Best Online Exercise Science Degrees for Working Adults (2026)

Six starts a year and 7.5-week terms keep the calendar workable, and every online student pays $525 a credit. Plan for a required 3-credit internship, which you place yourself with department consent. The degree leans toward nutrition and metabolic testing, taught by nutrition and kinesiology faculty.

Classes last 7.5 weeks, which keeps each course short enough to squeeze between work obligations. The degree is 38 classes total, and the next start is January 11, 2027. At $580 per credit it costs more than many peers, but a 3-credit internship or research course helps if you're planning clinical graduate school.

Terms of 6 and 12 weeks with about eight starts a year mean you rarely wait long to begin. Up to 90 credits transfer, and the school's calculator shows about 20 months to finish with an average 67 transfer credits. Tuition is $398 per credit. You can choose the EXS 490 capstone instead of an on-site field placement.

Adults with an associate degree or their general education done can finish in about two years here. Courses are accelerated 8-week terms with up to five starts a year, and up to 90 credits transfer. Tuition is $435 per credit. Admission asks for a 2.0 GPA on at least 12 transferable credits.

Nothing here forces a schedule. The 8-week courses are asynchronous with no set class times, and the school asks for no entrance exams or prior college experience. Tuition is $440 per credit. Up to 90 credit hours can transfer, so a partial degree from years ago still counts.

Methodist is one of the few here that states a part-time option outright. Courses are asynchronous 8-week terms with six start dates, and you can take 2.5 to 4 years to finish. Up to 93 credits transfer, and unofficial transcripts get you provisional acceptance. Tuition is $445 per credit across 124 credits.

You join a two-year path of six 8-week terms with three entry points a year, built for working adults and place-bound learners. Every student pays $550 per unit regardless of California residency, so 50 units cost $27,500. You'll need anatomy and physiology with labs first, and applications for fall 2027 close January 15, 2027.

Montreat runs 8-week courses in two sessions per semester, with six starts a year, and describes the schedule as balancing work, family and school. Everyone pays $445 per credit, military included, plus a $250 student fee each semester. Time to finish ranges from one to four years, depending on how many credits you transfer in.

Bryan built this as a completion step after its own associate degree, so 60 credits come in as a block. You take two 8-week courses at a time, and weekly homework happens whenever you choose. The completion portion runs about 20 months and $13,550 with books included, though the associate ladder before it adds about $32,325.

Whitewater is asynchronous, lets you attend full-time or part-time, and offers summer and winter break courses. The school says you never come to campus, and the internship can be completed as a distance learner. Wisconsin residents pay from $424.82 per credit, while non-residents start at $845.68.

You get 8- or 16-week courses and no residency, with up to 90 credit hours accepted in transfer. The price is the tradeoff: $650 per credit, or $79,300 across 122 credits before transfer, and active military pay $250. Books are included. The Strength and Conditioning specialization includes lab courses and an internship.

Four 11-week terms a year mean you can start when your schedule opens up instead of waiting for fall. The online option is asynchronous, and the university lists 15 months to finish 36 credits at $610 per unit, or $21,960 in tuition. You'll build a professional portfolio from your coursework rather than defend a thesis.

Merrimack lets you choose online or campus course by course, with 8-week and 15-week courses and four start terms. Going part-time stretches it to about two years. The cost is real at $1,180 per credit, or $37,760 for the 32-credit Exercise Science concentration. You'll also need anatomy and physiology with labs and exercise physiology before you start.

The accelerated asynchronous format lets you finish in 12 months on a full-time course load, and even the fitness testing course uses a virtual lab, so that class doesn't require travel to Riverside. Tuition is $737 per unit, or $22,110 for 30 units before fees. Come in with exercise physiology done at a C or better and a 2.75 GPA.

Built for teachers already in the classroom, this program runs in 7-week modules and can be done in as little as 12 months. At $444.44 per credit, the 36 credits add up to about $16,000, and a 3.0 GPA is listed for admission. The concentration is physical education, so it suits school settings more than fitness or rehab jobs.

Classes are asynchronous but not self-paced, so expect due dates even without set meeting times. You can start in fall, spring or summer, and the program is listed at two years. North Dakota says online students pay one rate regardless of residency, with mandatory fees capped at $955.08 per semester. The non-thesis route ends with an independent study or internship.

Rolling admission means you apply at least three weeks before a start instead of chasing a fixed deadline. Courses are asynchronous, 16 weeks long, and the school describes part-time pacing as flexible. Ole Miss charges online graduate courses at in-state rates whatever your residency, which helps out-of-state students. You'll choose applied physiology, biomechanics or human performance.

