May 02, 2024  
2023-2024 University Catalog 
    
2023-2024 University Catalog

Kinesiology, BS


About the Program


The Kinesiology major is based on the idea of studying human movement and sport from the point of view of sub-disciplines in kinesiology. The curriculum includes courses in exercise physiology, biomechanics, motor control, motor development, sport and exercise psychology, applied clinical anatomy, and research methods. Students will select five additional kinesiology courses, based on their interests, to further develop their knowledge. Students also have the opportunity to work with a professor to conduct research. This major offers excellent preparation for students who plan to attend graduate or professional school. Examples include athletic training, physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT), medicine, physician assistant (PA), chiropractic, biomechanics, exercise physiology, motor learning, motor development, sport and exercise psychology, etc.

Students in this major can choose to pursue an optional Clinical Exercise Physiology Concentration for Kinesiology and/or Sports Medicine Concentration for Kinesiology.

Department of Health and Kinesiology

Kinesiology Major Change (CODO) Requirements   

Degree Requirements


120 Credits Required

Departmental/Program Major Course Requirements (40 credits)


Other Departmental/Program Course Requirements (43-48 credits)


Electives (17-22 credits) or (16-21 credits) or (32-37 credits)


If completing 15 credit hours in the Kinesiology Selectives for the major then 32-37 elective credits are required.

If completing the optional Clinical Exercise Physiology Concentration then 17-22 elective credits are required.

If completing the optional Sports Medicine Concentration, then 16-21 elective credits are required.

Grade Requirements


  • “C-” or better required in all HK courses

GPA Requirements


  • 2.0 Graduation GPA required for Bachelor of Science degree.

Pass/No Pass Policy


  • A student may elect the Pass / Not-Pass grading option for elective courses only, unless an academic unit requires that a specific departmental course/s be taken Pass / Not-Pass.  Students may elect to take University Core Curriculum courses Pass / Not-Pass; however, some major Plans of Study require courses that also fulfill UCC foundational outcomes.  In such cases, students may not elect the Pass / Not-Pass option.  A maximum of 24 credits of elective courses under the Pass / Not-pass grading option can be used toward graduation requirements. For further information, students should refer to the College of Health and Human Sciences Pass / Not-Pass Policy.

University Requirements


University Core Requirements


For a complete listing of University Core Course Selectives, visit the Provost’s Website.
  • Human Cultures: Behavioral/Social Science (BSS)
  • Human Cultures: Humanities (HUM)
  • Information Literacy (IL)
  • Oral Communication (OC)
  • Quantitative Reasoning (QR)
  • Science #1 (SCI)
  • Science #2 (SCI)
  • Science, Technology, and Society (STS)
  • Written Communication (WC) 

Civics Literacy Proficiency Requirement


The Civics Literacy Proficiency activities are designed to develop civic knowledge of Purdue students in an effort to graduate a more informed citizenry. For more information visit the Civics Literacy Proficiency website.

Students will complete the Proficiency by passing a test of civic knowledge, and completing one of three paths:

  • Attending six approved civics-related events and completing an assessment for each; or
  • Completing 12 podcasts created by the Purdue Center for C-SPAN Scholarship and Engagement that use C-SPAN material and completing an assessment for each; or
  • Earning a passing grade for one of these approved courses (or transferring in approved AP or departmental credit in lieu of taking a course).

Upper Level Requirement


  • Resident study at Purdue University for at least two semesters and the enrollment in and completion of at least 32 semester hours of coursework required and approved for the completion of the degree. These courses are expected to be at least junior-level (30000+) courses.
  • Students should be able to fulfill most, if not all, of these credits within their major requirements; there should be a clear pathway for students to complete any credits not completed within their major.

Additional Information


  • KINE includes 30 credits (if taken at Purdue).
  • KINE with the Clinical Exercise Physiology Concentration includes 36 credits (if taken at Purdue).
  • KINE with the Sports Medicine Concentration includes 33 credits (if taken at Purdue).


Sample 4-Year Plan


14-15 Credits


16 Credits


Fall 2nd Year


15-16 Credits


15-16 Credits


16 Credits


Spring 3rd Year


15 Credits


Fall 4th Year



  • Kinesiology Selective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Kinesiology Selective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Science, Technology & Society core - Credit Hours: 1.00 - 3.00
  • Elective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Elective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Elective - Credit Hours: 1.00

14-16 Credits


Spring 4th Year


  • Kinesiology Selective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Kinesiology Selective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Elective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Elective - Credit Hours: 3.00
  • Elective - Credit Hours: 3.00

15 Credits


World Language Courses


World Language proficiency requirements vary by program. The following list is inclusive of all world languages PWL offers for credit; for acceptable languages and proficiency levels, see your advisor. (ASL-American Sign Language; ARAB-Arabic; CHNS-Chinese; FR-French; GER-German; GREK-Greek(Ancient); HEBR-Hebrew(Biblical); HEBR-Hebrew(Modern); ITAL-Italian; JPNS-Japenese; KOR-Korean; LATN-Latin; PTGS=Portuguese; RUSS-Russian; SPAN-Spanish)

Pre-Requisite Information


For pre-requisite information, click here.

Critical Course


The ♦ course is considered critical.

In alignment with the Degree Map Guidance for Indiana’s Public Colleges and Universities, published by the Commission for Higher Education (pursuant to HEA 1348-2013), a Critical Course is identified as “one that a student must be able to pass to persist and succeed in a particular major.  Students who want to be nurses, for example, should know that they are expected to be proficient in courses like biology in order to be successful.  These would be identified by the institutions for each degree program”. 

Disclaimer


The student is ultimately responsible for knowing and completing all degree requirements.

Consultation with an advisor may result in an altered plan customized for an individual student.

The myPurduePlan powered by DegreeWorks is the knowledge source for specific requirements and completion.