Life University's Master of Athletic Training Receives CAATE Accreditation

 

Marietta, Georgia, October 15, 2014 – Life University (LIFE) has been awarded accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) for one of their newest degree programs, a Master of Athletic Training (MAT), housed within the Department of Sport Health Science. This two-year graduate program that enrolls students every Summer Quarter had their first graduating class in the summer of 2014, and those graduates are now eligible to take the Board of Certification (BOC) exam to become a certified athletic trainer (ATC). LIFE’s Department of Sport Health Science Chair Dr. Catherine Faust is excited about the uniqueness of LIFE’s program and the opportunity it gives prospective students looking to join the athletic training profession.

“The MAT program is one of only 35 in the nation,” notes Faust. “We are also the only professional graduate program in the state of Georgia and have a highly competitive admissions process.”

Faust is also quick to point out the team effort of everyone involved in the accreditation process, which included a two-year self study, an on-site review by the CAATE in the spring of 2014, a report of findings submitted by the CAATE and a rejoinder submitted by LIFE back to the CAATE to show how they met the standards given by the accreditation agency before finally becoming an accredited program. The team consists of Dr. Deloss Brubaker, an MAT faculty member at LIFE who helped start the program and teaches half of the lecture courses within the program; Dr. Tim Gross, who was very helpful in getting the MAT degree approved by the University and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS); and Dr. Rob Scott, LIFE’s Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, who also helped in getting the SACS approval and immensely contributed to getting the Summer 2014 graduates the MAT degree.

One additional person on LIFE’s staff who was very instrumental in this process is LIFE’s Athletic Training Program Director Dr. Donald Fuller. Dr. Fuller has plenty of experience in developing Athletic Training programs, as he’s started up three of the 35 nationwide, while also consulting in the beginning of four additional MAT programs. “With the CAATE accreditation, we should be able to attract more quality students and continue to grow our numbers each year,” explains Fuller.

“We are unique even within the 35 MAT programs nationwide in that our location is so close to one of the largest metro areas in the country, which gives us many relationships with premier healthcare institutions in Atlanta for clinical rotations, such as Emory University, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and even LIFE’s own chiropractic clinic— the Center for Health & Optimum Performance (C-HOP).”

For more information on Life University, the Master of Athletic Training degree and how to apply, call 770.426.2884 or 800.543.3202 (toll free) or contact [email protected].

About Life University
Founded in Marietta, Georgia in 1974, Life University is a health sciences institution most known for its chiropractic program, the largest in the world. Life University is regionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to award four-year undergraduate and graduate degrees in a variety of health care, science, business and general studies fields, and also has programmatic accreditation through the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE), the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) and the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE). The mission of Life University is to empower students with the education, skills and values necessary for career success and life fulfillment, based on a vitalistic philosophy.

 

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