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Principles of Sports Coaching (Academies)

Diploma Level 3

Study mode Full time
Location Moulton
Level Level 3
Start date Sept 2025
Duration 1 year

This qualification is designed for students who wish to develop knowledge, understanding and the skills required to establish a career pathway within the area of sports coaching and performance.

This course provides you with an introduction to the performance sports environment including aspects of applying nutrition to sports performance and how to plan, deliver and review coaching programmes. In addition you will learn to support athletes through lifestyle change and using technical and tactical skills to support athlete’s performance.

To complement your sports studies, we also run sports academies including athletics, basketball, cricket, football, and rugby.

These are run in partnership with some fantastic organisations including Rushden & Diamonds Football Club, Titans Basketball Club, Northampton County Cricket Club and Coventry Rugby Club.

Academy members can access high quality coaching sessions, and work experience, with a nationally recognised vocational qualification achieved at the end of the course.

You will learn about the sporting landscape, performance pathways and the impact of lifestyle and the media on sports performance. You will also study nutrition and psychology in a sports performance context.

The qualification consists of eleven mandatory units:

  • Nutrition for Sports Performance
  • Psychology for Sports Performance
  • The Role of a Programme Coach
  • Plan a Coaching Programme
  • Deliver a Coaching Programme
  • Review a Coaching Programme
  • Performance and Sports Landscape
  • Managing Performance Athletes’ Lifestyles and the Media
  • Understanding Technical Skills to Achieve Excellence in Sport
  • Understanding Tactical Skills to Achieve Excellence in Sport
  • Support Athletes through Lifestyle Change

You will be required to buy sports clothing and shoes for this course. Moulton branded kit can also be brought.

Click here to find out more about the required sports kit.

This is a full time course taking place on four/five days per week from 9.00am - 4:30pm.

All students on this qualification will also need to be part of one of the college’s sports academies.

College fixtures for team sports take place on Wednesdays, and if selected you will move from four days to five days a week.

  • Practical assessments
  • Written coursework and workbooks
  • Presentations

You could progress into employment as a Sports Coach teaching school sports or continue at the college and study a degree level programme on courses such as the BSc Sport Performance and Coaching qualification.

  • Four or more GCSEs at grade 9-4 (A*-C)
  • You will also need to hold a relevant Level 2 coaching/sport qualification

To complement your sports studies, we also run sports academies including athletics, basketball, cricket, football and rugby.

These are run in partnership with some fantastic organisations including Rushden & Diamonds Football Club, Titans Basketball Club, Northampton County Cricket Club and Coventry Rugby Club.

Academy members can access high quality coaching sessions, and work experience, with a nationally recognised vocational qualification achieved at the end of the course.

The facilities you'll be using

No other college in the UK can rival the purpose built facilities we have at Moulton College.