Concordia University Texas Online Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology

Concordia's online B.S. in Kinesiology is a broad, faith-rooted degree with three online tracks, and only one of them, Fitness Professional, leans toward exercise science. At $350 per credit with the Start Now Scholarship it's a fair price for a private school, but you have to qualify for that rate. Choose it for the price and the trainer credentials, not for a clinical path.

Concordia University Texas is a private Christian university in Austin, aligned with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, with 1,396 students. Its B.S. in Kinesiology is 120 credits and comes on campus or online. Online students choose Sports Administration, Fitness Professional or Pre-Health. The Coaching and Physical Education (EC-12) track, which leads to teacher certification, is on campus only.

The major is 48 credits of anatomy, chemistry, statistics, injury care, biomechanics, nutrition coaching, one exercise physiology course, an upper-level religion course and a 3-credit internship capstone. Freshmen need a 2.5 GPA. Transfer students with 12 or more college credits need a 2.0.

The 48-credit major covers Anatomy and Physiology I, College Algebra, Introduction to Statistics, Chemistry I with a lab, First Aid and Safety, Personal and Community Health, Theory and Application of Physical Fitness, Prevention and Treatment of Movement Injuries, Musculoskeletal Anatomy and Biomechanics, Motor Development and Learning, Exercise Physiology, Applied Nutrition Coaching, a biology elective and the internship.

Then you add a concentration. Fitness Professional is 21 credits of coaching, teaching methods, sport psychology, administration and NASM Fitness Lifespan. Pre-Health is 25 credits of Anatomy and Physiology II, Chemistry II, Physics I and II, applied calculus and psychology. Sports Administration is 27 credits of sport law, communication and business electives.

Theory and Application of Physical Fitness requires fitness testing field experience, and the program outcomes promise laboratory activities. Ask how an online student completes both.

Courses the School Names

• Musculoskeletal Anatomy
• Biomechanics
• Kinesiology Internship

Standout Features

• All Kinesiology majors graduate with at least three NASM certifications
• School says only a few schools nationwide offer these certifications inside a degree
• Pre-Health track for PT/OT/AT graduate school preparation

Who It Fits

• Working adults and transfer students. Courses are 100% online, sessions start throughout the year (the next one begins October 19), and Concordia evaluates transfer credit and prior learning case by case. It says many online bachelor's students finish in 12 to 24 months, depending on transfer credits and course load.
• Future personal trainers who want a degree behind the certifications. The Fitness Professional track lists the National Academy of Sports Medicine's (NASM) Certified Personal Trainer, Corrective Exercise Specialist and Performance Enhancement Specialist credentials, and a required nutrition coaching course aims at a Certified Nutrition Coach credential.
• Students aiming at physical therapy, occupational therapy or athletic training graduate school. Pre-Health adds Anatomy and Physiology II, Chemistry II, two physics courses, applied calculus and lifespan development. Check each graduate program's prerequisite rules first, because many limit online lab credit.
• Christian students who want faith built in. The major includes an upper-level religion course, and the school describes a Christ-centered academic community.

Who Should Skip It

• Anyone aiming at a clinical exercise physiology career. You get one exercise physiology course and no programmatic accreditation. Try our online exercise physiology degrees instead.
• Students who can't count on the discount. Without the Start Now Scholarship you pay $550 per credit, or $66,000 for 120 credits. Compare it with our cheapest online exercise science degrees first.
• Anyone who wants a deep science core. The required list has one exercise physiology course and one anatomy and physiology course, and the extra science lives in the Pre-Health track.

Concordia's 2026-27 online undergraduate rate is $550 per credit hour, which makes 120 credits $66,000. New online students may qualify for the Start Now Scholarship, which takes $200 off each credit and brings the rate to $350, or $42,000 for the degree.

The scholarship doesn't reduce anything else. The Tornado Textbook Program is $25 per credit hour, and there's a $275 general services fee each semester. Textbooks alone bring the $42,000 to $45,000 before those semester fees.

Every credit you transfer in saves you $350 to $550 in tuition, so the transcript review matters more than any discount. Get the evaluation in writing before you pay a deposit.

120 credits at $550 a credit comes to $66,000 in tuition, before fees.

Concordia says courses are delivered 100% online with no required campus visits, and online students are welcome on campus if they want to visit. Sessions start several times a year, with accelerated course options, and the catalog lists this major as offered in traditional and fully online modalities.

The internship is the piece to pin down. KIN 4310 is a required 3-credit capstone for juniors and seniors, described as experience in a community, school or university setting. The kinesiology page mentions internships with sports teams and physical therapy clinics. Ask how an online student in another city arranges a placement.

Concordia is accredited by SACSCOC, a regional accreditor. The degree has no programmatic accreditation, and it isn't on the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) list or the Council on Accreditation of Strength and Conditioning Education (CASCE) list we pulled on September 29, 2026.

That matters for two exams. Starting August 15, 2027, ACSM-EP (the American College of Sports Medicine's exercise physiologist certification) candidates must come from a CAAHEP program. Starting January 1, 2030, U.S. Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) candidates need a bachelor's from a CASCE program. Personal trainer credentials like NASM's need no degree.

The NASM count is the confusing part. One banner says you earn four certifications, the body text says every major graduates with at least three, and the catalog names one NASM course, in the Fitness Professional and Sports Administration tracks. Ask which credentials come with tuition and which cost extra.

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 NASM promises differ from page to page, and the Pre-Health track has no NASM-named course at all.
• The $350 rate is for eligible new students, and it doesn't cover the $25 per credit textbook charge or the $275 semester fee.
• Concordia's federal graduation rate is 45 percent across the university, so ask how online kinesiology students do.

• Which NASM certifications will I hold at graduation, in which track, and are the exam fees included in tuition?
• Do I qualify for the Start Now Scholarship, and does the $350 rate last for all 120 credits?
• How do online students complete the KIN 4310 internship, and can I use my current workplace?
• How do the fitness testing field experience and the chemistry lab work online?
• How many of my transfer credits will count, and is there a cap on prior learning credit?
• Which anatomy and physiology courses would the physical therapy programs I'm considering accept from Concordia?

Private Christian university in Austin, Texas with small class sizes. Its Department of Kinesiology, led by a program director, offers a B.S. in Kinesiology that includes NASM certifications and internships with professional, college and high school sports teams.

• Best Online Exercise Science Degrees Rank 39 of 46, bachelor's
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• Best Online Kinesiology Degrees Rank 16 of 18, bachelor's
• Accelerated Online Programs Rank 2 of 12, bachelor's
• Best Degree Completion Programs Rank 30 of 34, bachelor's
• Best for Personal Trainers Rank 28 of 33, bachelor's
• Best for Coaches Rank 9 of 11, bachelor's
• Best Pre-Physical Therapy Programs Rank 18 of 24, bachelor's
• Best Pre-Health Programs Rank 18 of 23, bachelor's
• Best Christian Programs Rank 10 of 11, bachelor's
• Best 100% Online Programs Rank 28 of 34, bachelor's
• Best Online Programs in Texas Rank 6 of 6, bachelor's

• North Carolina Central University

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  North Carolina $727.67 per credit Score 43.3

• Tarleton State University

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• University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

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• Bryan University

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