MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia University student Carson Neely never had access to an athletic trainer while playing youth sports in McAdoo, Pennsylvania. Now, he’s well on his way to becoming the resource he and his teammates were missing thanks to the WVU School of Medicine Athletic Training Accelerated Bachelor’s to Master’s Program.
“Throughout my years of playing sports, our teams never had access to an athletic trainer,” Neely said. “Injuries were often evaluated by coaches, parents, or simply ignored until they became serious enough to require a doctor’s visit. Looking back, I realize how many athletes, including myself, could have benefited from someone with the knowledge to recognize injuries, provide proper treatment, and prevent larger problems. Rather than wondering why the resource was missing, I decided I wanted to become the person who could provide that resource for athletes.”
Neely is on his way to reaching that goal as a member of the first cohort of the WVU School of Medicine Athletic Training Accelerated Bachelor’s to Master’s (ABM) Program. The path allows WVU Exercise Physiology students to enter the Master of Science in Athletic Training program early and complete both their undergraduate and graduate degrees within five years. Students complete their studies in exercise physiology in their first three years and move on to the athletic training component for the fourth and fifth years.
“It has given me the opportunity to begin developing the clinical reasoning and hands-on skills needed to become an athletic trainer while exposing me to real-world patient care earlier in my education,” Neely said. “The fast-paced environment taught me how to manage time effectively, adapt to new situations, and continuously seek opportunities to learn from experienced healthcare professionals.”
Neely acquired hands-on experience by working alongside athletic trainers as a sports medicine student assistant with the West Virginia Mountaineers football team. This fall he’ll build on that foundation when he begins a clinical rotation in the MSAT program with the West Virginia Mountaineers men’s soccer program.
“Working with the football team, I developed skills including injury rehabilitation, therapeutic modalities, taping, and many other aspects of athlete care while gaining a deeper understanding of what it takes to keep athletes healthy and performing at their best in a high-level environment,” he said. “I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned in a new athletic environment this fall, broaden my experience in a different sport, and continue developing into a well-rounded athletic trainer.”
Students can enter the program as incoming freshmen, while current exercise physiology program students can apply after 18 months.
“If you know athletic training is the career you want to pursue, the accelerated program allows you to start learning the material that truly matters to you much sooner,” Neely said. “The difficulty and speed of the years prior to the athletic training portion of the program also challenge you in a way that can only be beneficial and incredibly helpful for when you do reach athletic training classes.”
The ABM program comes with financial benefits as well. Not only do students have one less year of tuition to pay, but they also maintain undergraduate financial aid status and can apply merit scholarships toward some of their graduate-level courses.
“They start taking the athletic training courses right after their junior year in the summer of what would be between their junior and senior years,” Azalea Hulbert, associate dean of enrollment management and student success for the WVU School of Medicine Health Professions and assistant professor in the Department of Health Informatics and Information Management, said. “They remain classified as undergrad students through the fall semester of what would be their senior year. That allows them to still use undergraduate financial aid and scholarships for those graduate classes that they take during their first summer and fall semesters of athletic training coursework. They really come out ahead financially from that standpoint.”
Qualifications for the profession have evolved in the past few years, making graduate studies a must. Previously, athletic trainers could practice with a bachelor’s degree. That changed in 2022 following an earlier decision approved by the Athletic Training Strategic Alliance requiring those pursuing careers in athletic training to obtain a master’s degree. For students, that meant spending more time earning their degree and racking up more costs in tuition.
WVU aimed to ease the burden on students working to meet those standards while providing high-quality training that prepared them for professional careers. To meet standards enacted by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education, athletic training studies relocated to the WVU School of Medicine.
Students in the MSAT program have completed internships with the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Rams, both of which have WVU alumni on staff as athletic trainers. Students’ clinical sites in the past year include Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, the TORCH Program in Tucson, Arizona, University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Alabama Crimson Tide men’s basketball, and Clemson University.
After earning his degree, Neely has his sights set on working as an athletic trainer for a professional football team. For others hoping to do the same, or something similar, Neely encourages them to “embrace the challenge.”
“At first, the ABM athletic training program may seem intimidating, but the growth and preparation you gain make it completely worth it,” he said. “The program pushes you as a student, clinician, and as a professional, and it prepares you for athletic training school on an entirely different level.”
-WVU-
ls/9/21/26
MEDIA CONTACT: Linda Skidmore
Health Research Writer
WVU Health Sciences Center
Linda.Skidmore@hsc.wvu.edu