Cincinnati's master's is fully online and asynchronous with spring, summer and fall starts, and it can be done in as little as three semesters. Ohio residents pay $746 per credit and everyone else pays $761, so 30 credits run $22,380 or $22,830. No GRE is required, and a prior CSCS (Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist) can stand in for the foundation coursework.

Eight-week courses in a cohort model keep you moving alongside the same group, and everything is asynchronous. At $475 per credit, 33 credits total $15,675, and active-duty, Guard, Reserve and spouse students pay $350 per credit. You can transfer up to 17 credits, there's no GRE and no application fee, and the school lists two years.

Fort Hays is built for slow and steady. Most online students take 6 credits a semester, summers included, and finish in three to four years. The rate is low too: $362.73 per credit puts 32 credits at $11,607.36. If your bachelor's isn't in health and human performance, you may add up to 18 leveling credits, and a thesis brings some on-campus activities.

LSU has no live lectures, no set class times and no required login hours. Tuition is flat at $644 per credit with no out-of-state fees, so 36 credits come to $23,184. Applications ask for a GRE target score of 295 or an approved waiver, and one of the three recommendation letters should come from an employer.

Calvin runs online courses in shorter sessions with fall or spring start dates, and you can go full-time or part-time, finishing anywhere from 12 to 25 months. Tuition is $720 per credit for every student, with textbooks extra. It's ten courses, no GRE is required, and you'll arrange an externship or clinical placement with professionals in your field.

Two 8-week sessions each fall and spring and two 7-week sessions in summer give you several entry points a year. The school says the fastest finish is one year and the average is about 1.5. Tuition is $595 per credit for all online-only graduate programs, so 30 credits come to $17,850, with general fees billed separately.

Twelve three-credit courses run in seven-week blocks, fully asynchronous apart from two-day virtual workshops in two courses. Three starts a year and a part-time path of as little as two years keep it workable beside a job. Tuition is $765 per credit, or $27,540 in all. If you aren't yet a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), you'll earn it between year one and year two.

Colby-Sawyer takes applicants from any bachelor's field as long as you've finished anatomy and physiology I and II with labs at a C or higher. Coursework is asynchronous with fall and spring starts, and you can finish anywhere from 9 months to two years. Tuition is $685 per credit, $21,920 for 32 credits, plus a $15 per credit technology fee.

This coaching option is 100% online and asynchronous, so you can do the work around practices and a day job. Central Missouri lists 18 to 24 months and start dates in October and January. Tuition is $450 per credit, or $14,850 for 33 credits, though fees are extra and the program page estimates $16,640 for 2026-27.

Maryville starts students in January, May and August, so you're never more than a few months from a start date. Classes are asynchronous, no GRE is needed, and the 33 credits come to $20,625 at $625 per credit. A $775 technology fee is charged each semester, so add that when you compare costs.

UConn charges one comprehensive fee of $925 per credit whether you live in Connecticut or not, so 30 credits come to $27,750. There's no residency discount, but the program is built for part-time students, and most finish within two years. It starts in spring, summer or fall and skips the GRE. Your capstone is a systematic review plus an online presentation.

Southern Miss waives out-of-state tuition for online programs, and the part-time rate is $578.12 per credit across 30 credits. Take two courses a semester and it runs about two years. Go full-time at 9 hours and the school lists a flat $5,197 per semester instead. No GRE is required, and you pick a practicum or a thesis.

Courses run in 16-week or 8-week formats, and the school lists as little as 15 months to finish. No residency is required. Tuition is a flat $640 per credit with no out-of-state charge, so 33 credits total $21,120, and active military pay $575 per credit. You can transfer up to 15 credits and choose a thesis, an experiential option or three electives.

Corban runs two 8-week courses per session and starts in August or January. You can finish in as few as 12 months or stretch to 24 while keeping federal aid eligibility. Tuition is $750 per credit, $27,000 for 36 credits, with discounts for military members and veterans. Applicants must profess faith in Jesus Christ and provide a Christian character reference.

Canisius lets you finish in one to two years, full-time or part-time, and start in fall, spring or summer. The 120-hour internship is at a site you arrange, and it needn't be in Western New York; a research project is the other route. Cost is the tradeoff: $945 per credit puts 33 credits at $31,185.

Oklahoma residents pay $342.50 per credit and non-residents pay $343.50, barely a dollar apart, so 36 credits cost $12,330 or $12,366. Courses run 8 or 16 weeks in a mix of live and asynchronous classes, so some sections meet at set times. You'll pick School Health Education, Sport Administration, Sport Analytics or Exercise Rehabilitation.

A weekly class night is the catch here. The program page says you learn one night a week, on campus or online, and you take one six-week course at a time for about 20 months. You'll need to be free that night. Tuition is $629 per credit, $22,644 for 36 credits, and the track asks for exercise physiology or anatomy beforehand.

Lenoir-Rhyne is non-cohort, so you don't move in lockstep with a group, and you can start in summer, fall or spring. The school states a part-time pace. At $550 per credit, 33 credits total $18,150, tuition only. The prerequisite to plan for is anatomy and physiology I and II with labs, passed within the last 10 years.

With six start dates a year and one 8-week class at a time, Montreat is easy to join and easy to keep up beside a job. Taking one three-credit class each term continuously takes two years. Tuition is $630 per credit, or $18,900 for 30 credits, plus a $250 student fee each semester. You finish with an exam, a research project or a thesis.

North Carolina residents pay $352.81 per credit here, while online students living outside the state pay $660.37, a gap that adds up over 30 credits. The concentration is sport and exercise psychology, taught as coursework only at six credits a semester including summer. There's one start a year, with a priority date of January 15, and the finish is a comprehensive exam.

Nothing here requires a trip to campus, and the school says you can finish asynchronously and part time. Three starts a year and three full-time semesters give you room to choose a speed. Wisconsin residents pay $666.32 per credit while everyone else pays $1,280.77, so the price depends on where you live.

Classes are asynchronous and 100% online, and you can start in fall, spring or summer, so a full-time job doesn't have to move. The 16-week semesters run longer than the 8-week terms elsewhere on this list. Total tuition of $11,729.70 to $12,902.67 for 30 to 33 credits keeps the bill modest, and the practicum is optional.

Avila runs asynchronous 8-week courses with multiple starts a year, and you can finish in about 18 months. Every U.S. resident pays the same $650 per credit, so there's no out-of-state penalty, and the GRE isn't required. Without a kinesiology-related bachelor's you'll add a 3-credit leveling course. The capstone is a one-credit portfolio, not a thesis.

Eight-week online terms at $610 per credit keep the pace manageable for someone with a job. If you serve, GCU's military rate is $400 per credit. Plan ahead for the 600-hour practicum, since that's the heaviest scheduling demand here and the program page doesn't say how sites get arranged.

This is the strength and conditioning track of the same Franklin degree, so the schedule is identical: asynchronous 12-week classes, three starts a year, 32 credits, as few as 16 months. Your required internship happens in a real performance environment, which you set up with the program. Total tuition comes to $22,080, plus a $100 resource fee each semester.

Twelve-week asynchronous classes and starts in January, May and August let you finish in as little as 16 months. Any bachelor's degree qualifies and no prerequisites are listed. The trade for that flexibility is a required hands-on clinical internship at a site you arrange, so talk to your employer early. Tuition is $690 per credit, or $536 for service members.

Rolling admission with six starts a year means you rarely wait long to begin, and the school states a part-time pace. Twelve 3-credit courses take 12 to 24 months at $756 per credit. There's no GRE, and the statistics prerequisite can be met with Khan Academy before your first class. Graduates with a 3.2+ GPA are considered for a $2,000 or $4,000 scholarship.

Eight-week courses, three terms a year and a one-year typical timeline make this a quick one if you're coaching or working around practice schedules. Texas residents paid $3,851 for nine graduate credits in fall 2026 versus $7,703 for non-residents, and online courses add $50 per hour. A renewable Quick Start Grant of $250 or $500 is available to new students.

Bakersfield's online master's uses a self-support rate of $651 per unit, so 30 units run $19,530, and the program page puts the full cost near $22,100 once books and supplies are in. It's built on 16-week semesters with three starts a year and about 18 months at a steady pace. You'll need earlier coursework in biomechanics, exercise physiology and related areas, each with a C or better.

Seven-week asynchronous terms and six starts a year let you finish in about 12 months. The 150-hour internship can come from your current job or prior experience, which matters if you can't take time off. Tuition is $755 per credit, and active-duty students pay $325 per credit. Any bachelor's field is accepted, with a 3.0 GPA preferred.

This 30-credit master's is fully online in 8-week terms with six starts a year, so a work schedule can bend around it. Tuition is $675 a credit, $20,250 in all, plus a $100 administrative fee each term. Admission asks for a bachelor's degree and a 3.0 undergraduate GPA.

You can do the coursework online and stay part time, and there's no on-campus attendance requirement. Starts are limited to fall and spring, so timing matters more than at rolling-start schools. New Jersey residents pay $903 per credit before fees, and the school says qualified out-of-state students can request the in-state rate through a waiver. You'll complete an internship or a thesis.