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Major · Health Professions

A bachelor’s in transition: the major where the licensure door now opens at the master’s level

Athletic Training prepares students to prevent, evaluate, and treat sports injuries under physician supervision. As of 2022, the BOC certification required to practice as an athletic trainer demands a CAATE-accredited master’s degree — the bachelor’s by itself no longer qualifies graduates for licensure in nearly every state.

Schools offering
234
Annual completions
812
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$67k

About this major

Athletic Training is a clinical health major that prepares students to work alongside physicians in the prevention, evaluation, and treatment of sports and activity-related injuries. The CIP definition emphasizes a wide foundation: anatomy and physiology, kinesiology and biomechanics, exercise physiology, therapeutic exercise, emergency care, nutrition, sports psychology, and the regulations that govern licensed practice. In labs and clinical rotations, students learn to assess injuries on the field, design rehabilitation programs, manage acute care, and apply taping, bracing, and modality treatments under supervision.

The major fits students drawn to a hands-on clinical role within sports and human performance. Useful preparation includes strong biology and anatomy fluency, comfort with high-stakes decision-making, and the patience to repeat assessment protocols until they become automatic. Around 812 students complete this major nationally each year across 234 colleges, with the overwhelming majority earning bachelor’s degrees rather than associate’s.

That enrollment scale needs context. As of 2022, CAATE — the accreditor for athletic training education — stopped accrediting bachelor’s-level entry pathways to the BOC credential. Practicing as a licensed Athletic Trainer now requires a master’s-level CAATE-accredited program. The BLS career page for athletic trainers reports a $60,250 median wage and 11.1% projected growth, but lists the typical entry-level education as a master’s degree. The 234-college footprint reflects a transition: schools running out final bachelor’s cohorts, repositioning into pre-professional bachelor’s tracks that feed an MAT or MSAT, or pivoting students toward Exercise Science and Kinesiology.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Health specialties teachers, postsecondary $106k +17.3% Doctoral or professional degree
Athletic trainers $60k +11.1% Master's degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$67k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$65k

Bachelor's

$71k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you already know you want a clinical role in sports medicine and you’re prepared to commit to a master’s degree on top of the bachelor’s, if anatomy, kinesiology, and on-field decision-making appeal to you more than office-based clinical work, if you have a realistic pathway in mind — most often a 2-year Master of Athletic Training that leads to the BOC credential and licensure — and if the projected 11.1% growth and $60,250 median wage for licensed Athletic Trainers feels worth the six-year training commitment. Top completer schools like Florida State, Kansas State, Quinnipiac, and the University of Alabama generally either run a CAATE master’s program or partner with one, which makes the post-bachelor’s step explicit early in the undergraduate experience.

Think twice if you’re assuming a bachelor’s alone qualifies you to practice — it no longer does, and a graduate degree is now the gate to licensure rather than an optional add-on. Reconsider the path if your real interest is strength and conditioning, personal training, or general sports performance work, because Exercise Science or Kinesiology (the CIP 31.0507 cross-reference in this entry) often delivers a more flexible bachelor’s without the clinical accreditation constraint. Also reconsider if the financial picture of an extra two years of graduate school doesn’t pencil out for you against the $60,250 licensed AT wage, since the bachelor’s by itself maps to lower-paying fitness, rehab-aide, and pre-clinical roles.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Athletic Training/Trainer

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Florida State University Tallahassee, FL 0 54 54
East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania East Stroudsburg, PA 0 33 33
University of Puerto Rico at Ponce Ponce, PR 0 33 33
Kansas State University Manhattan, KS 0 32 32
Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT 0 28 28
The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL 0 27 27
Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH 0 26 26
West Chester University of Pennsylvania West Chester, PA 0 26 26
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Mayaguez, PR 0 26 26
Concordia University-Wisconsin Mequon, WI 0 23 23
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

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Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist

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Diagnostic Medical Sonography/Sonographer and Ultrasound Technician

5,766 completions/yr

Surgical Technology/Technologist

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Emergency Medical Technology/Technician (EMT Paramedic)

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Medical Radiologic Technology/Science - Radiation Therapist

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Cardiovascular Technology/Technologist

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Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, Other

869 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

Can I work as an Athletic Trainer with just a bachelor’s degree?
No — not in nearly any state. The Board of Certification (BOC) credential required for state licensure as an athletic trainer now demands a CAATE-accredited master’s-level program. CAATE stopped accrediting bachelor’s-level entry routes to certification as of 2022, so a bachelor’s in Athletic Training is no longer a stand-alone path to the ATC credential. The 234 colleges still listed in this data include programs that are being phased out or transitioned, alongside pre-professional bachelor’s tracks that explicitly feed into a 2-year MAT or MSAT.
If the bachelor’s doesn’t lead to licensure, what does it lead to?
It functions as a pre-professional ramp. The most direct next step is a 2-year Master of Athletic Training (MAT) or Master of Science in Athletic Training (MSAT), which leads to the BOC credential. Students who decide athletic training isn’t the right fit commonly pivot toward physical therapy (DPT), occupational therapy, physician assistant programs, or graduate-level kinesiology and exercise physiology. A meaningful share also moves into strength and conditioning by earning the CSCS credential through the NSCA, which a bachelor’s does support.
What do the BLS earnings figures actually mean for this major now?
The tracked career — Athletic Trainers — reports a $60,250 median wage and 11.1% projected growth, but BLS labels its typical entry-level education as a master’s degree. The five-year median earnings reported here for bachelor’s completers is about $70,853, and for associate’s completers about $65,449. That five-year figure mostly captures students still in graduate school, working as personal trainers, strength coaches, fitness instructors, sports performance staff, or moving into healthcare-adjacent roles — not practicing licensed athletic trainers, who appear in earnings data only after their MAT and BOC.
Why does the data list 234 colleges if bachelor’s programs no longer lead to certification?
The transition is mid-flight. Many institutions are running their final cohorts of CAATE-accredited bachelor’s programs while standing up master’s-level replacements; others kept the major name and reframed it as a pre-professional bachelor’s that explicitly funnels students into an MAT or MSAT. Schools like Florida State, Kansas State, Quinnipiac, Ohio State, and the University of Alabama appear in the top completer list, and most of these institutions either operate or partner with a CAATE master’s program. Verify the path at any specific school before committing — the program structure varies meaningfully across the 234 listed colleges.
Is athletic training the right major if I just want to work in sports medicine?
It depends on which role you’re picturing. If you want to be the clinician on the sideline diagnosing injuries and managing rehab — the licensed Athletic Trainer role — yes, but with the caveat that you need a master’s on top. If you want to be a strength coach, a physical therapist, a personal trainer, or a sports performance specialist, a broader Exercise Science or Kinesiology major (CIP 31.0507) often gives you more flexibility for less commitment, since those fields don’t require the same accreditation track. The cross-references in this CIP entry point to that exact alternative.
What happens if I finish the bachelor’s but don’t go to graduate school?
You won’t be eligible to sit for the BOC exam, so practicing as an athletic trainer is off the table. Realistic landing spots include personal training, group fitness instruction, strength and conditioning roles (especially with the CSCS), sports performance internships, healthcare technician or rehabilitation aide roles, and pre-PT or pre-PA observation positions. Pay in those roles is typically below the $60,250 AT wage, but the data shows bachelor’s completers reaching about $70,853 by year five — a figure that reflects how often graduates do continue to a master’s, even if the route varies.