The interdisciplinary Minor in Sports Studies fosters an understanding of the role that sports play in our society and our culture. Students will explore the complex relationships between sports and various industries and institutions including business, medicine, media, politics and law while preparing for careers in sports-related industries like communications, journalism, marketing and talent management.
Whether as athletes, coaches, announcers, executives or spectators, people throughout the world have contributed to the creation of a multi-billion dollar sporting industry. Sports represent a profound social phenomenon, the study of which provides students with deep insights into the dynamics of our society.
Through our Minor in Sports Studies, students will learn how different facets of sports seep into various disciplines. Specialized courses will build an understanding of the sports industry as students explore how members of the media report on star athletes, how sports influence social activism and how athletes cope with ethical, physical and mental health issues.
Well before his recent job offer to cover high school sports for the Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee, Toyloy Brown III ’22 was still trying to figure out life after graduation. Where would he be next? What would he be doing?
Brown listened carefully as Greg Lee, senior assistant managing editor at The Boston Globe, told him he was one of just 16 students who had been accepted into the Sports Journalism Institute. It was the perfect gig, a summer training and internship program designed to develop college sports journalists and promote racial and gender diversity in America’s newsrooms.
In that one memorable moment, Brown became the first Quinnipiac student to be accepted into the prestigious Sports Journalism Institute. Over the last 30 years, SJI alumni have been hired by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, ESPN and other major media outlets.
Brown was assigned to write for USA Today and its parent company, Gannett. His internship began remotely before pivoting to Gannett’s New York City offices on Broadway near Times Square. As a native New Yorker, it wasn’t just home. It was a perfect placement in the biggest media market on the planet.
As students investigate sports from sociological, philosophical and economic angles, they will build a foundational understanding of the sports industry that complements a number of major areas of study, including:
Students can complete the minor by taking six courses for a total of 18 credits. All students must take SPS 101. In addition, students must select at least one SPS course from two of the four areas (arts and sciences, business, communications, health science), with the remaining credits coming from any of the courses offered as part of the minor. Students from the School of Communications can take no more than 6 credits in communications. Classes are cross-listed with the SPS designation.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Course: | ||
| SPS 101 | Introduction to Sports Studies | 3 |
| Select five of the following: | 15 | |
| Multimedia Production Techniques for Sports (JRN 106) | ||
| Baseball and Statistics (MA 176) | ||
| Special Topics in Sports Studies | ||
| Medical Aspects of Sport and Activity (AT 201) | ||
| Sports Leadership (MG 202) | ||
| Sports Law (LE 224) | ||
| Philosophy of Sport (PL 240) | ||
| The Art of the Podcast (JRN 280) | ||
| Sociology of Sport (SO 307) | ||
| Sports Public Relations (STC 311) | ||
| Sports Management (MG 312) | ||
| Psychology of Sport and Exercise (PS 320) | ||
| Sports Economics (EC 325) | ||
| Sports Reporting (JRN 361) | ||
| The Story of Football (JRN 362) | ||
| Sports, Media and Society (MSS 420) | ||
| Internship | ||
| Student Media Independent Study | ||
| Independent Study | ||
| Independent Study | ||
| Total Credits | 18 | |
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