Concordia University-Saint Paul Online Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (Emphases: Exercise Science, Exercise Physiology, Exercise and Sport Nutrition, Strength and Conditioning)

Concordia St. Paul's online Ph.D. in Kinesiology is the research doctorate on the school's exercise science ladder. It's 67 credits at $690 each, which totals $46,230 if nothing transfers, and it skips the GRE and comprehensive exams. Eighteen credits of methods and statistics point toward publishing and teaching. Because it's fully online, your study has to run on data you can gather remotely, so ask who'd chair your dissertation.

This is the research-centered version of CSP Global's doctorate. The school says graduates should be ready to publish their own work, collaborate with other researchers and teach in higher education. Four emphases are available, including exercise physiology, sport nutrition and strength and conditioning alongside the general exercise science track.

To apply you need an online application, official transcripts showing a master's or higher at a 3.0 GPA or better, and a writing sample of master's-level scholarly work. The next class begins November 2, 2026. Applications are due October 19, 2026.

Ten credits form the core: a trends course, a professional ethics course, and four seminars worth one credit each that step you through the introduction, literature review, methodology and proposal manuscript. Research and statistics take 18 credits: Research Methods, Data Analysis, Qualitative Research, Quantitative Research, Mixed Methods Research and Statistics.

The Exercise Science emphasis adds 27 credits, including Advanced Exercise Physiology, Advanced Biomechanics, Advanced Exercise and Sport Psychology and Advanced Exercise Prescription. Exercise Physiology swaps in skeletal muscle and endocrine system courses. Strength and Conditioning brings in Scientific Principles of Strength and Conditioning and Exercise and Fitness Assessment.

The 12-credit dissertation is DOC 8000. CSP says its process follows the Carnegie Model for Applied Research and starts during coursework, not after it.

Courses the School Names

• KHS7010 Medical Aspects of Exercise and Disease Prevention
• KHS7020 Exercise and Health Behavior Change
• KHS7100 Advanced Cardiovascular Responses to Exercise
• KHS7200 Advanced Biomechanics in Exercise Science
• KHS7210 Advanced Exercise Physiology
• KHS7230 Advanced Exercise Prescription
• KHS7000 Issues and Trends in Kinesiology
• DOC7500 Data Analysis

Standout Features

• No GRE/GMAT and no comprehensive exam
• Four emphasis areas within the same doctorate
• Dissertation seminars DOC 7410-7440 built into the first credits
• Research focus with 18 credits of methods and statistics

Who It Fits

• Clinicians who hold a chiropractic (DC), occupational therapy (OTD) or physical therapy (DPT) doctorate and want to move into academia or research. CSP calls the degree ideal for that group and accepts up to 21 transfer credits from those doctorates.
• Coaches and instructors who already teach. A former student quoted on the program page says the degree made them a better teacher and coach, and that prior master's credits sped things up.
• People who like to write. With six research courses and a dissertation that starts in four early seminars, you're drafting from the beginning.

Who Should Skip It

• Anyone who wants a lab-based Ph.D. The whole degree is online, so studies that need lab equipment have to be arranged on your own.
• Anyone watching the budget. The Ed.D. in Kinesiology is 6 credits shorter and costs $4,140 less at the same rate. It has 12 research credits instead of 18.
• Anyone after a license or clinical credential. A doctorate doesn't qualify you to practice anything. For that, start with the online exercise physiology rankings.

At $690 per credit in every emphasis, 67 credits come to $46,230 if nothing transfers. Credits from a related master's can lower that by up to 12, leaving 55 credits, or $37,950. With a DC, OTD or DPT, up to 21 can transfer, which leaves 46 credits, or $31,740. Graduates of CSP's own exercise science master's may carry over up to 24, leaving 43 credits, or $29,670.

Confirm the rate for your start term, since the tuition page prints $690 twice, once under a 2024-2025 label.

67 credits at $690 a credit comes to $46,230 in tuition, before fees.

There's no GRE, GMAT or comprehensive exam, and everything happens online. CSP puts the fastest finish at 3 years and the usual one at 4.

Dissertation work starts in the early seminars while you're still taking courses. A faculty mentor guides the first steps, then an advisor and committee take over.

The director's research covers how expertise develops in sport and the cognitive side of motor skills. A dean on the same page studies sport marketing, sponsorship and leadership. If your topic is clinical physiology, ask which faculty would supervise it. CSP also posts a webinar on the dissertation process and defense.

The Higher Learning Commission has accredited Concordia University, St. Paul since 1967. The doctorate lists no programmatic accreditation. CAAHEP, the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, accredits bachelor's programs in exercise science and master's programs in exercise physiology, not doctorates.

ACSM's August 15, 2027 rule and NSCA's January 1, 2030 rule apply to the degrees behind those certifications, not to a doctorate.

What the Ph.D. does open is research and teaching posts. The school lists professor and researcher among outcomes and adds that some roles need further training or 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 catalog and program page don't quite match. The statistics course is Statistics in Kinesiology on one and Advanced Topics in Statistics (Experimental Design) on the other, and the ethics course is DOC 7000 in one place and KHS 7030 in another.
• The program page promises 55 hours of core courses, research coursework and independent study, but the course list has no independent study course.
• Online means limited hands-on research. A study that needs equipment, participants or a lab would need arrangements you make yourself.
• The $690 rate shows up twice on the tuition page, once under a 2024-2025 label, so the current number needs a confirmation.

• Who could chair a dissertation in my emphasis, and how many doctoral students does that person advise right now?
• Which statistics and ethics courses are in the current plan, given the catalog and program page differ?
• What does the independent study portion of the 55 credits look like, and how is it graded?
• How does the review board handle human-subjects research done remotely or at my workplace?
• Would my defense happen over video?
• How many master's credits will you accept? Please put the number in writing before I send a deposit.
• What rate applies to the November 2 start?

Concordia University, St. Paul is a private Lutheran university in Saint Paul, Minnesota accredited by the Higher Learning Commission since 1967. Its online arm, CSP Global, runs a full online exercise science ladder from a B.A. through master's degrees to a PhD/EdD in Kinesiology.

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• Bachelor of Arts in Exercise Science

  B.A., Bachelor's

  Online With Campus Requirements $420 per credit Score 52.0

• Master of Science in Strength and Conditioning

  M.S., Master's

  Fully Online $475 per credit Score 57.9

• Master of Science in Exercise Science

  M.S., Master's

  Fully Online $475 per credit Score 50.9

• Doctor of Education in Kinesiology (emphases: Exercise Science, Exercise Physiology, Exercise and Sport Nutrition, Strength and Conditioning)

  Ed.D., Doctorate

  Fully Online $690 per credit Score 44.5

• Old Dominion University

  Doctor of Applied Science in Kinesiology (DAS)

  Virginia $662 per credit Score 45.8

• Temple University

  Athletic Training, Doctor of Athletic Training (DAT)

  Pennsylvania $1,225 per credit Score 46.6

• A T Still University of Health Sciences

  Doctor of Athletic Training (post-professional)

  Missouri $690 per credit Score 47.3

• University of North Carolina at Greensboro

  Doctor of Education in Kinesiology (Online)

  North Carolina $667.04 per credit Score 49.1