Annual Salary
£20,000 to £48,000
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
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Sport and exercise psychologists work with athletes, teams and coaches to improve their motivation and performance.
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: evenings / weekends; attending events or appointments
There will be
3.8% more Sport and exercise psychologist jobs in 2027.
As a sport and exercise psychologist, you'll:
You could work at a sports arena, at a fitness centre, at a health centre, in a prison or on a sports field.
Your working environment may be outdoors some of the time.
You can get into this job through a university course.
To become a sport and exercise psychologist, you'll need to:
Psychology conversion course
You may be able to do an approved psychology conversion course if:
Postgraduate qualification
To apply for a postgraduate qualification in sport and exercise specialism, you’ll often need:a first or 2:
You might want to check the postgraduate entry requirements with the admissions department where you want to study.
You can find out more about all of the different specialisms and postgraduate training from The British Psychological Society (BPS).
You'll usually need:
It can be helpful to get some volunteering experience in a healthcare or education setting before you apply for a course.
You can also find volunteering opportunities through The National Council for Voluntary Organisations and Do IT.
You'll need to:
You can join The British Psychological Society for professional development opportunities.
You'll find more details about working in sports and exercise psychology from The British Psychological Society and The British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES).
You can also explore other careers in the psychological professions.
You could work for a local health authority, or on a GP exercise referral scheme. You could also assess exercise programmes in workplaces, prisons or psychiatric settings.
With experience and further study you could:become a senior psychologist; work as a consultant; move into lecturing or research
You'll find more details about working in psychology from The British Psychological Society.
You'll need: