Wet Pluto

Athletic trainers are part of an athletic health care team that is responsible for prevention, management, treatment, and rehabilitation of athletic injuries. Athletic trainers are integral members of the health care team in almost all the secondary schools, colleges and universities, professional sports programs, sports medicine clinics, corporate/industrial, and other health care settings. The athletic trainer’s professional preparation is based on the development of specific educational competencies and clinical proficiencies. A bachelor’s degree in athletic training is a must for all those who wish to pursue a career as an athletic trainer. Through a combination of formal classroom and clinical instruction and experience, athletic trainers are trained in prevention of athletic injuries, recognition, evaluation, and immediate care of athletic injuries, rehabilitation and reconditioning of athletic injuries, health care administration, and education and counseling.

Students who complete the athletic training major are eligible to apply for the athletic trainer certification exam, which is offered by the Board of Certification, Inc. The exam is usually held in April of the senior year. Students who pass this exam and complete their degree are awarded a professional credential ATC. ATC is only the entry-level credential for practicing Athletic Training. In over 40 states across the United States, ATCs have to be licensed or registered to practice.

There are a variety of work settings where ATCs are employed and provide care for both athletes and non-athletes alike. In most of the programs, graduates elect to go on directly to a master’s degree program, usually as paid graduate assistants. For those students who enter the workplace immediately after completing their bachelor’s degree, the most common settings nationwide are at outpatient clinics with high school and inter-collegiate athletics coverage. Some ATCs also join secondary schools, colleges and universities.