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Applications for online International Sport Management degree indicate willingness to revitalise sport industry

Applications for online International Sport Management degree indicate willingness to revitalise sport industry
July 31, 2020

Acknowledging they are currently operating within a challenging and rapidly changing sport industry, Dr Sue Brown of Federation University Australia says opening applications for their new International Sport Management degree is a sign the University and its community are ready and willing to participate in the revitalisation of the industry, whenever it is ready.

Federation University Australia has partnered with global sport industry experts, the World Academy of Sport, to deliver a custom-built, 100% online Bachelor of International Sport Management degree with the partnership having been in the planning for months (pre COVID-19) to offer student-athletes and prospective world learners the bespoke, industry-designed and 100% online degree in International Sport Management.

According to Dr Brown, community sport may take even longer than professional sport to get back on its feet, a concerning trend when many of our future sport leaders come from a strong community and grassroots background.

Dr Brown notes “now is the time for the sport industry to be thinking about what skills will be necessary in the future and what skills leaders will need. I want to make sure graduates of this degree are not only qualified professionals but are also ready to take on those leadership roles when the time comes.

“In times of great change, it is easy to pass or pause on bettering yourself to focus on other seemingly important tasks. The story we should be telling ourselves, our prospective students and the future leaders of tomorrow is that now is the best time to be considering tertiary education – for the sake of their futures, and ours.

“Nothing will change in terms of employers seeking out degree-qualified graduates in the future, yet everything has changed in terms of how students can obtain their qualifications.

“Online learning is learning too and it’s exciting to consider the paradigm shift that’ll come out of this period of transformation – the investment in new technologies, the start-ups, the evolution of existing online offerings to become bigger and better.

“Student support technology and counselling services becomes a visible part of the online experience, accessible alongside the virtual classroom, weekly chat forums, collaborative learning spaces and 1:1 tutor and program coordinator sessions, where discussions about wellbeing are of course paramount.

“Everyone is eager to rush back, calling for sport’s return. I agree – it is the fabric of our society and something that people from all walks of life can relate to – but now is a better time than any for the industry to pause, refresh and reset so we all – every educator, every volunteer, every officiator, every graduate – can come out of this and prosper in the decades to come.”

Despite the broad assumption that everyone who works in sport is a club or talent manager, coach or referee, the job choices are diverse and growth in the areas of digital and technology are substantial including analytics, digital product development, sponsorship and online and social media, as well as marketing, business management and sports administration.

Some of Dr Brown’s former graduates who completed the University’s original sport management degree in its face to face format, have joined Dr Brown to speak out about the future of the sport industry and encourage school leavers, mature students and sport lovers the world over to consider a career in sport.

Ben Emerson, a former Federation graduate in sport management and now Chief Operating Officer of the Event Planning Group, who works on large scale sporting events including the Olympics and Commonwealth Games, says a degree like this will give students the opportunity to see the positive influence sport can have on communities around the world, as well as the specific skills you need to excel in an international sport management degree.

Emerson has also seen the industry’s professionalism increase over time and with it, a need for more qualified professionals to fill those roles.

Emerson adds “there’s something unique about being able to give back to the industry you work in and see the positive influence sport can have on communities around the world. This degree is a great opportunity- it gives you the exposure to the different areas in the industry from HR to events, while giving you the specific skills you need to excel throughout your career.

“The professionalism of the sport industry is increasing all the time and it needs more qualified people to fill the roles that will support it into the future, as well as more diversity in leadership across the industry.”

Ashlea Block, another former graduate and now Digital Product Owner for Tennis Australia says some of her best memories growing up come from her experience of community sport at club level, and she leans on that now in her role designing engaging digital products for Tennis Australia.

Block advises “I’ve always wanted to work in sport. I have fallen into digital now and am really enjoying that – but a lot of my memories as a kid are around sport. My best memories are at sporting clubs and playing and for me to be able to provide opportunities for more people to do that is awesome. I want to give other people the same passion for sport that I had, and help clubs deliver experiences like I had.

“The number of people who you can influence is a little bit different at the grassroots level and the relationships that you form there, I find really rewarding. People don’t take themselves too seriously. We’re all passionate about what we do, we’re all trying to inspire people to have a good time.”

The Bachelor of International Sport Management has been brought to life by a world-first partnership between Federation University and the World Academy of Sport and it will be available to students globally to study from February 2021 at their own pace, whether in Mumbai, Munich, Miami or Melbourne.

Because the degree has been designed to be online from the beginning it has a unique learning platform that brings together a student’s social, wellbeing and learning services all in the one place and the University has even transformed their orientation process into the platform for its students.

Domestic and international student applications are now open for commencement in February 2021.

Visit https://passiontoprofession.sport/ for more information.

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