UWindsor’s Master of Human Kinetics program in Sport Management and Leadership has once again been named the best graduate program in sports business in all of Canada.

The recently released yearly ranking by SportBusiness, a global consulting and analysis firm which puts out a leading trade publication in the field, says the UWindsor program is not only the best in Canada, but among the top 15 in the world.

“We are proud of these results and being in the elite company of other programs around the world,” said Patti Millar, acting associate dean of academic programs and an associate professor in the program.

“This international recognition validates our approach to giving students a career-focused education in sport management and leadership,” Dr. Millar said.

“Our program offers internship opportunities and independent research projects that provide a gateway to the industry.”

For the ratings, SportBusiness surveys alumni who have graduated in the past three years and course leaders. Rankings are based on such factors as the quality of faculty, quality of curriculum, return on investment, industry networks, and extracurricular initiatives. UWindsor’s program ranked eighth or higher globally in each of those categories.

“We pride ourselves on the quality of this program,” said Linda Rohr, dean of the Faculty of Human Kinetics. “It has a low student-to-faculty ratio and small class sizes which allow for daily guidance and mentorship from our outstanding faculty.”

Evan Gilbert, an account executive with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, graduated from the program in 2019.

“This program was great for landing a first position,” he said.

During his time in the program, Gilbert did an internship with the Vancouver Whitecaps, received a subsidy to attend an industry conference, and had his research project published in a peer-reviewed journal.

“It’s a great program,” Gilbert said. “There is a ton of support for grad students, and just being able to tap into the alumni network was fantastic.”

SportBusiness has been publishing its analysis of graduate programs since 2012. The goal, it says, is “to provide students and course leaders alike with the most dependable and reliable ranking system for postgraduate sports management programs around the world.”

—Sarah Sacheli