible to sit for the exam with a valid CPR certification. You'd pay for the exam separately. From August 15, 2027, ACSM-EP and ACSM-CEP (clinical exercise physiologist) candidates must graduate from a CAAHEP-accredited program, and from January 1, 2030, U.S. CSCS candidates need a bachelor's from a CASCE-accredited one. APU's pages mention neither.

Where this degree can lead: Exercise Science Jobs.

• No CAAHEP or CASCE accreditation appears on APU's pages, which limits the exam routes that start requiring it in 2027 and 2030.
• The materials story is muddled. The program page says $0 for textbooks and ebooks but excludes lab fees, and the course materials page says the book grant doesn't cover lab equipment.
• APU is a very large for-profit system, and the federal graduation rate for the whole system is 57%. That number isn't specific to this degree.
• The final seminar is a career portfolio, so you won't complete a research project before graduate school.

• Which courses need lab equipment, who pays for it, and what does a replacement kit cost if I retake a course?
• How will my transfer credits fit the 31 elective credits, and how many credits must I earn at APU regardless of transfer?
• How much does the NASM-CPT exam cost for a graduate of SPHE420, and is any of it covered?
• Which concentration matches personal training, and which fits coaching best?
• Does the Preferred Military Rate apply to me as a family member, and how does it interact with the Veteran Grant?
• Is the program working toward CAAHEP accreditation?

Online-focused university system (American Public University and American Military University) headquartered in Charles Town, WV. On August 4, 2026 it combined with Rasmussen University and Hondros College of Nursing; it is not affiliated with American University or the U.S. military.

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