Hey from London

Hi D. Robbins

I am interested to know what the masters course in rehabilitation entails? I am due to finish my sport therapy degree in a few weeks and was looking around at the various options. One of my questions that I would like to ask is the issue with funding. Do you know of any help with this or is it all self funded? I would be grateful for any pearls of wisdom that you may be able to share with me.

Jo

Hey Jo,

Post graduate rehab courses are a nightmare!!!!!!! I have spent around 2 years looking at them while I worked through my BSc and it is not simple!!
My masters is an MSc by research. I will be looking at effective activation of VMO and the various factors involved. I will actually only be completing one module (I think its pain managment but nothing is set in stone yet).

Funding can be a pain although many universities are offering bursaries now to help with the fees. Do you have a particular area of the country you want to study in? or a particular area of rehab? e.g. musculoskeletal, neuromuscular, orthopaedic? do you want to stay sport specific or would you consider clinical for a while to broaden your experience?

I know this is a bit vague, but if you give me a little more info I'll help as best I can.

keep smiling
Dan

Hi Dan

I am not looking to do a post grad course in rehab. I am hoping to go on and work on horses on equal footing with a physio. At present this is challenging as the sport therapy degree is not yet state registered. This is due to go to proposal in May. Until then it is challenging to get recognised by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists which are officially the only body that is legally allowed to work on horses.

So in the mean time, as I have a developing interest in the physiology, biomechanics and performance I was planning to either do a biomechanics routeway or apply to the University of Essex and do the Msc in Human and Equine Sports Science. The trouble is the funding!!!! I would then have to consider doing it part time as I would have to work to pay my way. But if it is the only route then it has to be done. The biomechanical route would only be of interest to me if I can do it from the equine prospective. The university that I am at now do this specialist routeway but I am not sure that they have the capabilities to do some of the testing on campus, however, there may be scope to travel to another university etc to do just the testing. This I need to explore in more detail. At the moment I am just buzzing ideas around in my head and looking at all my options.

Hey Jo,

Just saw your post on plantar fascitis - although I didn't realise it was u at first, good stuff though.

Seems like you have already done most of your research - I saw the Essex course, isn't that run by a Dr Shearman? essex is pretty good (I may do a masters there myself in 2008). Equine stuidies are pretty rare in the uk, it would certainly be easier to follow a biomechanics pathway. There was actually an open day in my uni's (Greenwich) sports science lab the other day. There were about 15 girls from a college or uni that does equine studies that were in for a tour. I will try and find out why and where they were from you. Are you looking to find a funded course or ways to fund a particular course? Are you looking for a taught or research masters? Have you considered graduate/career development loans? Have you also considered doing a Phd? There is generally more funding available for doctorates then there is for masters.

Dan

Hi Dan

I was thinking towards a taught course purely because of the crossover of human to horse. I thought that this may be a bit challenging to try to go straight into the research arena without some good knowledge under my belt. Maybe I am underestimating myself though!!!!!!!! When I looked at the course it appears that we have covered a fair bit of it already. In addition, my uni did provide us with a good background in research methods which seems to be a bit of a nightmare to most students.

I have not heard and did not know that you could apply for graduate/career development loans. Can you tell me anymore about them? Where do I go to get these? Are they privately funded by the bank? Do you know what the interest rates are likely to be in the region of?

I had not thought of doing a Phd purely because of the time that it takes. I have been studying for four years now and just don't think that I could face another three!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have to weigh up what will be the best thing to do in the long run. Ultimately I want to work on horses from a therapy point of view but would also like to get into some of the research areas, particularly on either performance or injury prevention/ lameness. Just need to find the optimum route to achieve this!!!!!!!!!

Cheers for you input it is much appreciated. Glad you liked the advice about plantar fasciitis. I wasn't sure how it would be received. There are quite a few people who seem to know what they are talking about and that can be a little intimidating at first.

Still smiling
Jo

Hiya Jo,

Graduate loans change from bank to bank but there is no end of info on the net, I am hoping not to get one so couldn't tell you about interest rates (sorry). I believe that you can borrow upto £8,000 which is repayable in installments that begin three months after to complete your masters so if you decide you can afford the rates, then please consider how quickly you can be earning afterwards!!!

Its good that you have as firm understanding of research methods, I def agree with you it seems to be a weak area for many students, I also notice that statistics are often a weak area. Did you do much stats for your degree? If not there are planty of good books (that are thankfully cheaper than A+P or Ex phys books!) that will help you through a research course.

I know what you mean about posting here being intimidating, there does seem to be lots of experts posting stuff, I waited a fair while before actually posting anything, now just stick to stuff I know or am interested in - you never know, you may make some contacts through here!

Previously you said "At present this is challenging as the sport therapy degree is not yet state registered. This is due to go to proposal in May".
I was wondering if this is just your course or any other therapy/rehab courses? Things change so much it seems that I can't keep up!!! though if things change in May, I may change my physio plans.

