Athletic Training 3+2 Program

The Athletic Training program at the University of Nebraska at Kearney is committed to offering students a wide variety of educational experiences while preparing them for an evolving field. Athletic training professionals are trained to manage the overall health care of interscholastic, intercollegiate, professional, and recreational athletes.

The Athletic Training 3+2 Academic sequence comprises a 5-year undergraduate and graduate combined course sequence. During the 4th year, students will take undergraduate courses and 1st year Master of Athletic Training courses, which require them to complete the bachelor’s degree prior to the 2nd year of Master of Athletic Training. To be eligible to pursue such an academic sequence, the following major/minor is recommended but not limited to:

• Major – Exercise Science, Physical Education, Health Science
• Minor – Athletic Training Foundation Minor, Pre-Athletic Training

Athletic Training 3+2 Academic sequence allows students to have great academic and hands-on clinical experience. This will provide the eligibility to challenge the Board of Certification (BOC) examination at the completion of the Master of Athletic Training.

* The Athletic Training 3+2 Academic sequence will NOT guarantee an acceptance to the Master of Athletic Training in the 4th year. All students will go through the Master of Athletic Training admission process to pursue the graduate degree.

The Athletic Training program is developed around the standards implemented by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education. Through this program, students have the opportunity to gain practical field and clinical experiences within the UNK Athletic Department and at one of the many off-campus clinics and high school internship sites.

UNK Mission

The University of Nebraska at Kearney is a public, residential university committed to be one of the nation’s premier undergraduate institutions with excellent graduate education, scholarship, and public service.

UNK Vision

The University of Nebraska at Kearney will achieve national distinction for high quality, multidimensional learning environment, engagement with the community and public interests, and preparation of students to lead responsible and productive lives in a democratic, multicultural society.

Key to such improvement will be a clear focus on mission imperatives, fidelity to historic core values, and continuous and rigorous self-appraisal or assessment of outcomes.

Students

• 5,274 undergraduate students and 1,628 graduate students.
• Students come to UNK from 91 of the 93 Nebraska counties, all 50 states including the District of Columbia, and over 50 foreign countries.

Faculty

• 322 full-time and 117 part-time faculty.
• 99% of full-time faculty teach undergraduate courses, generating 88% of the credit hours at UNK.
• More than 76% of full-time faculty have the highest degrees in their fields.
• Student/faculty ratio: 18.9 to 1.

Academics

• UNK offers 120 undergraduate majors, 22 pre-professional programs, and 27 graduate programs.
• Each year, the UNK Honors Program accepts more than 120 freshmen based on a minimum top 25% class rank, a minimum 27 ACT score, letters of reference, extracurricular accomplishments, and essays. At present, there are 550 students in the Honors Program.
• UNK’s undergraduate research program is a national model. Campus programs support students working one-on-one with professors to conduct original research and creative projects. Over 30% of UNK students do research outside of class and present their projects at academic conferences.
• UNK is the only campus in Nebraska to participate in the National Student Exchange that allows students to attend one of 175 other universities or colleges across the continent for a semester or a year, often at UNK tuition rates.

Student Placement

• Many UNK programs have a job placement rate that's almost 100%, including Accounting, Athletic Training, Education (particularly those with endorsements in Biology, Chemistry, Language Arts, Math, Music, Physics, and Special Education), Cyber Systems, Graphic Arts, Industrial Technology, School Psychology, and Speech-Language Pathology.
• 20% of all certified staff in schools and ESUs across the state of Nebraska have at least one degree from UNK. Almost 43% of all school Superintendents and approximately 30% of all Principals in the state of Nebraska are UNK graduates. Approximately 36% of all School Psychologists and 54% of all ESU School Psychologists in the state of Nebraska are UNK graduates. 21% of all School Counselors in Nebraska are UNK alumni. Approximately 33% of all Speech-Language Pathologists in Nebraska are UNK graduates.
• Many UNK graduates become administrative leaders in both the public and private sectors of the state and the nation. Others go on to successfully apply to medical, law, and other professional and graduate schools across the country.

Athletics

• Member of NCAA Division II—Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
• Programs include baseball, softball, football, volleyball, wrestling, women’s swimming and diving, women's soccer, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s golf, and men’s and women’s track and field.
• Colors: Royal Blue & Old Gold.
• Nickname: Lopers (for the Pronghorn Antelope)
• UNK athletes are students first. The average cumulative GPA for all 19 Loper teams is consistently above 3.0.

Campus Life

• More than 170 student organizations, including seven sororities and seven fraternities
• Seven traditional-style residence halls, one suite-style residence halls, two Greek chapter house complexes, and one university apartment complex.
• All residential units are within easy walking distance of the academic buildings, the library, the student union, and the Health and Sports Center.
• The campus is comprised of 515 acres, including the soon-to-be-developed University Village. UNK has more than 48 buildings including classrooms, labs, residence halls, and athletic venues. The proximity of the campus offers easy access to the city's vibrant and growing community including cultural events, shopping centers, outdoor recreational facilities, affordable housing, award-winning restaurants, as well as hockey, musical shows, plays, and a variety of concerts, many within walking distance of the campus.
• Over the last decade, UNK has invested more than $100 million renovating or expanding every academic building and residence hall, the College of Education Building, the Nebraskan Student Union, Foster Field, the Antelope/Nester complex of residence halls, which provide apartment-style living and many new amenities for students. In addition, a major renovation and addition to Bruner Hall of Science, including an all-new Planetarium, was completed in Fall 2009. A new Wellness Center addition to the Health and Sports Center/Cushing Coliseum opened in fall 2014. The new Health Sciences Complex, which will house an expanded UNMC College of Nursing Kearney division and a new UNK-based UNMC School of Allied Health Professions, opens in fall 2015.
• The UNK campus is also a Nebraska Statewide Arboretum site.