Course details
Do you have a passion for sport and a concern for social issues within sport and exercise? Are you keen to play a part in reducing inequalities, promoting social justice, and improving health and wellbeing through sport, exercise and physical activity?
On the BA Sport, Exercise and Physical Activity course you will explore a wide range of topics from grassroots to high performance sport, as well as other forms of physical activity. You’ll also investigate some of the connections between sport and physical activity with issues such as discrimination and inequalities, the environment, sedentary lifestyles, and obesity.
Why Durham University?
Durham University's Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences is passionate about the benefits of sport and physical activity for all, from recreational participation through to competitive and high performance sport.
Our staff are known around the world for the work they pioneer, using findings from their research to inform the undergraduate curriculum and keep it relevant to the real world.
This approach gives you a valuable insight into developments in the sector and the confidence to put your developing knowledge to use in analysing, engaging with and enhancing real-world practices across the sport and exercise industries.
This approach gives you a valuable insight into developments in the sector and the confidence to put your developing knowledge to use in analysing, engaging with and enhancing real-world practices across the sport and exercise industries.
Facilities
These facilities, which support researchers, undergraduate students and athletes alike, were built as part of the University's £33m investment in the Sports and Wellbeing Park at Maiden Castle. Alongside these facilities are an indoor cricket hall, a 12-court multi use sports hall, a fitness centre, a high-performance weights room and a range of outdoor sports pitches.
The departments facilities include the Human Performance Laboratory which houses a range of exercise and monitoring facilities that analyse our responses to exercise and nutrition.
Rankings
3rd in the UK Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026
5th in the Guardian University Guide 2026
5th in the UK Complete University Guide 2026
Top 100 in the QS World University Rankings 2026
Career Opportunities
We have an excellent graduate employment record. The quality of our degree courses is reinforced by employers who have identified Durham as a World Top 100 source of the most competent, innovative, effective graduates.
Our students progress into a wide range of careers in the field of sport and health and beyond. They have taken up roles in elite sport, sport management and sport development, including management roles in the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Others lead development projects for local councils and major charities, and have taken up roles with sporting organisations like Sport England, English Cricket Board and Williams F1.
We also have graduates working in media roles with organisations such as Sky Sports, BBC Sport and British Eurosport, as well as in health promotion and clinical settings.
For current information please scroll to the bottom of the page for Provider Information and select Visit our Course Page under Course Contact Details.
You will mostly be assessed through a range of coursework assignments, which may include analysing media and sports policies, and creating infographics and podcasts.
Methods of assessment vary between modules and are designed to assess your knowledge and understanding of course material, test critical thinking skills, enhance written and verbal communication skills, and assess your ability to relate your learning to real-world issues.
The final-year dissertation project enables you to undertake in-depth exploration of a specific topic that you are passionate about.
In addition to the help provided by your subject lecturers, you can also access extensive support for your assessments through ASC, the Academic Skills Centre. See below for details: https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/centres/academic-skills-centre/
This course is available in Clearing. If you have submitted an application, you can add this course. If you haven’t sent us an application yet, you can do this until 24th September 2026.
This is the equal consideration deadline. You can still apply after this date, but your application may not receive guaranteed consideration.
Durham University has participated in the Teaching Excellence Framework. These ratings were awarded in 2023, for four years.
See why these ratings were awarded
What does this TEF outcome mean?
The following entry points are available for this course:
Durham has a long and proud history of welcoming students from countries across the globe. For further details please visit: https://www.dur.ac.uk/study/international/
International students who do not meet direct entry requirements for this degree might have the option to complete an International Foundation Year. For further details please visit: https://www.durhamisc.com/programmes/international-foundation-year
Discover what it's like to study Sport, Exercise and Physical Activity at Durham University: insights on the course, making friends, personal statement tips, uni prep, and recommended books, podcasts, and videos.
If you’re taking other qualifications not listed above, please check our qualification pages to see if we accept these: www.durham.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/how-to-apply/entry-requirements/
If you have a non-standard academic profile, then ask us about it here:
www.durham.ac.uk/study/ask-us/
Find out more about qualification requirements for this course.
English Language requirementshttps://www.durham.ac.uk/study/international/entry-requirements/english-language-requirements/
Contextual Offer: A level Grades BBB/ABC or equivalent.
Specific subjects/grades required for entry:
GCSE English Language at grade 5 / B.
This section shows the range of grades that students who received offers were previously accepted on to this course with (learn more).
It is designed to support your research but does not guarantee whether you will or won't get a place.
Admissions teams consider various factors, including interviews, subject requirements, and entrance tests. Check all course entry requirements for eligibility.
We are unable to show previous accepted grades for this course. This could be because the course is new, it's a postgraduate course, there isn't enough historical data, or the provider has opted out of sharing their entry grades data for this course - learn more.
This report uses your grades to show how students with similar results have done when applying to this course in the past. Sometimes, there isn’t data for every possible set of grades. When that happens, universities and colleges occasionally fill in the gaps for sets of grades that are typically accepted.
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Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website.
Home Students.
The tuition fees for 2027/28 will increase to £10,050. Please note that these figures remain subject to parliamentary approval.
The tuition fees shown for home students are for one complete academic year of full-time study and are set according to the academic year of entry. Fees for subsequent years of your course may rise in line with an inflationary uplift as determined by the government.
Durham University will charge home rate tuition fees up to the maximum allowed by the UK Government. Should the UK Government choose to increase the maximum tuition fee allowed in the second and subsequent years of your course, Durham University will raise tuition fees in line with UK Government policy and approvals.
International and EU Students.
The tuition fees shown for international and EU students are for one complete academic year of full time study and are set according to the academic year of entry. Fees are subject to an annual inflationary increase. In deciding the annual level of increase the University will take into account inflationary pressures on the costs of delivery. Tuition fees will rise annually by up to the higher of 6% or the latest annual percentage increase in the Consumer Prices Index.
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or International tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website.
Durham University offers a range of scholarship opportunities to academically well-qualified and highly motivated students. For further details, including deadlines for application, please visit: https://www.durham.ac.uk/study/scholarships/
Clearing - Register your Interest
Phone:0800 987 4120
Thursday 14 August 8am-6pm
Friday 15 August 9am - 5pm
Monday 18 - Friday 22 August 9am-5pm
Phone:0191 334 1000
The Palatine Centre
Stockton Road
Durham
DH1 3LE
At Durham University
