Bachelor of Science in Human Science in Exercise Science

Exercise Science is the largest major in the School of Kinesiology, Health & Recreation, with just over 100 students. The wide range of subject matter within Exercise Science prepares you for many career pathways both entry-level positions in the exercise science/human performance field and entrance into allied health professional programs (Physical Therapy, Athletic Training, Physician Assistant, Occupational Therapy, Chiropractic), medicine, and graduate programs in Exercise Science or Kinesiology. You will learn how to best utilize exercise to improve health and human performance for different populations across the lifespan.

The HSU Exercise Science Program, guided by Christian faith and values, prepares students for a variety of career opportunities in health and human movement. Foundational to the Program is the multidisciplinary study of human movement involving components of biological, physical, psychological, and health sciences to explain structural and functional changes that occur on the physiological, biochemical and biomechanical levels.

Students within this program will gain hands-on experience in the Human Performance Lab. The lab is located on the second floor of Fletcher Fitness Center.

The knowledge, skills, and abilities are consistent with certifications from the leading professional organizations in exercise science are included in the program curriculum. These organizations include but are not exclusive to the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), National Strength and Conditioning (NSCA), and the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM).

You’ll never find another place like Hardin-Simmons University. We are a Baptist university in Abilene, Texas, with 127 years of history and traditions that aren’t matched at any other school, and that gives HSU a personality as big as the West Texas horizon.

Our Mission and Vision

• Mission: The mission of Hardin-Simmons University is to be a community dedicated to providing excellence in education enlightened by Christian faith and values.
• Vision: Hardin-Simmons University will be an innovative community of servant scholars engaging the minds and nurturing the spirits of future Christian leaders.

So, what does make HSU different?

Honestly, you won’t know what makes Hardin-Simmons different from other universities until you visit. When prospective students visit the campus, they use the words “family” and “home” to describe HSU. We think that says a lot about us, and we’d love to have you come visit.

But right now, you want to know why you should even come to visit. So, let’s start at HSU’s beginning … actually before its formation.

The Legacy of James B. Simmons

Our namesake founder, Dr. James B. Simmons, was a Baptist minister from the Northeast before and after the Civil War. He preached freedom for slaves before the war, which earned him threats of tar and feathers … and got his church in Indianapolis burned to the ground. After the Civil War, he helped found seven colleges for freed slaves because he knew education was essential for their success as free citizens.

Finally, he helped a group of merchants, ranchers, and pastors in the frontier town of Abilene, Texas, start a new Baptist university to serve a huge area of the country where no higher education yet existed. The legacy of Dr. James B. Simmons is still strongly felt and embodied at Hardin-Simmons University today.

Simmons was a frontiersman who never lived on the frontier. Through his thoughts and prayers and dreams, he helped others push boundaries and break barriers. Simmons asked himself two questions, “What is the greatest thought that has ever occupied your mind?” and, “What is your duty toward fulfilling it?”

His pioneering spirit and those two huge questions produced a mission that lives on at HSU, “So that Christianity may reach the whole globe, all barriers must be removed.”

The HSU Family

Our students have big dreams, and HSU exists to instill the knowledge and nurture the confidence to identify and fulfill those dreams. We do that by embracing every student as a member of our Family. You will matter at HSU, and you will matter to us when you go into the world.

Our students will tell you that they came here to be part of that Family. Our alumni will tell you, from all around the world, that they are still part of the HSU Family.

Prospective students who visit HSU tell us all the time, “I just knew HSU was where I was supposed to be.” Our campus is welcoming and not intimidating. Everything is easy to find and all classes are within quick walks of residential buildings.

HSU Traditions

Big Texas universities are famous for their traditions, but big schools aren’t famous for their family atmospheres. At Hardin-Simmons, though, you can find traditions like Beanie Capping, Ring Dunk, the Six White Horses, and Cowboy Band – all while keeping your chance to be a big fish in a small pond.

Academic Excellence

We also have a ratio of 1 professor for every 12 students. That ensures that you will get personal attention from your professors, and every class will be taught by a professor. There aren’t any crowds for you to get lost in at HSU. In fact, you’ll probably get invited to dinner at a professor’s house every so often. You will be pushed to do your best, but you’ll always have assistance to achieve it.

Can you feel the difference, yet?

Families love, protect, support, and challenge each other. We challenge you to come to Hardin-Simmons, become part of our family, have fun, learn a lot, find your dreams, break barriers, blaze new trails – and change the world for Christ.