The Master of Science in Athletic Training program provides students with authentic, real-time opportunities to practice and integrate athletic training knowledge, skills, and abilities during assigned clinical education.
Clinical education is defined as learning opportunities to prepare students for independent clinical practice. Two types of clinical experiences occur with actual patient care, athletic training clinical experiences and supplemental clinical experiences.
During these experiences, students are provided opportunities to implement skills, knowledge, and abilities learned in didactic courses and begin and build on decision-making skills and professional behaviors. Each semester there is an emphasis on various knowledge, abilities, and skills
Athletic Training Clinical Experiences
Athletic training clinical experiences are defined as direct client/patient care guided by a preceptor who is an athletic trainer or physician. The athletic trainer or physician (e.g., preceptor) supervises the athletic training students during their clinical experiences.
The preceptor uses constant visual and auditory parameters to ensure the student is adequately supervised and mentored. Preceptors allow the student to develop and use progressively increasing independent clinical skills based on the student's knowledge, skills, and abilities. Students cannot perform athletic training skills and abilities beyond their cohort or program level.
As the student progresses in their athletic training knowledge, skills, and abilities in the program, preceptors generally allow each student to have progressively independent autonomous interactions with school administrators, athletes, coaches, and in specific environments, parents.
Supplemental Clinical Experiences
Supplemental clinical experiences are learning opportunities supervised by healthcare providers other than athletic trainers or physicians. These can involve nurses, physical therapists, physician assistants, occupational therapists, mental health professionals, dietitians, and other health care providers.
Students cultivate clinical decision-making abilities in their clinical environment through a process that builds on each clinical experience and patient interaction. As a student gains confidence and trust, preceptors allow for more opportunities for independent clinical practice so that the student develops a solid sense of their clinical knowledge, skills, and abilities over time.
Integrating formal learning and clinical education is a constant interaction between the program, student, and preceptor. Students learn skills and abilities in the classroom, practice those specific skills and abilities in the laboratory, and once successfully evaluated, can use those skills and abilities in the clinical environment.
As the student becomes more confident and comfortable in their skills and clinical setting, more opportunities are provided for autonomous clinical practice and decision-making.
Travel Requirements
Travel expenses incurred to and from the assigned clinical site is the student's responsibility. In association with a clinical site-sponsored event, athletic event travel will not be the student's responsibility but the clinical site's.
Travel is required as part of the student's clinical experience as approved by the clinical site and/or preceptor. A Travel Permission Form must be obtained, completed, and approved before any travel experiences occur.
