These exciting academic minors are offered by the Department of Kinesiology to UMD undergraduate students.
Please note, we are unable to add students into courses until they have been accepted into the minor, so please refrain from emailing to make requests. Students are encouraged to add to the waitlist or holdfile.
Minor in Biomechanics and Motor Control
The 6-course (16-17 credits) undergraduate minor in Biomechanics and Motor Control provides an opportunity for students to enhance their learning of the study of human movement and the physical and physiological principles upon which it depends, in addition to the influence of growth and development upon human and motor performance.
Prerequisites: Students are required to have BSCI170 and 171: Principles of Molecular & Cellular Biology and either BSCI201: Human Anatomy and Physiology I or PHYS121: Fundamentals of Physics I (or equivalents) completed; students will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Restrictions: Kinesiology majors are not eligible for this minor.
Perfect for those interested in:
- Using tools from physics to understand how and why humans move the way we do
- The role of mechanical loading in health and human performance
Courses
Students are required to complete:
- One (1) KNES activity course
AND choose five additional courses from the list below:
- KNES226: The Cybernetic Human (DSNS, SCIS)
- KNES265: Mathematical, Physical, and Statistical Basis of Kinesiology
- KNES300: Biomechanics of Human Motion (4 credits)
- KNES306: Prosthetics for Limb Amputations
- KNES350: The Psychology of Sports and Exercise (DSHS)
- KNES370: Motor Development
- KNES385: Motor Control and Learning (4 credits)
- KNES402: Biomechanics of Sport
- KNES462: Neural Basis of Human Movement
- KNES474: Quantitative Methods in Cognitive Motor Behavior - MATLAB
- KNES498V:Clinical Biomechanics: Musculoskeletal Injury
Please refer to the schedule of classes for all course prerequisites.
Minor in Exercise Physiology
The 6-course (16-17 credits) undergraduate minor in Exercise Physiology provides an opportunity for students to enhance their learning in a broad range of areas, including whole-body and molecular aspects of cardiovascular physiology, metabolism, aging, health, and disease.
Prerequisites: Students are required to have BSCI170 and 171: Principles of Molecular & Cellular Biology, BSCI201: Human Anatomy and Physiology I and BSCI202: Human Anatomy and Physiology II (or equivalents) completed; students will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Restrictions: Kinesiology majors are not eligible for this minor.
Perfect for those interested in:
- graduate studies in medicine, allied health, and exercise science or physiology
- pursuing certifications offered by diverse professional societies
Courses
Students are required to complete:
- One (1) KNES activity course
AND choose five additional courses from the list below:
- KNES260: Science of Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Health (DSNS or DSSP)
- KNES282: Basic Care and Prevention of Athletic Injuries
- KNES289F: Foundations of Food, Physical Activity, & Health
- KNES320*:Physiological Basis of Physical Activity and Human Health
- KNES360*: Physiology of Exercise
- KNES332: Exercise Testing & Prescription for Fitness Professionals
- KNES350: The Psychology of Sports and Exercise (DSHS)
- KNES445: Exercise and Brain Health
- KNES460: Physiology of Aging and the Impact of Physical Activity
- KNES464: Exercise Metabolism: Role in Health and Disease
- KNES465: Physical Activity and Disease Prevention and Treatment
*credit only granted for KNES320 or KNES360
Please refer to the schedule of classes for all course prerequisites.
Minor in Sport, Commerce, and Culture
The 6-course (16-17 credits) undergraduate minor in Sport, Commerce, and Culture provides an opportunity for students to study the structure and experience of contemporary sport industry from an interdisciplinary perspective, informed by research, theories, and methods drawn largely–but not exclusively–from anthropology, cultural studies, economics, gender studies, history, race and ethnic studies, urban studies, and sociology.
Restrictions: Kinesiology majors are not eligible for this minor.
Perfect for those interested in:
- pusuring a profession in the sports industry
- developing an interdisciplinary understanding of contemporary commercialized sport as a complex social, cultural, political, and economic institution
Courses
Students are required to complete:
- One (1) KNES activity course
- KNES287: Sport and American Society
AND choose four additional courses from the list below:
- KNES225: Hoop Dreams: Black Masculinity and Sport (DSHS, SCIS)
- KNES285: History of Physical Culture, Sport, & Science in America (DSHU, DVUP)
- KNES289B: Baseball: The National Pastime(?)
- KNES342: Sport, Commerce, and Culture in the Global Marketplace*
- KNES346: Sport for Development
- KNES347: Sport Economics
- KNES485: Sport and Globalization
*winter term study abroad in Australia
Please refer to the schedule of classes for all course prerequisites.
Attend an Information Session
Students who have submitted an interst form will be notified of upcoming information sessions.
Contact us
Polly Sebastian Schurer
Program Director
pollys@umd.edu