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Online Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management

Program Length: 12 Months
Credit Hours: 12
Total Classes: 4
Cost per Credit: $1,427
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What are the program start dates?

Spring 2024
Closed

Summer 2024
May 6

Fall 2024
Late August

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At a Glance

Lead in the $500 Billion Dollar Sports Management Industry

Examples of technology and analytics in sports management are everywhere: virtual reality, interactive spectatorship, mobile technology, Fantasy sports, e-sports gaming, social media, and performance data analytics, to name a few. To succeed, you need to drive these initiatives to maximize profits.

The Online Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics & Management positions you to claim your place in what’s expected to be a more than 700 billion dollar market by 2026.1 In just 12-15 months, you’ll build skills in emergent technologies as they relate to data-driven decision-making, strategic management, sports analytics, social engagement, and evaluation — the skills you need right now to take charge of this fast-paced industry.

Program Objectives

Use Technology to Be Successful in Sports Management

Advance your career quickly with critical skills needed in the sports management industry. By graduation, you’ll be able to:

 
  1. Examine Impact

    Assess emerging trends in the global workplace and the impacts of ever-changing technologies and platforms such as social media.

  2. Build Critical Relationships

    Value the importance of ethical, intercultural, and agency/client/stakeholder relationships and use new leadership and communication skills within appropriate correspondence channels to establish them.

  3. Use New Tools

    Examine and demonstrate the use of analytic tools, both quantitative and qualitative, to provide descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive project data.

  4. Develop Strategies

    Create needs assessments and business plans that engage target audiences, and increase brand awareness, and improve the outreach of sports organizations.

Program Rankings

Build real-world experience in our career-focused, Online Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management program. Geared for your success, the program is: 

See How We Set the Standard

 

  1. Taught by Experienced, Prestigious Faculty

    Proven practitioners share their expertise in technology, analytics, and sport management to ensure you’re prepared for roles after graduation.

  2. A Comprehensive Curriculum

    The curriculum has four pillars: global strategy, analytics and data-driven decision-making, technology enterprises, and revenue generation — so you’re fully prepared for a career in the sports management industry. 

  3. Developed by Experts

    The curriculum provides deep knowledge and skills in areas of sports management that our council of leading professionals from top organizations identified as lacking in other sports management programs. 

A Top-Ranked Online MS

 

Top Online School for Sports Management Program - 2022

Ranked by CollegeAffordabilityGuide.org

Affordable Sports Management - 2022

Ranked by CollegeAffordabilityGuide.org

Selected
Admission Requirement
Curriculum Description
Careers and Outcomes
Faculty
Student Experience

Admission to American University’s online Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management requires an undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university.

Applicants will need to submit the following:

*The application fee is typically waived if the application file is complete within a three-week period.

Geared for long-term career success, the curriculum for our Online Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management was developed with insight from professionals in top organizations. You’ll have the opportunity to network with industry professionals, peers and students worldwide while you gain critical skills current to the industry. Graduate well-prepared to advance to a front-office role, ready to execute strategies based on analytics.

Details can be found on our Program Curriculum page.

The Future in Sports Management

There’s strong growth projected for the sports management industry.

  • Entertainment and sports occupations expect 13% growth from 2021 to 2031, much faster than average2
  • North America held the largest share of the market in 20211

As organizations continue to respond to market needs and implement technologies like virtual reality (VR) to their events and use analytics to make decisions, you’ll be well prepared for roles with entities such as:

  • Sports leagues and teams
  • Athletes and athlete representation
  • Sports governance agencies
  • Non-governmental sports organizations
  • Private agencies and firms that are key stakeholders in the sports market
  • Sporting goods companies

Career Titles in Sports Management

Technology and analytic skills are needed across an array of roles to make evidence-based decisions.

  • Director of Operations
  • Sports Information Manager
  • Advertising Sales Representative
  • Sponsorship Sales Representative
  • eSports Manager

Career Services

American University’s Career Center offers its services to online and on-campus students as well as to all alumni, so you’ll continue to receive support for as long as you need it. This means you’ll have access to resources for your job search, career advising, internships, and scholarships. You can also network, look for jobs, and apply for positions by making an account at AU Career Web, our online career search tool.

The Office of Professional Studies offers career development workshops, and continuing education through industry-specific webinars with practitioners who discuss emerging trends in their fields. Our program directors, who are academic practitioners, act as mentors to current students and alumni alike.

Alumni Employers

As passionate change-makers, our alumni are responsible for using their skills to make an impact. You can join an incredible set of AU alumni who work in diverse roles across sectors at organizations such as:

  • AMB Sports and Entertainment
  • AU Athletics
  • BetMGM
  • Citi
  • Chicago Cubs
  • Creative Artists Association (CAA)
  • DC United (MLS)
  • Disney/ESPN Streaming
  • Fanatics, Inc
  • FanDuel 
  • The Action Network
  • Maine Celtics
  • Major League Baseball (MLB)
  • Major League Soccer (MLS)
  • Monumental Sports & Entertainment
  • National Basketball Association (NBA)
  • National Hockey League (NHL)
  • NCAA
  • Postgame
  • Rockford IceHogs 
  • New York Islanders
  • NCAA
  • Octagon
  • PNC
  • USA TODAY Sports
  • U.S Olympic Committee (U.S.O.C.)
  • Washington Spirit (NWSL)
  • WWE
  • YMCA

We’re especially proud of our faculty—prominent scholars and real-world professionals at the top of their fields who value mentoring students as much as they value excellence in the classroom. Through their teaching, scholarly achievements and first-hand experience, you’ll gain a special entry point to sports analytics and management.

