Fitness & Wellness Option
BS Health Promotion Studies: Fitness & Wellness
The Fitness & Wellness options is designed for students interested in pursuing a career in fitness and wellness coaching. The coursework provides the foundation for careers such as an exercise specialist working as a personal fitness trainer, health and wellness coach, group exercise instructor, and corporate wellness employee. Through the Fitness & Wellness option, students interested in graduate work in nutrition may advance to the Master of Human Nutrition degree here at WCSU.
Description: The mission of the Health Promotion Studies program is to develop career professionals who are revolutionary leaders empowered to impact health promotion using an experiential, holistic and multi-disciplinary approach. This program is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH).
Degree Requirements
All degrees at WCSU require 120 semester hours (SH). This includes major requirements, general education requirements, cognates (where applicable), and free electives. This structure provides room for minors, internships, and study abroad.
Required Courses in the Major: 64 SH.
| Health Promotion Studies Core | |
| BIO 105 Anatomy & Physiology I (SI) | 4 SH |
| BIO 106 Anatomy & Physiology II (SI) | 4 SH |
| CHE 110 General Chemistry OR CHE 102 Everyday Chemistry (SI) | 4 SH |
| PSY 260 Health Psychology (HW) pre-req PSY 100 | 3 SH |
| HPX 103 Introduction to Health Promotion & Practice | 3 SH |
| HPX 200 Intro to Community Health Assessment (IL), pre-req HPX 103 C+ or better | 3 SH |
| HPX 202 Epidemiology of Disease | 3 SH |
| HPX 270 Health Education: Theory & Application pre-req HPX 200 C+ or better. | 3 SH |
| HPX 370 Health Promotion Program Planning & Introduction to Evaluation (W3), pre-req HPX 270 C+ or better, Co-req HPX 371 | 3 SH |
| HPX 371 Health Communication Methods & Materials pre-req HPX 270 C+ or better | 3 SH |
| HPX 470 Health Program Implementation & Evaluation Methods (CE) pre-req HPX 370 C+ or better | 3 SH |
| HPX 490 Practicum for Health Promotion Studies, pre-req HPX 470 C+ or better, co-req HPX 490 | 12 SH |
| HPX 491 Health Promotion Studies Senior Seminar, pre-req HPX 470 C+ or better, co-req HPX 491 | 1 SH |
| Fitness & Wellness (C or better in all courses) | |
| HPX 203 Introduction to Human Nutrition | 3 SH |
| HPX 254 Fitness Seminar & Lab | 3 SH |
| HPX 255 Group Activity Instruction OR HPX 313 Principles of Personal Training | 3 SH |
| HPX 348 Principles of Wellness Coaching | 3 SH |
| One HPX Elective from: HPX 255, 313, 314, 318, 369, or 380 | 3 SH |
| Cognates | |
| PHI 223 Ethical Issues in Healthcare (CT, OC) | 3 SH |
| SOC 100 Introduction to Sociology (CT, IC) | 3 SH |
| MAT 115 or 120 Biostatistics or Elementary Statistics (QR) | 3 SH |
| SW 220 Cultural Diversity (IC) | 3 SH |
| PSY 100 Introduction to Psychology | 3 SH |
| PSY Elective (any) | 3 SH |
| Students must earn a C (2.0) or better in BIO 105, 106, CHE 110/102, PSY260, HPX 202, and HPX 491. | |
| Students must earn a C+ or better in HPX 103, 200, 270, 370, 371, 470 | |
| Minimum GPA for the BS in Health Promotion Studies (HPX) = 2.5 overall. | |
General Education: All students must complete the General Education curriculum. General Education Requirements include both competency and breadth requirements. In some cases, major courses will satisfy competencies. These are indicated in the parentheses after the course title. For a complete description of the General Education program, follow this link. https://catalogs.wcsu.edu/ugrad/academic-programs-degrees/
Cognates: In some programs there are courses outside of the major that are required as pre-requisites or enhancements to the major course work. These courses may satisfy competencies and they will count toward the general education breadth requirement. If cognate courses are required, they are included in the list of courses required in the major.
Electives: All degrees require 120 semester hours. Elective credits are opportunities for minors, internships, study abroad, and just following general interests. We encourage all students to speak with their advisors about great opportunities for their elective courses.
Sample Four Year Plan: BS Health Promotion Studies: Fitness & Wellness
Four-year plans are suggestions. Plans change. Consult your advisor to adjust your plan.
| Semester 1 | SH | Semester 2 | SH |
| HPX 100 Intro. to Health & Wellness (FY) | 3 | HPX 103 Intro. to Health Promotion & Practice | 3 |
| SOC 100 Intro to Sociology (CT, IC) | 3 | CHE 102 Everyday Chemistry (CT, SI) | 4 |
| WRT 101 Composition I (W1) | 3 | Writing Tier 2 (W2) | 3 |
| MAT 100/100(P) Intermediate Math OR MAT 115/120 Statistics (QR) | 3 | MAT 115/MAT 120 Biostatistics or Statistics (QR) or Free Elective | 3 |
| PSY 100 Intro to Psychology | 3 | Gen Ed: Breadth | 3 |
| Semester 3 | SH | Semester 4 | SH |
| HPX 200 Intro to Community Health Assessment (IL) | 3 | HPX 270 Health Education Theory & Application | 3 |
| HPX 254 Fitness Seminar & Lab | 3 | HPX 202 Epidemiology of Disease | 3 |
| SW 220 Cultural Diversity (IC, RPT 2) | 3 | HPX 203 Intro to Human Nutrition | 3 |
| BIO 105 Anatomy & Phys I (SI) | 4 | BIO 106 Anat. & Phys II (SI, RPT 1) | 4 |
| PHI 223 Ethical Issues in Healthcare (CT, OC) | 3 | Gen Ed: Creative Process or Breadth | 3 |
| Semester 5 | SH | Semester 6 | SH |
| HPX 370 Health Program Planning & Intro to Evaluation (W3) | 3 | HPX 470 Health Program Implementation & Evaluation Methods (CE) | 3 |
| HPX 371 Health Communication Methods & Materials | 3 | HPX 255 Group Activity Instruction OR HPX 313 Principles of Personal Training | 3 |
| HPX 348 Principles of Wellness Coaching | 3 | PSY Elective | 3 |
| PSY 260 Health Psychology (HW) | 3 | Free Elective | 6 |
| Free Electives | 3 | ||
| Semester 7 | SH | Semester 8 | SH |
| HPX Fitness and Wellness Elective | 3 | HPX 490 Practicum for Health Promotion Studies | 12 |
| Free Electives | 10-12 | HPX 491 Health Promotion Studies Senior Seminar | 1 |
| Total Credits Required for the BS in HPX = 120; Minimum GPA 2.5 | |||