Glad your still smiling - keep it up lol
Dan

Hi Dan

I think what I wrote about the degree no being state registered was a little misleading, what I meant was sports therapy is not state registered!!!!! That means that anyone can call themselves a sports therapist whether they have done a degree or a weekend course at the local college. Becoming state registered means that the members have to have attained a recognised standard and so it protects a) the public and 2)the profession of sports therapy. If you go on to the society of sports therapists website it explains all in a much better format. It may be that you will not now need to go and do a physio course in order to get recognition for your professional status. All people who are at present working as sports therapists will be able to apply to be members and be able to continue to work as sports therapists. As a graduate we get automatic membership status. Was that what you wanted to do? I see that you have done rehabilitation so what does/did that include? So was you planning on doing the physio course? As I was surfing on the net I came across a Msc in Sports therapy that they are now offering at Teeside University if you are interested.

I have to admit that it is a bit daunting to decide whether to incur even more debt at this juncture in my career. I am a mature student and so to take on even more debt requires serious consideration. I also have to justify whether it is worth it and what I am likely to get out of it. You are right to raise the subject of how easy is it going to be to get a decent paid job considering the loan must start to be paid back after three months of graduating.

Still Smiling (just) Exams in a few weeks.............

Jo

Hiya,

I am actually still working on my BSc Sports Science with Fitness now but have attend various vocational courses, I worked for one year in a gym with a G.P. refferal scheme (pre-uni I'm a mature student too - we're everywhere it seems) and I work in the universities rehabilitaion gym where I recieve hands on training aswell.

Much of my degree covers aspects of rehabilitation (health screening and risk assessment, movement science and injury, control and disorders of movement, plus standard modules, A+P, biomechnics etc.) but not enough to register as more than a complementary therapist. In theory I could go straight to physio course but I actually want to do the research masters first. Admitdly this will take longer but I will get additional advanced rehab training too.

I found out the girls at my uni the other day were from Hadlow so you may want to browse their website for equestrian stuff (great terminology there lol). Many physiotherapy masters are paid for by the NHS with a busary to help with living costs, have you thought about doing a straight physio masters? Could be difficult for you coming from sports therapy though.

still smiling (even with dissertation in on the 24/4!)
Dan

Hi Dan

We also did a module in health screening and risk assessment. So I suppose you know the ACSM guidelines pretty well. I have to say that I did find it interesting and quite useful because one has to be realistic about the type of client one is likely to meet in a clinical environment. So it is good to know how to aid the less fit. We are not all going to find the dream job and deal with only elite athletes. I feel I need a few years under my belt getting some good hands on experience. I have to say that I had not thought about doing the switch to physio too seriously because, as you say it may be difficult coming from a sport therapy background. For some reason, the physios seem to not welcome us and I wonder if it is because a lot of them don't understand what the degree course entails and think we have all attended a weekend course and are not of equal academic status. Most physios I have met have viewed my profession with sceticism. So we need to education some of them.

I suppose they have had the monopoly since time inmermorial and are unwilling to share this. There is a national shortage of physios and so I don't see their reluctance to embrace us in the musculoskeletal side of the job. We don't propose to do the same job, there are several aspects where we differ significantly but can they say that they can do the same as us from the sport science side. Some can yes as they take on post grad courses. I do find that it is frustrating that some of them are so ignorant. I suppose that we just have to rise about the ignorance and prepare to put ourselves out there and show them that we are worthy of respect for what we do too.

Enough of me on my soapbox!!!!!!!!!! Ranting like a loony. I will ask you another question as I am in the middle of a project. Why will >30s sprint training increase aerobic performance? What are the mechanisms to facilitate this? Only answer if you have the time.

I am still smiling (only just) as my dissertation is due in on the 21st along with another project!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jo

Hey Jo,

You need to read about Gylcolysis - often you will find that bioenergetics are described seperatley but remember they all work in conjunction with each other constantly. The processes underpinning Glycolcysis are detailed at http://dwb.unl.edu/Teacher/NSF/C11/C11Links/web.indstate.edu/thcme/mwking/glycolysis.html
A basic overview of energy systems can be seen at http://orgs.jmu.edu/strength/JMU_Summer_2000_WebPage/JMU_Summer_2000_Sections/14_Summer_Energy_Systems.htm

Although to be honest the only really good thing on the page is the graph which gives an idea of the the energy systems work together.

During glycolysis, each glucose molecule is cleaved into two pyruvic acid molecules, and energy is released to form ATP. In the presence of oxygen (aerobic gylcolysis) the pyruvic acid enters the mitochondria (the "power house" of the cell) and enters the oxidative stage of glycolysis to produce ATP. However, when there is not enough oxygen present for this reaction to take place, the pyruvic acid transforms into lactic acid. The role of lactic acid is the key to understanding aerobic glycolysis as lactic acid cannot be returned to lactate (and eventually pyruvate) without oxygen. This is a very brief answer, and does not consider, lactate threshold, lactate turning point, or ventilatory threshold - (sorry).

Good authors for exercise physiology are:
McKardle, katch and katch
Powers and Howey
Wilmore and Costill.

I can imagine that nonrecognition would get pretty vexing to say the least! it would certainly bug me!!

H+RA was quite a good module - except blood analysis which was a LOT of waiting for the machine to analyse the sample- did my head in sitting around doing nothing!

Dissertation and project???? that a tad harsh isn't it? what's your dissertation anyway?
KS
D