Students who are currently studying towards their university level qualification at Solihull College & University Centre have proven to be more than capable when it comes to research within their field.
A number of students who are currently studying towards their Higher National Diploma (HND) in Sport and Exercise Science have presented their findings in a number of different topics to their tutors who are experts within the sporting industry.
Students Tiffany James, Jessica Bayliss and Jamie Harrison are some of the HND Sport students who have completed projects in a number of different current topics. All of the students opted to stay within the local area and study towards their university level qualification at Solihull College & University Centre because they felt they would receive more support from tutors. Jamie commented “I feel more valued here as opposed to at a larger university; the College is a really friendly environment. You get more contact time with tutors and I feel it’s less intimidating with the smaller class sizes.”
Jamie, who researched into the effects of coconut water on hydration in comparison to electrolyte drinks, decided on his research project as he knew there was an air of uncertainty about the topic so he wanted to see what results he would gain. Jamie had also taken supplementing with coconut water into his sporting regime and wanted to prove through research it has a positive impact on athletes. He was able to conduct a series of experiments and concluding that the supplementing of coconut water has a varied impact dependent on each individual. Jamie was able to focus on this area which particularly interests him in the hope that it will aid him in his future career aspirations to work with athletes as a Strength and Conditioning Coach.
Jamie’s peer Tiffany found that her research topic lacked existing studies so decided to undertake the project to prove her thoughts on in-line skating. Tiffany commented “As a skater myself I found that there was a lack of research into the starting alignment of in-line skating and the effect it has on skaters, this was something I wanted to change and prove that there was an effect.”
Tiffany, who is pursuing a career within the Sports Analyst and Coaching industry, continued “I received great support from the tutors. As there was a lack of existing research, journals were extremely hard to find so my tutor supported me in locating the journals which allowed me to continue with my research.”
Jessica, who is also studying towards her HND in Sport and Exercise Science at the College, began her research after she became interested in sport psychology and wanted to look into the relationship between adult attitude to sport and child participation. Jessica comments “I found it an extremely interesting area of study and found some great results. Through my research I was able to conclude that there was a significant relationship between adult attitude to sport and child participation and an even stronger relationship between the two in older children.”
Jessica continued “It was great to have tutors who specialise within the area of sports psychology on hand to assist with your research projects. They treat you as an equal and show that they care about each student; I had a job interview and received advice from my tutor and he even emailed me afterwards to check how it went.”
The students had to present their findings to their tutors who put them on the spot and tested their knowledge by asking questions about their projects. The tutors, who have a vast amount of sporting industry experience, include Performance Coach, Nutritional Advisor and Published Author Arj Thiruchelvam and 2010 Commonwealth silver medallist Nadine Okyere. Having tutors with such experience has allowed the students to progress and challenge themselves over the course of their studies.
All three of the students explained they would recommend studying a higher education course at their local College of Solihull College & University Centre as they received great support, were able to produce current and industry relevant research as well as being pushed by their tutors to achieve.
Jamie and Tiffany are now hoping to move on to complete their Top-Up degrees at Solihull College & University Centre before moving into the industry, whilst Jessica has decided to take a year out from her studies to gain industry experience.
For more information on the courses available at Solihull College & University Centre please visit the courses page or call 0121 678 7000.
