School of Health and Wellbeing

BA (Hons) Physical Education and School Sport

BA (Hons) Part-time 6 years, Full-time 3 years

Train to teach PE with a guaranteed professional placement on an AfPE-approved degree. Gain real classroom experience, work with Wolves FC and more, and join a course rated 93% for student satisfaction (NSS, 2026).

Train to teach PE with a guaranteed professional placement on an AfPE-approved degree. Gain real classroom experience, work with Wolves FC and more, and join a course rated 93% for student satisfaction (NSS, 2026).

Award
BA (Hons)
Start date(s)
14 September 2026
UCAS Code
C629
Course specifications
Course length
Part-time (6 years),Full-time (3 years)
Campus location
University: Walsall Campus
UCAS points calculator

Why choose this course?

93% of students were satisfied with the teaching on this course (NSS, 2026).

If you want to inspire the next generation to get moving, this AfPE-approved degree gives you a direct route into physical education and school sport. Every student is guaranteed a professional placement, so you'll be gaining real classroom and coaching experience from day one, not just reading about it in a lecture theatre.

You'll learn from staff who have led PE departments in schools themselves, and you'll graduate with genuine teaching experience through our network of school partnerships. Our course community stays close: you'll have a personal academic tutor and a mentorship scheme, so you're never just a face in a lecture hall.

Here's why students choose the course:

  • approved by the Association for Physical Education (AfPE) for the quality of our teaching, assessment and professional development
  • a guaranteed professional placement built into every year of your degree
  • teaching from staff with real school leadership and coaching experience
  • partnerships with schools, British Judo, England Squash, Wolves FC, West Bromwich Albion FC and Walsall FC
  • personal academic support and a course mentorship scheme from year one
  • excellent sport facilities designed for practical teaching and coaching.

What's unique about this course?

  • we're one of relatively few universities whose PE and school sport degree is approved by the Association for Physical Education (AfPE), a mark of quality in course content, assessment and professional development
  • every student gets a guaranteed professional placement, built into the course rather than left for you to arrange
  • you'll train alongside staff who are practitioners in equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), with expertise in gender, race, disability and LGBTQ+ equality, so inclusive teaching isn't an add-on, it's central to how you learn to teach
  • our partnerships go beyond local schools into elite sport: British Judo, England Squash, Wolves FC, West Bromwich Albion FC and Walsall FC have all worked with our students
  • past students include Olympic gymnast Kristian Thomas, who graduated with First Class Honours after training at Wolverhampton
  • you'll join a close-knit course community and mentorship programme, connecting you with staff and fellow students across every year group.

What happens on the course?

Expect a genuine mix of theory and practice. In practical sessions, you'll learn how to plan, lead and support physical activity for different ages and abilities. In theory sessions, you'll explore how young people learn, and how PE and school sport can help tackle inequality and underachievement in education.

Each year builds towards the classroom:

  • Year one introduces you to teaching and coaching pedagogy alongside the practical skills you'll use in schools and community sport settings.
  • Year two deepens your understanding of inclusive practice, and your professional placement gives you supervised, hands-on teaching experience.
  • Year three sharpens your leadership, research and reflective practice, preparing you for your first role as a qualified graduate.

Work-based learning runs throughout the course, supported by experienced school staff who mentor you as you build confidence in real classrooms. Careers guidance and access to our network of education and sport industry contacts continue right up to graduation, so your next steps are mapped out well before you finish your final assignment.

Placements on the course

Every student on this course is guaranteed a professional placement, giving you real classroom and coaching experience alongside your studies, plus the industry network your CV needs before you've even graduated.

Placements are:

  • short in duration — condensed, work-like experience in a professional setting
  • linked to your coursework, assessments or professional development modules
  • project-based, so you're contributing to real tasks or research within a school or organisation
  • flexible in format — in-person, remote, hybrid or virtual, depending on the opportunity
  • focused on building workplace skills like communication, teamwork and problem-solving
  • designed to close the gap between what you've learned and what your career needs.

Employability on the course

Beyond your placement, employability is built into every stage of your degree:

  • Extended induction: time to settle into university life and your course before diving into study.
  • Structured learning pathways: your modules are designed with your future career in mind, not just as an academic exercise.
  • Hands-on project experience: practical activities modelled on real classroom and coaching scenarios.
  • Industry-informed teaching: content shaped by our school partnerships, staff research and current classroom practice.
  • Careers guidance: access to our network of education and sport industry contacts, right through to graduation.

Graduates go on to roles including secondary and primary school PE teaching, school sport coaching, further education lecturing, learning support and other careers across education and sport, with some progressing into professions such as the police or armed forces.

Potential Career Paths

Additional Information

Everything you need to know about this course!

Beyond the course itself, you'll study at a university built around supporting you personally, not just academically. You'll have a personal academic tutor, a course mentorship programme, and access to excellent sport facilities designed for practical teaching and coaching.

  • every student is guaranteed a professional placement, whichever course you choose
  • based at our Walsall Campus, home to some of the region's best sport and education facilities
  • strong local and national partnerships, from school networks to professional football clubs and national governing bodies of sport
  • a supportive, close-knit course community, where staff get to know you and your goals.

