Liberty University Online Master of Science in Human Performance

Liberty's Master of Science in Human Performance is the deeper of its two online exercise science master's degrees. You pick one of four specializations, complete 35 credits, and finish with a thesis or an internship. The catch is two week-long intensives in Lynchburg. It's mostly online, not fully online, and Liberty's own pages disagree on that point, so plan for the travel.

Liberty University is a private nonprofit Christian school in Lynchburg, Virginia, and this degree is part of its School of Health Sciences. Of the 35 credits, 23 make up the core: advanced exercise physiology with a lab, statistics, research methods, biomechanics with a lab, performance nutrition, and a six-credit thesis or internship. The other 12 are a four-course cognate in Clinical, Fitness and Wellness, Nutrition, or Strength Training and Conditioning.

You need a bachelor's degree with at least a 3.0 GPA. There's no test and no application fee. Courses run eight weeks, with eight start dates a year, and the next ones are October 26, 2026, January 18, 2027, and February 15, 2027.

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

The program page says 'Online* with required intensives' and that the degree 'has required on-campus intensives.' But the page's own descriptive metadata, and some specialization pages, call it a '100% online program.' Trust the visible page and the catalog, which both say two campus intensives.

Everything else is asynchronous. Liberty says there are no set login times, and courses run eight weeks. The clinical page adds that you'll do two hands-on labs in person, and the strength page says you'll work in Liberty's human performance labs and meet faculty and classmates. Ask for the intensive dates a semester ahead so you can request time off. Your employer may need to know sooner than Liberty does.

Who It Fits

• Coaches and strength staff who want lab time. The Strength Training and Conditioning cognate is EXSC 540, 541, 542, and 545 Motor Learning and Performance, and the biomechanics lab has you use measurement instruments to study human movement.
• Cardiac rehab and medical fitness workers. The Clinical cognate has EXSC 610 Graded Exercise Testing and Electrocardiotherapy, cardiac and pulmonary disorders, chronic health conditions, and NURS 506 Advanced Physiology and Pathophysiology.
• Students who want a real research product or a supervised placement. You can defend a thesis before a committee or complete a six-credit internship in your final semester.

Who Should Skip It

• Anyone who can't get to Lynchburg twice. Liberty says so itself and points those students to its Master of Science in Exercise Science and Wellness, which is 100% online.
• Anyone who needs a CAAHEP-accredited master's. Starting August 15, 2027, ACSM exercise physiologist candidates must graduate from one, and this degree isn't on the CAAHEP list we pulled September 29, 2026.
• Anyone who wants the least expensive route. Tuition alone is $21,000 before travel.

The sample plan runs four semesters of 10, 10, 9, and 6 credits. Semester one has EXSC 510 Advanced Exercise Physiology, the one-credit EXSC 511 lab, EXSC 520 Statistical Analysis, and EXSC 525 Research Methods. Semester two adds EXSC 550 Advanced Biomechanical Analysis and its one-credit EXSC 551 lab. HLTH 645 Performance Nutrition comes later.

The catalog marks the two labs, and only those, as 'Course offered as an Intensive.' Because they sit in your first two semesters, your campus weeks come early.

The final six credits are either EXSC 689 Thesis Proposal and Design followed by EXSC 690 Thesis Defense, or one EXSC 699 Internship. EXSC 690 ends with a publishable manuscript and an oral defense. If your thesis chair says you aren't ready after EXSC 689, you may repeat it.

Courses the School Names

• EXSC 510 Advanced Exercise Physiology
• EXSC 520 Statistical Analysis in Exercise Science
• EXSC 525 Research Methods in Exercise Science
• EXSC 550 Advanced Biomechanical Analysis
• EXSC 540 Advanced Strength Development
• EXSC 541 Advanced Speed and Agility
• EXSC 610 Graded Exercise Testing and Electrocardiography
• EXSC 635 Cardiac and Pulmonary Disorders
• EXSC 633 Exercise and Physical Activity for People with Disabilities

Standout Features

• Four specializations incl. Strength Training and Conditioning and Clinical (graded exercise testing, ECG, cardiac and pulmonary disorders)
• Hands-on work in Liberty human performance labs during two week-long campus intensives
• Liberty itself points to MS Exercise Science and Wellness as the 100% online alternative

At Liberty's 2026-27 graduate rates, 35 credits cost $21,000 at $600 a credit, $23,275 at the $665 part-time rate, and $10,850 at the $310 military rate. That's $1,200 more than the 33-credit exercise science master's at the same rate.

