About The Program
With a career in athletic training, you’ll help athletes achieve their maximum potential in health and performance. While pre-athletic training is not a major itself, we’ll match you with a degree program and the necessary coursework required to prepare you for admission into a school of athletic training.
This program will be a good fit if you are:
- Driven and committed, wanting to pass knowledge along and stay on top of latest research
- Personable, with good communication skills; a lot of daily contact
- Adaptable and dependable; not a typical schedule and many demands can be placed with little notice
- Invested in helping others and seeing them succeed
- Caring, compassionate and empathetic; people that are in it for the long-term wellbeing of others are needed in these positions
- Hands-on, and skilled at monitoring/assessing
With an athletic training degree, you could work in:
- High school athletic training
- University athletic training
- Sports medicine clinic athletic training
- Medical and rehab clinic athletic training
- Rehabilitation
At Northern, we believe getting you out of the classroom and into a real-world workplace setting is a critical part of your education. You'll have several opportunities for internships and other forms of experiential learning throughout your time at Northern. Learn more at Student Experiences!
The NSU WolfPACT is the highest guaranteed, four-year scholarship in the region. But that isn't the only scholarship available at Northern. Visit Education Scholarships for other scholarship opportunities!
Students in our pre-athletic training program often major in:
And minor in:
Experience the world while earning your degree through NSU Study Abroad! With hundreds of opportunities available around the globe, Northern can make your study abroad dream become a reality. Learn more at Study Abroad!
At Northern, you'll have the chance to conduct cutting-edge research that can have real-world impacts - while still an undergraduate student. Learn more at Undergraduate Research!
Ready to take the next step? Contact us today:
- Pre-athletic training academic advisor: Tim Moffett, 605-626-2272 or tim.moffett@northern.edu.
Want to learn more about living and learning at Northern? Contact NSU Admissions today 605-626-2544 or admissions@northern.edu!
Still unsure of a major? We can help! Contact Career Services at 605-626-3007 or careerservices@northern.edu.
Our Faculty
I am the academic advisor for health and physical education and psychology and business administration at Northern. Since 2015, I have greatly enjoyed working with Northern students. Before moving to South Dakota, I worked and lived in Minnesota, Illinois, Wyoming, South Korea, and Wisconsin. I graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Eureka College (Illinois) and a master's of science in counseling (K-12 and higher education) from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Ph.D. University of South Dakota
M.S. North Dakota State University
B.S. North Dakota State University
At the University of South Carolina, Dr. Shortt studied physical literacy, K-12 sport and physical activity (PA) policy, and child/adolescent PA behaviors in and out of educational settings. The publication of Dr. Shortt’s dissertation, "Conceptualizing Physical Literacy for Assessment of High School Students in the United States," can be found at University of South Carolina Scholar Commons.
Dr. Shortt is Northern's SPL graduate coordinator, chair of the Sports Sciences Department, and faculty athletic representative. She is a member of the International Physical Literacy Association and serves as a country lead.
Dr. Shortt is dedicated to enhancing undergraduate and graduate research and providing advanced hands-on learning opportunities at Northern.