Online program honored
Master’s degree in sports management named in top 20 of American programs
Liberty University Online’s Master of Science in Sport Management has been named one of the top 20 programs in the country by The Best Schools.
The Best Schools, found online at thebestschools.org, is an online portal that serves as a leading resource for campus and online education. According to their site, their aim is “to help students find the best college and university degree programs to advance their career goals.”
Through The Best Schools’ site, students can search through the type of degree they want, online or on campus, and view how the programs rank with each other.
“Through its ranking of traditional and online degree programs, thebestschools.org empowers you to make the highly informed educational decisions necessary for achieving your career goals,” their website said.
A “thrilled” Dr. Clark Zealand, associate professor and director of graduate studies, said this about the news of the ranking.
“This was very much a surprise.”
Zealand hopes that the rating will draw attention not just to the online program, but also to the residential program.
“Sport management is a dynamic industry,” Zealand said.
According to Zealand, they are currently working on adding new minors to the program.
As the campus grows, Zealand said he hopes the program will as well.
According to The Best Schools’ site, the ranking came from a set of criteria defined as “considerations including the overall academic position of the institution, the depth and innovation of the program, student performance and success, essential elements of the program (such as business foundation and internships), accreditation and reputation.”
Liberty, whose sport management program ranked 12th on the list, takes its place next to colleges such as Texas A&M, Northeastern University, Western Kentucky University, Old Dominion University and Full Sail University.
The Best Schools said Liberty’s program will “have a Christian worldview that will pertain to their career paths in sport management.”
This is not the first time that Liberty has been featured on The Best Schools’ page. On the list of top 20 online Christian colleges, Liberty is listed as number one.
Liberty’s programs are also included on lists such as psychology and the online law program.
Zealand said there is the possibility that being featured on The Best Schools’ page will bring traffic to the university and the growth of the campus can be reflected through the program.