By graduation, you'll be able to:

  • plan, lead and support pupil learning in both the practical and theoretical sides of physical education and school sport
  • recognise how sport and physical activity can create inequality in education, and use your teaching to challenge it
  • promote equality, diversity and inclusion in every lesson, by understanding perspectives beyond your own
  • build professional relationships with schoolteachers and sport industry contacts, creating a network to support your career
  • reflect on and improve your own teaching and coaching practice, a skill you'll keep using throughout your career.

Location Mode Sep intake Fee Year
Home Full-time £9790 per year 2026-27
Home Part-time £4895 per year# 2026-27
International Full-time £17600 per year 2026-27

Additional Course Costs

Mandatory Costs

  • Enhanced DBS required at a minimum cost of £40. The cost of the DBS is determined by the Government and further information can be found here - GOV.UK / Disclosure and Barring Service.
  • Uniform is provided for this course, however the University of Wolverhampton reserves the right to make a charge.
  • You will be required to provide appropriate foot wear at a cost of approximately  £50-£60

Optional Costs

  • Various Sporting professional body memberships *prices will vary depending on body.
  • Various certified courses are available via My Course + More, ranging from £0 - £200.

Further information on these additional costs will be provided prior to the start of your studies

The University is committed to a transparent fee structure, with no hidden costs, to help you make an informed decision. This includes information on what is included in the fee and how fees are calculated and reviewed.


If a tuition fee is not showing, we may not offer this intake for this course. Please check the start date information on the course finder for start dates.

# Undergraduate part-time fees for 50% rate of study

Typical entry requirement: 96 UCAS points

  • A Levels - grades CCC  (at least one A Level should normally be in a Science subject (e.g. Applied Science; Biology; Human Biology; Physics; Chemistry; Environmental Science, Psychology, Health and Social Care or PE)
  • BTEC L3 Extended Diploma or OCR Cambridge L3 Technical Extended Diploma - grades MMM in a Sport and/or Science subject
  • BTEC L3 Diploma - grades DD in a Sport and/or Science subject
  • Access to HE Diploma (60 credits) of which a minimum of 45 must be at Level 3 (96 UCAS point equivalence, minimum 45 credits at merit)
  • 1st4sport Level 3 Diploma in Sport and Physical Activities or 1st4sport Level 3 Diploma in Sports Performance and Excellence - grade Distinction
  • T Levels - Pass (C and above)

Use the UCAS Tariff calculator to check your qualifications and points

Other Requirements

Entry to this course requires a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Check and an Occupational Health Check.

Free Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Occupational Health Check:

Due to the professional nature of some of our courses you may also be required to complete a Declaration of Health and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Check.  We will coordinate both of these non-academic conditions with you should your course require this and you receive an offer from us

There will be no cost for the DBS this is free to applicants who have secured an offer and have chosen to study at the University of Wolverhampton.

Students must usually have studied for a minimum of two years post GCSE level. However, we will consider applications from mature students who do not have two years of post-16 study, where they have relevant work experience. Please see http://wlv.ac.uk/mature for further information.

Olympic superstar Kristian Thomas has added a First Class degree from the University of Wolverhampton to his long list of accolades (September, 2019).


The captain of Great Britain’s men’s gymnastics team at Rio 2016 said: "It’s a very proud moment after three years of hard work to be in the Grand Theatre with my cohort and my peers and the people who have helped me including the academic staff. I was out of education for quite a few years so to come back into it was a little bit daunting but they made that process so seamless. I’m very proud to come to the end of the three years and to come away with a first class honours as well."

Watch Kristian's full video here

Tuition Fees Loan (Home Fee Status):

Most students will be able to apply for a loans to pay for these subject to eligibility. To find out more information please refer to the government Student Finance website.

Changes for EU students:

The UK government has confirmed that EU students starting courses from 1 August 2021 will normally be classified as having Overseas Fee status. More information about the change is available at UKCISA:

EU citizens living in the UK with 'settled' status, and Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland, will still be classified as Home students, providing they meet the usual residency requirements, for more information about EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS)


Self-funding:

If you don’t want to take out a loan to pay your fees or if you aren’t eligible to receive a loan, you might want to take advantage of the University’s scheme to pay by instalments: See How to pay.

For more information please contact the Gateway.


Your employer, embassy or organisation can pay for your Tuition fees:

If your employer, embassy or organisation agrees to pay all or part of your tuition fees; the University will refer to them as your sponsor and will invoice them for the appropriate amount.

We must receive notification of sponsorship in writing as soon as possible, and before enrolment, confirming that the sponsor will pay your tuition fees.


Financial Hardship:

Students can apply to the Dennis Turner Opportunity Fund.

for help with course related costs however this cannot be used for fees or to cover general living costs.


Bursaries and Scholarships:

In addition the University also offers a range of Bursaries and Scholarships packages

You can find more information on the University’s Funding, cost, fee and support pages.

Telephone

01902 32 22 22

Email

enquiries@wlv.ac.uk

Online

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How we compare

Find out how our course is rated on Discover Uni, the official website for comparing UK higher education courses.

Find out how our course is rated on Discover Uni, the official website for comparing UK higher education courses.

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