University of North Georgia Online Kinesiology, M.S. (Exercise Science Concentration)

UNG's online M.S. in Kinesiology with the Exercise Science concentration costs $320 per credit for every student, and you can start any semester. It's aimed at physical educators and people who already have an exercise science background, and about half of the credits are exercise science. Choose it for the price and flexibility, not as a career-change ticket.

The University of North Georgia is a public university in Dahlonega with a Department of Kinesiology that also prepares students for personal training, strength and conditioning and cardiac rehabilitation. The master's is 30 credits and fully online. UNG says it's for people with an undergraduate degree in health and physical education or a related field.

Applications are due July 15 for fall, December 1 for spring and April 15 for summer, and UNG stops accepting applications early if capacity is met. Courses run on a two-year rotation. Program coordinator Charles Burrage, Ed.D., answers questions about the program.

UNG's Fall 2026 online rate for the Master of Science in Kinesiology is $320 per credit for in-state, out-of-state and out-of-country students alike. Over 30 credits that's $9,600 in tuition. Mandatory fees are added on the number of hours you register for, and UNG marks the rates as tentative until the Board of Regents approves them.

There's a $40 non-refundable application fee and a $55 graduation fee. If you take any on-campus course, you'd pay the on-campus rate instead, so keep everything online. Compare this against our cheapest online exercise science degrees before you decide.

30 credits at $320 a credit comes to $9,600 in tuition, before fees.

Who It Fits

• Physical educators and coaches who want a master's degree. UNG says the program advances teachers who hold a physical education certificate, and it includes an option in health and physical education.
• People with an exercise science bachelor's who want a low-cost master's. The concentration includes Advanced Exercise Physiology and Advanced Exercise Prescription and Program Design.
• Students who want to enroll without waiting for a fall start. UNG lists open enrollment in any semester.
• Anyone who wants to skip the GRE. UNG waives the test with a 3.0 GPA or an existing master's degree.

Who Should Skip It

• Career changers without kinesiology coursework. UNG requires eight undergraduate prerequisites with a C or better, including anatomy and physiology I and II and exercise physiology.
• Anyone seeking initial teaching certification. UNG says the program doesn't lead to it and points to its Master of Arts in Teaching instead.
• International students who need an F-1 visa, since UNG doesn't admit them to this online-only program.
• Anyone who needs a clinical exercise physiology master's accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). See the online masters in kinesiology list for other kinds of master's programs.

Every student takes a 12-credit professional core: KINS 6001 Research Methods, which you take in your first semester, KINS 6002 Measurement and Evaluation in Physical Education, KINS 6003 Applications of Qualitative Research in Physical Education and KINS 6004 Analysis of Motor Skills.

The exercise science concentration adds 15 credits: EXRS 7001 Advanced Exercise Physiology, EXRS 7002 Advanced Kinesiology, EXRS 7003 Biomechanics, EXRS 7004 Nutrition in Exercise and Sports and EXRS 7005 Advanced Exercise Prescription and Program Design.

The last three credits are the capstone, KINS 7700 Contemporary Issues and Concerns in Health and Physical Education, which you take in your final semester. UNG's program page describes the capstone as an action research project in a professional area of interest.

Be realistic about the balance. Only 15 of the 30 credits are exercise science courses. The other 12 core credits lean toward physical education settings, so it's a hybrid.

Courses the School Names

• KINS 6001 Research Methods
• KINS 6002 Measurement and Evaluation in Physical Education
• KINS 6003 Applications of Qualitative Research in Physical Education
• KINS 6004 Analysis of Motor Skills
• EXRS 7001 Advanced Exercise Physiology
• EXRS 7002 Advanced Kinesiology
• EXRS 7003 Biomechanics
• EXRS 7004 Nutrition in Exercise and Sports
• EXRS 7005 Advanced Exercise Prescription and Program Design
• KINS 7700 Contemporary Issues and Concerns in HPE (capstone)

Standout Features

• Courses offered on a two-year rotation, open enrollment any semester
• Ranked Best Master's in Kinesiology Online Program for 2025 (third-party ranking cited by UNG)
• Program coordinator holds CSCS credential (Charles Burrage, Ed.D., CSCS)

UNG calls the program fully online and lets you enroll in any semester, which makes it easy to begin when your schedule allows.

The courses rotate over two years, so you can't always take the one you want next semester. Your first course must be Research Methods. After that, ask your advisor for the rotation and plan the order around it.

UNG says graduate assistant positions are posted on its job site. Provisional admits can register for a maximum of six semester hours until UNG reviews them.

UNG is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award degrees through the doctorate. The master's has no programmatic accreditation and no certification prep listed, and it isn't on the CAAHEP list we pulled on September 29, 2026.

Program coordinator Charles Burrage holds the Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) credential, and the concentration includes exercise prescription and program design. That doesn't make the degree a route to the exam. The National Strength and Conditioning Association's 2030 rule concerns the bachelor's degree behind the CSCS.

From August 15, 2027, American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) exercise physiologist candidates must graduate from a CAAHEP-accredited program or one that has started the process, and this master's isn't. The school-wide federal graduation rate is 37 percent.

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 prerequisite list is long. Eight undergraduate courses with a C or better can add semesters and cost before you begin.
• The program leans toward physical education. Four core courses and part of the framing come from teacher preparation, not clinical exercise science.
• UNG's tuition chart is marked tentative pending Board of Regents approval, so the $320 rate can change before you enroll.
• There's no thesis, internship or practicum, so you graduate without supervised hands-on hours.
• UNG's graduation rate is 37 percent for the whole university, and the admit rate is 68 percent. Those are school-wide figures.

• Can any of the eight prerequisites be satisfied by work or courses I've already taken, and can I take them online first?
• Which semester does each concentration course run in the two-year rotation?
• What are the mandatory fees per credit hour for online graduate students?
• What does the KINS 7700 action research project involve, and how long is it?
• How many credits from a prior graduate program can transfer in?
• Does the degree count toward a Georgia teaching certificate upgrade or pay increase in my district?

Public university in Dahlonega, GA with campuses including Dahlonega and Gainesville and a Corps of Cadets; its Department of Kinesiology prepares students for personal training, strength and conditioning, cardiac rehabilitation and pre-professional graduate study.

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• Best Online Programs in Georgia Rank 2 of 3, master's

• Southern Nazarene University

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• Northeastern State University

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• Concordia University-Saint Paul

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• Canisius University

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