<p>I am planning on starting my own personal training business after college, which means I would major in some type of business or economics (possibly with focus in entreprenuership?) as well as a possible double major or just classes involving exercise science/nutrition/kinsiology-type subjects. Would Case Western be a good choice for me? Any other thoughts? (Only considering Division 2 and Division 3 schools) Thanks.</p>
<p>What sport do you play?</p>
<p>basketball</p>
<p>I think you should look into schools that might have larger programs in sports. While Case has a distinguished buisiness school (the Weatherhead School of Management), we only offer a small sports medicine minor that consists of 5 classes, and you’re probably looking to take more than that. If you aren’t, than Case might be a great choice for you, depending on your stats and interests and all, of course!</p>
<p>@jkrtist Okay thank you for your help. Anyone else? I will look elsewhere most likely. Any other suggestions?</p>
<p>As a personal trainer I would say you need to focus on business. You can always take outside classes for the other stuff. The business knowledge does not change that much over time but the knowledge base about the human body is constantly changing.</p>
<p>@Proudpatriot That was also an option. Right now my college criteria is </p>
<p>1a) good/great school
1b) good/great business/economics program
2) some type of exercise science/kinesiology classes</p>
<p>You think I should really focus on the first couple? (1a and b) Thanks.</p>
<p>I took a look at the credentials of the trainers at my gym. None of them have degrees in exercise science.</p>
<p>@Proudpatriot No disrespect, but the trainers at your gym are probably not doing as well as I’d like to be doing.</p>
<p>I have no idea how well they are doing. Neither do you.</p>
<p>I like Davidson better…</p>
<p>The OP is looking for a Division 2 or 3 school for basketball. Davidson is Division 1.</p>
<p>@Proudpatriot Here is a post I put on a different forum:</p>
<p>I am planning to start my own personal training business after college. I am currently a high school senior. The way I see it, I need knowledge in both business and exercise science/kinesiology. I figure I have the following paths to choose from in college:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Double major in business and exercise science.</p></li>
<li><p>Major in exercise science at a great school, then go to graduate school for business.</p></li>
<li><p>Go to a great undergraduate business school and learn exercise science outside of college (through national certification agencies such as ACE, NASM, ACSM, NCSA, etc.). Don’t go to graduate school.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>The reason this is an issue is because I plan to play college basketball, which limits me to Division 2 and 3 schools. THIS MAKES OPTION #1 VERY DIFFICULT TO FIND. In the few schools that do offer both majors, the business school is not known to be great. I feel that if I’m going to major in undergraduate business, I should go to a great business school.</p>
<p>My question is which path should I take? (or a totally different suggestion). If you have any schools that would go along with that path, that would be great too. I appreciate your help.</p>
<p>Stats: 35 ACT, 4.0 GPA, #1 class rank, decent ECs. </p>
<p>In that thread, someone suggested I go to a great undergrad school, major in anything (maybe business), then go to grad school for exercise science. I assume this could also work vice versa, going to grad school for small business studies or something of the like. What are your thoughts? Thank you for all your help ProudPatriot.</p>
<p>I saw that post. Part of the reason that I replied that most of the trainers in my gym do not have degrees in exercise science is something that someone else on the other thread mentioned. That is that the barriers to entry in the personal training business are low. ANYONE can become a personal trainer and most do not have degrees in the field, much less advanced degrees in the field.</p>
<p>As a parent who just finished going through the recruiting process with my son I would first identify the schools where you can reasonable be recruited. Get yourself in touch with the coaches. Send them your highlight videos. Cast a WIDE net at first because you can always narrow it down. See where you are getting the most action and then make your decision about a major. </p>
<p>Many young athletes think that if they are a D2/3 player that they can just walk on anywhere. However, that is not true. D2/3 schools recruit their athletic teams just like D1/1AA schools. </p>
