Courses covered:

1. Reflective Practice & Professional Skills
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   Reflective practice lies at the heart of the work of the influential coach, teacher, instructor, and health practitioner, providing a core principle around which careers can be built. This course will explore critical topics for practitioners, ensuring they develop the skills and competencies to undertake consultancy at the individual, group, community, or wider population levels.  The course provides a comprehensive understanding of the importance of maintaining legal, regulatory, and ethical standards and essential insight into the various frameworks adopted in applied work. It aims to develop the ability to work with a range of athletes and sports settings and to develop, monitor, and evaluate interventions used in the rehabilitation process. It will also assess the potential role of emerging approaches to rehabilitation programs and the importance of multi-disciplinary teamwork, leadership, and entrepreneurial skills for a successful career.
   Learning Outcomes
   At the end of this module students will be able to:
   1. Demonstrate systematic understanding of professional practice issues in coaching and critically reflect upon own professional skills to benefit future learning and practice. 
   2. Identify ethical issues in applied sports coaching and performance and use effective frameworks to develop overarching practice principles.
   3. Demonstrate competence to work effectively with a range of various athletes, clients and populations.​​  

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2. Coaching Process 
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   This coaching program covers fundamental aspects such as coaching philosophy, communication, goal setting, assessment, and feedback. Coaches will acquire proficiency in guiding athletes toward enhanced performance. Emphasizing adaptability and reflective practice, the curriculum enables coaches to tailor approaches to individual needs, fostering continuous improvement in coaching effectiveness. The course also instills ethical and empathetic coaching leadership, emphasizing sportsmanship, integrity, and respect. Sub-topics include conflict resolution, time management, mental skills training, and stress management. With a focus on Learning Outcomes, coaches will develop a holistic skill set, ensuring their ability to lead ethically, adapt dynamically, and continuously improve in fostering positive coaching environments. 
   Learning Outcomes
   At the end of this module the student will be able to:
   1. Demonstrate understanding and proficiency in effective communication, goal setting, assessment, and feedback. 
   2. Adapt coaching styles and methods to meet the unique needs of athletes and situations.  
   3. Exhibit ethical and empathetic leadership in coaching.

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3. Performance Analysis and Data-Informed Coaching 
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   Coaches are expected to showcase proficiency in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting performance data through the use of relevant software and tools. It emphasizes the development of data-driven coaching strategies, which involve creating athlete-specific training plans and game tactics based on thorough performance analysis. The module further emphasizes and justifies the importance of effective communication, as coaches should be able to convey data-driven insights to athletes and coaching staff, promoting collaboration and ultimately enhancing overall team performance.
   Learning Outcomes
   The student will be able to:
   1. Demonstrate proficiency in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting performance data, using relevant software and tools, to inform coaching decisions. 
   2. Apply data-driven coaching strategies, including athlete-specific training plans and game tactics, based on thorough performance analysis. 
   3. Effectively communicate data-driven insights to athletes and coaching staff, fostering collaboration and enhancing overall team performance .

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4. Coaching Management and Leadership 
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   This comprehensive module delves into essential aspects of sports coaching, covering leadership styles, team dynamics, and strategic planning. Coaches will gain expertise in conflict resolution, negotiation, and effective communication. Topics also include motivating athletes, time management, financial and legal considerations, event logistics, media and public relations, and marketing for sports teams. Learning outcomes focus on developing leadership skills, strategic planning abilities, and proficiency in conflict resolution, providing coaches with a holistic toolkit for successful sports management.
   Learning Outcomes
   At the end of this module students will be able to:
   1. Describe leadership skills and strategies necessary for effective management within the coaching environment. 
   2. Develop the ability to create and implement strategic plans for sports organisations. 
   3. Demonstrate proficiency in employing effective communication and negotiation skills by fostering a positive coaching environment. 

