Mission, Vision, and Goals

Mission

The mission of Penn State’s MAT program is to prepare students to become entry-level athletic trainers who base interventions on scientific and clinical evidence in the promotion of optimal well-being of physically active populations while serving as competent and compassionate practitioners, advocates, leaders, and educators in health care.

Vision

The program is committed to an ongoing evaluation of the curriculum and staying current in the athletic training profession to ensure that students receive the highest quality education possible. The Department of Kinesiology aspires to be an enduring steward in athletic training education, recognized through distinction in both scholarship and service.

Goals

• To provide high quality, didactic instruction and clinical education experiences so that students are equipped for success on the national Board of Certification (BOC) exam, in order to become eligible for State/Commonwealth credentialing as an athletic trainer.
• To meet or exceed standards established by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education, related Athletic Training Education Competencies, and the BOC Role Delineation Study/Practice Analysis.
• To cultivate an environment that encourages and facilitates student academic excellence, social responsibility, and cultural sensitivity. Faculty, staff, and preceptors strive to accomplish this by implementing innovative approaches in the development and delivery of the curriculum. These incorporate integrative exposures to contemporary evidence and professional ethics that underpin clinical practice to enhance patient/client welfare.
• To enrich student learning through a variety of independent and collaborative critical decision-making experiences in diverse settings that challenge students to acquire, refine, and master their theoretical knowledge, clinical skills, and professional attitudes over time.

Links to the University’s Mission

• The MAT program promotes human development by providing students with the freedom to pursue opportunities that enable their professional vocation and personal growth. The curriculum also prepares students to become clinicians that promote patient well-being.
• Domestic and global partnerships yielding integrative discovery and learning ensure the program advances professional practice through expansion of knowledge and its application via collaborative and interdisciplinary scholarship.
• The program also contributes to meeting the Commonwealth and society’s need for athletic trainers given the US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects-related workforce demands to grow 23 percent faster than average between 2020 and 2030.