<p>What year are you in school? What do your parents think? I would have a pretty serious objection to spending $200K+ for my son to study something that qualifies him to be a personal trainer. PT certs take around 6 months and cost quite a bit less than college. What are your goals wrt college?</p>
<p>My goal here is not necessarily to get into the field nor is it to just be able to get clients (as I stated before). Those two things are, however, important steps in my actual goal: be the trainer that is known to get the best results and have the best programs. I feel like word travels fast when people see unusually good results and that would give me some very good and cheap marketing: Word of Mouth.</p>
<p>So don’t you agree that it’d be virtually impossible for a degree NOT to help me become a better trainer? </p>
<p>I am going to be a senior. My parents will pay a decent amount…$20,000 or so a year. I have not gotten the tax papers to fill out the calculators for attendence costs at each school, so I should probably get on that.</p>
<p>Thank you for the recruiting advice as well. I am from a small school (300 kids). We only tape some of our games, so there will limited opportunities to find tape. However, I need to start getting summer league games taped for myself…both for performance reasons and highlights. The small school (small division, less competition, etc) shouldn’t hurt too much as we were runner-up in the state and should return there next year. What sport does your son play?</p>
<p>Thanks again. CC needs some kind of “Member of the Month” or something. Who do I talk to about that? :)</p>
<p>Don’t worry about any “recognition.” These boards have helped me. I am happy to help you. </p>
<p>I agree that word of mouth is the best way to find a trainer. However, I don’t know if you need a degree to be the trainer with the best results. The thing about training is that there are always new things being discovered and the best trainers are always learning no matter what degree they have. </p>
<p>Attendance costs at privates like CWRU are around $50-$55K per year. Some schools give good merit based aid for good students like yourself. There is thread on the parents forum that will let you know where you have a good chance of getting merit based aid. You can cross reference your list of schools with the list on that thread.</p>
<p>Unfortunately I cannot help you with basketball. My son is a football kid. He knew he wanted to play and targeted D3 right away because of his size (he’s small).</p>
<p>As far as recruiting goes find out how most recruiting happens in basketball. In football it is done through camps and combines. Can your high school or club basketball coach help you by recommending the appropriate ones for you? My son knew he was a D3 player (D3 has better schools than D2). His coach was able to steer him to the right camps and combines for D3 players. There is no sense paying money for a camp that is geared towards D1 players if you know where you belong.</p>
<p>Another way to get in contact with coaches is to fill out the questionnaire on the athletic department websites. Most D3 schools do not have big recruiting budgets so the coaches do pay attention to those things.</p>
<p>@Proudpatriot True. But some things remain the same over time and it seems this would at least give me a good base. Some certifications are obviously better than others. In fact, some may be just as or more useful than college. The CHEK certification seems very comprehensive and has evolving information. I think my best bet may be a combination of 1 or 2 certifications and the college major.</p>
<p>I am no longer really considering CWRU. At the beginning of my search, I kind of put all the UAA schools on the list. I will focus on Division 3 schools. Mostly basketball seems to be sending tape and getting your name out there. There are a few “exposure” tournaments geared toward D3 players, and I have/will attend those. My high school coach is very well known (winningest coach in state history), so that will be helpful as well. Would you have any specific schools you suggest taking a closer look at? Any other suggestions?</p>
<p>I don’t know enough about basketball to recommend D3 basketball schools. Why would you cross CWRU off your list at this point? It is a D3 basketball school with the degrees you are interested in. It is a good school that is known for giving good merit based aid to students like you. Remember-cast your net WIDE and don’t narrow it right away.</p>
<p>I am sure you will do fine. You seem like a thoughtful young man who is doing a lot of thinking about your future.</p>
<p>Best of luck to you.</p>
<p>Okay I will take that advice. You’re likely to see a PM from me in the future as I get more opinions from other fitness professionals and find new information. You have been very helpful to me and I hope everything goes well with your son both athletically and academically. Thanks again.</p>