Bethany Cox

• Year of study: Second (in 2023/24)
• Length of course: Three years

I decided to study at the University of Northampton as I’m originally from Milton Keynes and didn’t want to live too far from home. It’s perfectly located for my sport, as I wanted to continue playing football outside of university and it still allows me to travel to training and competition. The University’s sports facilities were a big reason for me to join and I use many of them for my lectures to make my learning more effective. The Energy Elite Athlete Scholarship was also a big reason – getting a place on the scholarship helps me to keep up with sports and coaching for football, improving my health, fitness, and overall performance. Finally, everyone at the Open Day I attended was very friendly, which made it an easy decision.

My career goal is to work within the sports coaching industry, helping others to enjoy and develop through sport in the way that I did. I want to either go into community coaching or be part of a sports science team, working within the area of performance analysis.

I feel that my course will give me the knowledge and skills I need to excel within the coaching industry, as well as providing me with the platform to perform effectively in a sporting occupation. My studies have improved my confidence, teamwork skills and my work ethic, which will be useful when going into my career and day-to-day life.

I know that the coaching strategies, knowledge, and behaviours I’ve learnt to use when delivering sessions will be essential to me in the future. The course has also made me a better communicator, which is vital if you want to be successful within the sporting industry.

For one of the modules in my second year of the course, I have to undertake 120 hours of work placement, completing voluntary coaching. I’m currently on placement with Northampton Town Community Trust, where I lead a warm-up session for the Emerging Talent Centre’s U12’s and U14’s girls’ teams and I’m the Assistant Coach of the U12’s. My role is to support with improving the players’ abilities, as they progress up the ranks within the club.

This placement has been a great benefit as it’s given me hands on experience of coaching in a sub-elite environment. I’ve been able to learn from experienced coaches with higher qualifications, taking tricks and tips from them that I can use within my own coaching. I’ve also had to deal with a lot of problem solving within these sessions, making me more adaptable.

The main employability skills I’ve developed during my placement are to be adaptable, confident, and able to solve problems, as well as being a good communicator, with the ability to work within a team. I’ve also gained good coaching/football knowledge and professional behaviours.

I believe that the placement will help me gain employment as it will enable me to become a better coach and provide me with opportunities to do it as a job. It’s also made me understand what it takes to work with athletes in a high-pressure environment, meaning I’ll be employable for other organisations.

My tips on applying for a placement are to make sure you get start the process as soon as possible, so you can secure the placement that’s best suited to you. Make sure you work in an industry you’re passionate about and like being in, as ultimately you want to have a career that you can enjoy. Also, be very polite and sell yourself to employers as much as you can.

Once your placement starts, be consistent and put as much dedication into it as you put into your studies, as this will provide you with many opportunities and rewards and will make you more employable. Go to your placement with confidence – trust yourself with what you’re doing as it’s something you love and have knowledge in. But, also, act like a sponge with everyone around you – take all the advice and knowledge you can from experienced people in the field, as this will enable you to improve and give you the platform for a great career.

The main piece of advice I’d give to undergraduates interested in this career path is to throw yourself into everything to give yourself the best chance to improve your skills, knowledge, and confidence by volunteering to do things on your course and around the University.

So far, my UON experience has been positive and life changing!