Westminster Announces Accelerated Master’s Degree Program with Culver-Stockton College

The Department of Health and Exercise Science at Westminster College is excited to announce a 3+2 accelerated Master of Athletic Training (MAT) program in partnership with Culver-Stockton College in Canton, MO.

The two colleges are working strategically together to enhance opportunities for students who are interested in becoming certified athletic trainers ― a rapidly growing field that will require a master’s degree for certification by 2022.

The new strategic partnership, which officially begins in the fall of 2021, allows students to complete both an undergraduate degree and the master’s degree in Athletic Training in as few as five years.

Westminster’s Exercise Science program is one of few in the central Missouri area.

Dr. Amanda Gowin, Chair of the Department of Health and Exercise Science at Westminster, says Exercise Science students will seamlessly matriculate into Culver-Stockton’s MAT program.

She explains that students first take a list of prescribed courses for three years while at the College. They then complete their last two years at Culver-Stockton, earning both their bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science from Westminster and their master’s degree in Athletic Training from Culver-Stockton.

Gowin adds this unique partnership will allow Westminster students to earn a master’s degree one year earlier by continuing their education at a similar institution, with small class sizes, diverse internship experiences, and excellent, skills-based learning.

“Occupations in athletic training are growing at a higher rate than the average of other occupations,” Gowin explains. “This partnership secures a high-quality education and provides students a competitive advantage into a thriving market at a quicker pace.”

Once at Culver-Stockton, MAT students will complete two years of graduate study that will include a variety of clinical experiences in both athletic and hospital/clinical settings. These skill-based opportunities will take place within the medical communities of Canton, MO, Hannibal, MO, and Quincy, IL.

Gowin says, “I am excited for the future of this program. Providing a 3+2 option allows for a recruitment opportunity to grow the Exercise Science major at Westminster.”

In addition to the new Exercise Science 3+2 program with Culver-Stockton, Westminster offers three other dual-degree programs: Chiropractic, through Logan University of Chiropractic in Chesterfield, MO; Engineering, though Washington University in St. Louis, MO, Missouri S&T in Rolla, MO, or Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; and Nursing, through the Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis.