Augusta University Online Master of Science With a Major in Kinesiology

Augusta University's M.S. in Kinesiology is a low-priced online master's at $238 per credit hour, and its non-thesis track never asks you to visit campus. It ends in an internship and three comprehensive exams. But the school's own pages disagree on the GPA you need, the length of the program and even the tuition an out-of-state student pays, so get answers in writing.

Augusta University is a public university in Augusta, Georgia, and the degree sits in the College of Education and Human Development's Department of Kinesiology. It's 36 credit hours with two tracks. The non-thesis track is 100% online and finishes with an internship and comprehensive exams. The thesis track is mostly online, but you need to be on campus for two semesters, usually the last two.

Admission wants a bachelor's degree in a closely related field, such as exercise science, health science, nutrition, kinesiology or biology. You submit two recommendations and no test scores. Classes start in spring and fall.

In the non-thesis track, you'll finish at a distance. The final requirement is three comprehensive written exams, taken through the online platform at the end of your last semester. Each has a two-hour window, and you must pass all three. If you fail one, you revise and resubmit within about a week.

The internship is a 3-credit course in a kinesiology-related area you choose, which suits working professionals who can use their own workplace. Thesis students work directly with a faculty member and defend their research to a committee of at least two faculty members.

Who It Fits

• Exercise science and health science graduates who want a master's without moving. The non-thesis track is fully online, and the in-state and eTuition rate is $238 per hour.
• Coaches. Two electives, KNHS 6352 and KNHS 6353, count toward the post-baccalaureate Sports Coaching certificate, and the department says the non-thesis track suits people who want that certificate.
• Future doctoral students who can spend two semesters in Augusta. The thesis track ends in a research paper and an oral defense, and the department says it's the better preparation for dissertation research.

Who Should Skip It

• Skip it if your bachelor's isn't in a related field. Admission asks for exercise science, health science, nutrition, kinesiology, biology or something close.
• Skip it if you need a student visa. The page says the school can't issue an I-20 or DS-2019 for this online program.
• Skip it if you want a clinical exercise physiology degree with supervised clinical hours. This is a general kinesiology master's, and its internship is a single 3-credit course.

Everyone takes EDUC 6021 Introduction to Educational Research and KNHS 6413 Statistics and Evaluation in Kinesiology. The program area includes KNHS 6311 Behavioral Aspects of Physical Activity, KNHS 6339 Trends and Issues, KNHS 6411 Motor Control and Learning and KNHS 6431 Advanced Application of Nutrition in Health and Human Performance.

The non-thesis track adds KNHS 6432 Physiological Responses to Exercise, 12 hours of electives and KNHS 6400 Internship. Electives include cardiovascular response to exercise, principles of strength and conditioning, biomechanics and advanced health and wellness.

The thesis track replaces the internship and one required course with 9 hours of electives and two 3-credit Applied Research Project courses.

Standout Features

• Two tracks: research-heavy thesis track (recommended for doctoral-bound students) and fully online non-thesis track with internship
• Nutrition, Exercise and Stress Laboratory listed as an in-house lab
• Optional pairing with the post-baccalaureate Sports Coaching certificate, which the non-thesis track suits
• Department research labs include Exercise Performance Lab, Physiology Lab and a Firefighter Research Program

Augusta's online tuition list shows $238 per credit hour for the M.S. in Kinesiology. At 36 hours, that's $8,568. Students in distance-only programs pay a $393 online learning fee each semester instead of the $675 in campus mandatory fees. Over the four semesters the school calls average, fees add $1,572, so the total is $10,140, plus a $55 application fee.

But the program's own tuition page lists an out-of-state schedule at $863 per hour. Multiplied across 36 hours, that's $31,068. The eTuition page doesn't mention residency, so ask which rate you'd pay.

36 credits at $863 a credit comes to $31,068 in tuition, before fees. At the in-state rate of $238, the same 36 credits come to $8,568.

Augusta University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. The degree itself lists no programmatic accreditation and doesn't appear on our CAAHEP or CASCE lists, and it names no certification prep.

From August 15, 2027, ACSM-EP and ACSM-CEP candidates must graduate from a CAAHEP-accredited program or one that has started the process. The ACSM clinical route with a master's calls for a clinical exercise physiology degree or equivalent plus 600 hours of clinical experience, which this degree doesn't provide. From January 1, 2030, the CSCS rule concerns the CASCE-accredited bachelor's behind your certification.

Where this degree can lead: Exercise Science Jobs.

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

• The pages conflict on admission. The program page asks for a 2.75 GPA, and the Graduate School and department pages say 2.5. To graduate, the catalog says you need an overall 2.8.
• The pages conflict on length too. The program page says 16 months, the department page says 15, the catalog says 2 years, and the average is four semesters with a summer.
• Application dates differ by a day. The program page lists November 1 and June 1, and the department page lists November 2 and June 2, so apply well before both.
• The catalog's thesis track says the program area is 15 hours but lists four 3-credit courses. Ask how the 36 hours add up.
• The non-thesis track's comprehensive exams pick three core classes, and failing twice means paying for at least 3 more credit hours.

• Which tuition applies to an out-of-state online student, the $238 eTuition rate or the $863 out-of-state rate?
• Is the GPA cutoff 2.75 or 2.5, and would a lower GPA with strong work experience be considered?
• How long does the non-thesis track take if I start in spring and take two courses a term?
• Who finds the internship site for KNHS 6400, and how many hours does it require?
• For the thesis track, does eTuition still apply during the two on-campus semesters, and which fees replace the $393 online fee?
• Which electives run every semester, and how often do KNHS 6352 and 6353 for the coaching certificate run?
• Would this degree count toward the master's-level 600 clinical hours ACSM asks for, or would I need separate clinical experience?

Public university in Augusta, Georgia; the MS in Kinesiology sits in the College of Education and Human Development's Department of Kinesiology, described as the college's largest department with exercise performance, physiology and nutrition/stress labs.

• Best Online Exercise Science Degrees Rank 97 of 99, master's
• Best Online Master's Programs Rank 97 of 99, master's
• Best Online Kinesiology Degrees Rank 28 of 28, master's
• Best Online Kinesiology Master's Rank 28 of 28, master's
• No-GRE Online Master's Programs Rank 44 of 44, master's
• Best for Coaches Rank 43 of 43, master's
• Best Online Programs in Georgia Rank 3 of 3, master's

• William Paterson University of New Jersey

  MS in Exercise Physiology (Online)

  New Jersey $1,408.50 per credit Score 30.5

• East Tennessee State University

  Master of Science in Sport Science and Coach Education (online, Strength and Conditioning concentration)

  Tennessee $835.50 per credit Score 32.2

• North Carolina Central University

  Kinesiology and Recreation Administration (Online), M.S.

  North Carolina $1,038.57 per credit Score 32.2

• East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania

  Master of Science in Athletic Training, Advanced Clinical Practice Concentration (post-professional)

  Pennsylvania $886 per credit Score 29.9