Three years ago, the exercise science major at Eastern Nazarene College (ENC) was revamped into the sports management major and since has become one of the more popular majors at ENC, according to ENC’s Institutional Research.

Sacha Santimano, department chair of sports management, believed that the past majors, exercise science and physical education, were too similar. Consequently, the decision to cut the two majors and create sports management was made.

To create the curriculum Santimano researched around twenty colleges across the country to find overlapping sports management classes to create an accurate curriculum. Students who major in sports management also automatically have a business administration minor. Currently, the available classes for Spring 2019 in sports management are Legal Issues in Sports, Sports Communication, and Event Planning and Promotion.

According to Santimano, students who have completed the sports management major in the past have utilized it to do many different jobs. 2017 ENC graduate Nick Story used the major as a springboard into a career as a personal trainer at Optimal Performance Training in Arizona. Some graduates have even pursued careers in marketing and advertising for companies that do not involve sports, like fellow 2017 ENC graduate Stephanie McHugh.

“From group work and traditional testing to letting us be creative and come up with marketing plans for professional athletes, I feel like ENC’s sports management major is ever growing & changing to help the students succeed,” says McHugh who works as a purchase specialist at Encore Boston Harbor Wynn Resort.

First-year student Sydni Oviatt revealed that she chose the sports management major because she wanted to be an athletic trainer. Furthermore, Oviatt believes that if a career as athletic trainer will not work out, there are still so many other job opportunities provided by the major. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, there is an expected 10 percent growth in the number of sports and entertainment jobs available over the next seven years.

The sports management major continues to gain new students as the sports business continues growing. With several career paths given, it is a good route for those who want to have many job options in the field of sports and entertainment.