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5. Applied Coaching Psychology 
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   This module provides coaches with a comprehensive understanding of sports psychology, covering key sub-topics such as skill development, expertise approach, perceptual-cognitive expertise, and more. It aims to empower coaches in psychological assessment, mental toughness strategies, and integrating skill acquisition principles for enhanced athlete performance. The exploration of neurophysiology, neuropsychology, and debunking myths in sports coaching adds depth to the learning experience. The overarching goal is to equip coaches with the knowledge and skills to assess athletes’ psychological profiles, enhance mental toughness, and optimize skill development, fostering consistent and high-level performance.
   Learning Outcomes
   At the end of this module students will be able to:
   1. Describe an athlete’s psychological profiling process. 
   2. Display an understanding of the strategies that foster mental toughness. 
   3. Integrate skill acquisition principles with sports psychology techniques to enhance athletes’ skill development and performance consistency. 

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6. Research Methods and Data Management  
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   The capabilities to both manage data and prosecute research are considered essential for the modern performance focused coach. The plethora of data that may be derived from a variety of sources can often create much confusion for the coach, analyst and support members of the team and indeed the athlete. Further, having the skills to meaningfully manage and interpret this data will allow the student to synthesise and apply relevant data across a wide variety of sporting and physical activity contexts such as within the general fitness industry. The module will also advance the students skills in their approach and competence in identifying and prosecuting sport and exercise related research.
   Learning Outcomes
   At the end of this module the student will be able to:
   1. Articulate issues and form compliant strategies in the gathering, storing and management of sport related data. 
   2. Interpret and present data and results in a meaningful format using current best practice. 
   3. Prepare a research proposal based on sound fundamentals of applied research. 

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7. Applied Project
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   A key skill of the advanced practitioner will be the ability to generate independent solutions to the unique challenges they face in their individual performance environment.  Ultimately, they will require the ability to generate their own evidence-based practice that blends external data, their own findings and observations with the unique challenges and confines of their own performance setting. Subsequently, the capacity for independent investigation will be critical, allowing the generation of context specific solutions to key performance problems. This module will extend the course aim of developing multidisciplinary, independent thinkers, enabling students to generate true evidence-based practice that can be directly applied into their own coaching practices. It will enable the student to apply the skills and knowledge generated through the previous modules to the generation of a solution to an applied question they face in their own practice and to communicate these findings in both written and oral formats.  The individual project will enable the student to focus on a specific challenge they face and to generate an evidence-based solution to this challenge. For individuals working within a performance organisation, or where the student is sponsored by the organisation, the project will take the form of an agreed solutions-based project based on a challenge faced by the organisation.  Here the project will be agreed between the student, the college and the employer.  Learning Outcomes
   At the end of the project the student will be able to:
   1. Demonstrate a critical knowledge and understanding of effective enquiry in the strategic development of a performance-based solution.
   2. Demonstrate the ability to plan and conduct an effective professional enquiry following a systematic approach to an identified problem.
   3. Effectively present the findings of the enquiry, along with key practical application for future practice.

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Program Duration

The program duration is 21-24 months. This includes:

• 6 Online Courses (each module is 12 weeks in duration)
• On-site residential weeks, practical application, and lectures.
• Final Project (additional 3 months to complete)

Residentials

Much of the learning on the program will occur through a mix of online courses and experiential learning, however, a key part of the program will be the residentials. Whilst the content of each residential will be dependent upon the modules undertaken, the overarching objectives will be similar.

Our residentials are offered in the following locations:

Ireland: GAA National Games Development Centre, Dublin.

The objectives:

• To provide hands-on instruction and experience in the practical elements of the course content. Even though the course is focused mainly on an evidence-based practice approach, practical competency in the application of theory to practice and in the ‘art’ and ‘craft’ of coaching will be emphasised. Further, the competence in the use of and interpretation of data using a wide range of coaching technologies and the coaching process will be central to the face to face environment and thus the residential will ensure that practitioners receive high-class instruction in the key practical elements required for effective industry practice.
• To allow for practical assessments and presentation-based assessments to be carried out.
• To provide contextualisation and critical discussion of the topics covered in the online material. This will essentially be a flipped classroom approach to teaching. This medium will allow practitioners to share experiences and provide a highly interactive learning environment.