Description
The PhD spesialisation in Sport Science and Physical Education consists of four components:
- The faculty PhD programme’s mandatory core courses
- The faculty PhD programme’s elective methods course(s)
- Specialisation courses in Sport Science and Physical Education
- The thesis
The coursework aims at providing the candidate with:
a) a thorough understanding of key concepts in sport science or physical education, including sports performance and athlete deveopment, outdoor- and physical education, or physical activity and health across the lifespan
b) a substantial philosophical and methodological foundation and experience within research dissemination
c) in-depth knowledge in areas relevant to sport science and physical education and the candidates’ PhD projects, e.g.,
- Participation, development, and performance in sport
- The potential of technology to promote physical activity and enhance performance in sport
- The relationship between physical activity and health
- Pedagogical and didactical research related to the body, movement, play, teaching, supervision, and learning
The specialisation will provide the candidates with key concepts and perspectives in sport science and physical education research. It will provide the candidates with the skills and knowledge necessary to embed a sport science and physical education approach into their research through a broad understanding of physiological-, psychological-, social-, and pedagogical perspectives within sports performance and athlete development, outdoor- and physical education, or physical activity and health across the lifespan. Depending on the chosen elective courses, the candidates will gain in-depth knowledge related to the topic of the candidates’ thesis, e. g., physical activity and health, psychology of team performance in sport, or technology in sport.
In addition to the PhD courses offered by UiA, the candidates may take doctoral courses offered by other national and international academic institutions.
Admission requirements
Applicants who have at least a master’s degree or equivalent in a relevant area will be considered for admission.
See also Supplementary regulations for the PhD degree at the Faculty of Health and Sport Sciences
Specialisation components
The PhD specialisation is normally organised so as to be completed in a three-year period. The coursework component comprises the faculty PhD programme’ s two mandatory core courses:
- Researching Health and Sport Sciences: Philosophical and Methodological Foundations (7,5 ECTS)
- Research Dissemination in Health and Sport Sciences: Scientific presenting and practice (7,5 ECTS)
The faculty PhD programme comprises elective methods course(s) (at least 5 ECTS) and elective specialisation courses (10 ECTS). Elective courses must be approved by the supervisors.
In total, the coursework component consists of 30 ECTS credits. The coursework will normally be completed in the first 2-3 semesters of the PhD specialisation. The thesis work will be carried out in parallel with the coursework, guided by appointed supervisors. Thesis seminars and seminars in research groups will also support the candidates in developing their thesis work and will give the opportunity to present and discuss this with other PhD candidates and faculty staff.
Course work
Mandatory core courses
The course Researching Health and Sport Sciences: Philosophical and Methodological Foundations (7,5 ECTS) will introduce the candidate to the different philosophical and methodological approaches within health and sport sciences in general. The philosophical underpinnings of method and methodologies, both in general to health and sport sciences and specifically in the relation to the specialisations, will be emphasised in the course.
The course Research Dissemination in Health and Sport Sciences: Scientific presenting and practice (7,5 ECTS) runs throughout the full PhD period, and it is also a social meeting point for the PhD candidates. The overall aim of the course is to supply the participants with relevant practical skills as researchers. The candidate will be given an introduction in how to write and publish a scientific article, how to present research findings in a scientific manner, and how these findings may be popularised for presentation to the public. In addition, the course will prepare the candidate for designing and defending the thesis. The course is a continuing course throughout the candidate´s whole PhD period and the candidates are automatically registered for this course.
The purpose of these courses is to provide the candidate with a thorough philosophical and methodological foundation that should be followed up in supervision and reflected in the PhD thesis.
Elective methods courses
The purpose of these courses is to provide the candidates with a thorough foundation in relevant scientific method(s). A minimum of 5 ECTS credits is required and should be approved by the supervisors.
The faculty offers these methods courses:
ME-617 Systematic Reviews and Evidence Synthesis, 2,5 ECTS
ME-618 Qualitative Research Methods, 5 ECTS
ME-626 General Quantitative Research Methods, 5 ECTS
ME-627 Logistic Regression Analysis, 2,5 ECTS
ME-628 Regression Models Illustrated through Linear Regression, 2,5 ECTS
ME-629 Analysis and Design of Studies with Repeated Measures, 2,5 ECTS
ME-630 Survival Analysis, 2,5 ECTS
ME-634 Phenomenological Lifeworld Perspective, Methodology and Analysis, 5 ECTS
ME-636 Epidemiology: Concepts and Methodological Approaches, 5 ECTS
Elective specialisation courses
The specialisation courses go into depth in specific topics currently on the research agenda in sport science and physical education areas. These courses are intended to give the PhD candidates sufficient knowledge in a subfield of sport science and/or physical education related to the thesis subject, thus enabling them to conduct research in this field.
Depending on the thesis subject, the specialisation courses will be offered internally or completed at other universities in Norway and/or abroad.
The specialisation offers these specialisation courses:
HEL613 Evidence Based Physical Activity, 5 ECTS
HEL615 The Psychology of Team Performance in Sport: The Coach, the Athlete, and the Group, 5 ECTS
HEL617 Technology in Sport: Making decisions in a time of data overload, 5 ECTS
PhD-thesis
The PhD thesis should be an independent piece of academic work that meets international academic standards in the subject area. It must contribute to the development of new scholarly knowledge and must achieve a level of academic quality meriting publication as part of the literature in its field.
The thesis may consist of a monograph or a set of at least three peer-reviewed articles in general with a comprehensive thesis summary and discussion of the research contributions from the papers. In general, when the thesis consists of articles, at least two of the articles must have been accepted for publication. The candidate must be the primary author of the majority of the articles in the thesis, according to the supplementary regulations for the PhD programme in Health and Sport Sciences.
Contact persons for the specialisation
- monica.k.torstveit@uia.no
- Phone
- +47 38 14 18 31