The technology fee is $349 a semester, so $1,396 across four semesters, and Liberty estimates $716 for graduate books and online content. Together with tuition at $600, you'd spend $23,112. Nothing in Liberty's figures covers flights, gas, or a hotel for two weeks in Lynchburg, so add that yourself.

35 credits at $600 a credit comes to $21,000 in tuition, before fees.

Liberty is regionally accredited by SACSCOC. The master's carries no programmatic accreditation, and the only Liberty exercise science program on our CAAHEP pull is the residential bachelor's. EXSC 610 applies ACSM guidelines to exercise testing, ECG monitoring, and vital signs, which is real clinical content.

But it doesn't settle ACSM eligibility. The ACSM clinical exercise physiologist route with a master's asks for a master's in clinical exercise physiology or equivalent plus 600 hands-on hours, and the Clinical track's internship is 250 hours. From August 15, 2027, ACSM also wants a CAAHEP-accredited or in-process program. Ask ACSM directly. For the CSCS, the January 1, 2030 rule targets your bachelor's, so a master's won't change it.

Where this degree can lead: Exercise Science Jobs.

• The travel isn't in the price. Two weeks in Lynchburg means airfare, lodging, meals, and possibly unpaid leave.
• Liberty's pages contradict each other. Visible text says required intensives, while hidden page descriptions still say 100% online.
• The thesis path can slow you down. EXSC 689 can be repeated until your chair says you're ready for the defense.
• The rules are strict: a 3.0 GPA, no more than two C grades, and five years to finish.
• Liberty's federal graduation rate is 65 percent, a whole-university figure that includes a very large online population.

• What are the dates and exact days of the two intensives, and how far ahead are they published?
• Can I take EXSC 511 and EXSC 551 back to back on one trip, or must they be in separate semesters?
• Does my internship have to be 250 hours, or is it the one six-credit EXSC 699 course, and who approves the site?
• Can I choose thesis versus internship late, or do I have to decide at enrollment?
• Does ACSM accept the Clinical specialization as the equivalent of a master's in clinical exercise physiology?
• If I switch from the Clinical cognate to another one, do my completed cognate credits still count?

Large private nonprofit Christian university in Lynchburg, VA whose Liberty University Online division offers 600+ online degrees. The School of Health Sciences runs online exercise-science master's programs with 8-week terms, 8 starts a year, and a PhD in exercise and sport science.

• Best Online Exercise Science Degrees Rank 7 of 99, master's
• Best Online Master's Programs Rank 7 of 99, master's
• Best Online Strength and Conditioning Degrees Rank 4 of 39, master's
• Best Online Sport Science Degrees Rank 3 of 17, master's
• Accelerated Online Programs Rank 44 of 46, master's
• No-GRE Online Master's Programs Rank 6 of 44, master's
• Best for Military Students Rank 3 of 35, master's
• Best for Athletes Rank 2 of 15, master's
• Best Christian Programs Rank 2 of 27, master's
• Best Online Programs in Virginia Rank 2 of 2, master's

• Master of Science in Exercise Science and Wellness

  M.S., Master's

  Fully Online $600 per credit Score 69.8

• PhD in Health Sciences, Exercise and Sport Science

  Ph.D., Doctorate

  Fully Online $630 per credit Score 68.1

• Southern Utah University

  Master of Science in Sports Conditioning and Performance (MSSCP)

  Utah $393 per credit Score 68.9

• Texas State University

  Master of Science, Major in Exercise Science, Sport Coaching Concentration

  Texas $502 per credit Score 67.6

• Ouachita Baptist University

  Master of Science in Exercise Science (online)

  Arkansas $500 per credit Score 67.4

• Pennsylvania Western University

  Exercise Science and Health Promotion, MS

  Pennsylvania $568 per credit Score 66.6