Description
The University of Montana offers a Master's of Science degree in Health and Human Performance (HHP) Department. The Masters degree in Exercise Science is designed as a two-year program including advanced courses Exercise Physiology and laboratory techniques. Historically our students have been very successful at being accepted to prestigious doctoral programs or a diverse range of occupations including: Work Physiology, Research positions, Cardiac Rehabilitation, Occupational Rehabilitation and Fitness industry jobs from equipment design and manufacture to management of fitness facilities. Of the six students from the class of 2001, four continued their education by attending doctoral programs (McMaster University, University of Minnesota, University of New Mexico and University of Wisconsin-Madison). The other two graduates have entered the job market (research director for a major research grant with our lab and the other is directing the cardiac-pulmonary rehabilitation program at a large hospital.
Dr. Brent Ruby and Dr. Steven Gaskill lead the exercise physiology graduate program at the University of Montana. Dr. Ruby's research interests focuses primarily on metabolism, glucose kinetics, and gender differences in substrate utilization while Dr. Gaskill's work is more directed towards health and exercise physiology focusing on the relationship between exercise intensity and chronic disease. Both Dr. Ruby and Dr. Gaskill work closely together on a joint research project studying Wildland Firefighters to help the U.S. Forest Service understand fitness, work, fatigue and immune issues within this population. Dr. Ruby has also used the Wildland (forest) firefighters as a model for sustained operations in the military.
Master's degree students in Exercise Physiology are expected to design and implement a research project during their second year. We are very open to working with the individual research ideas of each student. These projects have led our students to be involved in a large number of collaborations with other departments on campus giving us access to a broad range of equipment and knowledge. All graduates are expected to write a modified thesis, which includes an extensive literature review and a manuscript ready for submission to a peer-review journal. The expectations for quality research are very high. Students from the class of 2001 submitted seven journal manuscripts. In addition, one student finished research, which we felt was so important that he was asked to delay publishing the manuscript until further data to substantiate his finding could be collected. He is currently overseeing a substantial grant to collect the additional data. At the time of this writing 5 manuscripts were either accepted or still in review.
Our laboratory is well equipped for graduate research. Our equipment, when added to the collaborative possibilities across campus allows our students nearly unlimited possibilities for innovative and groundbreaking studies. Our small student-faculty ratio allows students the guidance and mentorship necessary for an outstanding learning experience at the Masters level. We suggest that applicants contact past graduates. A listing is included on our web site.
Limited teaching assistantships are available, but generally cover only 50% of tuition and fees when available. Availability depends on current grants, department needs and the quality of applicants. Acceptance to the program is quite competitive with only 4-6 students normally accepted each year.
The faculty of the Health and Human Performance Department welcomes your participation and interest in the exercise science graduate program. The program is a demanding curriculum that requires dedication and commitment. If you have questions please do not hesitate to contact either Dr. Ruby (
) or Dr. Gaskill (
).