Visit our Program Faculty page to learn more about our faculty. 

Learning Online

American University welcomes its online students as a part of its community. As an online student, you’ll learn from the same outstanding faculty and be held to the same learning standards as students who attend courses on campus. On-campus and online programs deliver the same outcomes, and important support systems, like career resources, are set up for online learners as well. The only difference is you’re allowed to learn when and where it’s best for you so you can earn your degree and advance your career without putting the rest of your career and life on hold.

We Bring AU to You

Our digital campus was intentionally designed based on extensive research behind what makes online learning successful. We combine advanced technology, hands-on experiences, and full access to the American University community. Here, you’re not an online student, you’re an AU student.
 

Rigorous Courses

Online courses are as challenging as their on-campus counterparts and taught by the same connected faculty members and prominent lecturers.

100% Support

New-student orientation, 24/7 help desk for technical issues, a student services coordinator, financial aid advisers, and more are all available to ensure your success.

Expert Faculty

Home to some of the most acclaimed scholars and thought leaders in the world, you’ll learn from award-winning scholars and policymakers, diplomats, authors, artists, attorneys, scientists, journalists, and more.

Collaborative Learning

Use virtual tools to talk about your coursework, work in teams with classmates, build strong connections, network with others and ask your professor questions and turn in assignments.


 

The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.

Military Education Benefits

American University is dedicated to supporting military service members, veterans, and their families.

As an online student of the Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management program, you can transform your military experience and leadership skills into new career possibilities as you earn your degree, regardless of where you live or are stationed.

We support a full range of military education benefits such as:

  • Post-9/11 GI Bill
  • Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB)
  • Tuition Assistance (TA)
  • Yellow Ribbon Program

Additionally, if you’ve served in any branch of the U.S. military on active duty within the past three years, you’re eligible for an application fee waiver. We accept transfer credits from military coursework, have a dedicated Office of Veterans Services to help connect you to benefits, and maintain an active Veterans Services Support Network.

We welcome you to learn more about our military benefits and how to apply for them.

Take Your First Step Today

Become an American University student. A passion for public service, an emphasis on active leadership, and a global outlook are the hallmarks of the American University learning experience. We create graduates who stand out from their peers as active, socially aware, and compassionate leaders who work toward creating meaningful change in our world.

Join Us.

To learn more about American University’s Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management, request more information, request an appointment, or call us toll-free at 855-725-7614.


Program FAQs

Developed by industry professionals who are well-known and highly experienced in their fields, our program will equip you to become a strategic sports manager possessing the skills needed to measure the impact that emerging technologies are having on sports organizations and society.

A council of top sports professionals from leading organizations advised on the curriculum development to ensure that it develops the current, relevant skill set needed today for professional success in sports management.

American University Online Graduate in Sports Analytics and Management provides multiple opportunities to work with sports organizations.

Admission requirements for the online Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management program include a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university.

Applicants will need to submit the following:

*The application fee is typically waived if the application file is complete within three weeks.

A TOEFL score of 600 (or 100 on the internet-based test), a minimum score of 68 on the Pearson Test of English, or a minimum IELTS score of seven (7) is required. Additionally, applicants with international transcripts must have them evaluated course by course. For a list of acceptable evaluators, go to NACES.org.

Applicants will complete a phone interview with the program director and will need to submit:

No. While this program is geared toward those with prior professional experience, many of our students come from entirely different professional and academic backgrounds to make a successful change in their careers.

The online Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management program can be completed in 12-15 months at a full-time pace of two courses each semester. Taking more than two courses per semester is not recommended due to the rigor of the program.

No, there are no specializations offered.

Although the Graduate Certificate in Sports Analytics and Management program does not require the GRE, students with a GPA below 3.0 are encouraged to take the GRE for further evaluation. LSAT scores can also be evaluated in place of the GRE.

Our application deadline varies based on the term you are applying for. Please contact us for more information.

AU does not accept transfer credits for graduate certificate programs.

Our fall semester starts in late August. The spring semester starts in January. The summer session begins in May.

Financial aid is not available for graduate certificate programs. However, graduate students enrolled at least part-time in a master’s program may be eligible for federal loans. To apply, students must submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Our FAFSA number is 001434.

No. This program is exclusively offered online. There will be opportunities for the learners to meet each other face-to-face but they are all optional.

Yes. The online MS in Sports Analytics and Management consists of 10 courses that you can complete in 20 months. If you decide to pursue the online MS in Sports Analytics and Management at a later date, you can use the 12 credits from the graduate certificate toward the full degree.

Yes, online students can easily request a Student ID online to take advantage of all the same resources as our on-campus students.