Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Healthy Older Adult Fitness, Career Pathway certificate

• Do you want to promote the health and wellness of older adults?
• Are you experienced in a field working with older adults or as a fitness professional, and want to enhance your skills and abilities?
• Do you want to be part of the movement preventing injury and illness in the aging population?

As an older adult fitness leader, you will be part of the preventive health care team working in health and fitness clubs, wellness centers, public and private recreation facilities, hospitals, and/or corporate fitness centers. The EXS Healthy Older Adult Fitness Certificate may be obtained as a stand-alone certificate or in addition to the AAS degree.

In this Career Pathways certificate, you will be prepared to meet qualifications for employment as an entry-level activity or fitness leader working with healthy older adult populations and apply knowledge and skills gained in the Exercise Science and Gerontology programs when working with and for elders in the community. The Exercise Science program partners with the Gerontology program. In addition to this certificate, co-certificates and/or co-degrees between Exercise Science and Gerontology can be earned. Minimum of 30 credits. Students must meet all certificate requirements. All courses are contained in the Exercise Science AAS Degree.

Award information

Degrees and certificates by number of terms to complete

Award	Length (attending full-time)	Financial aid eligible	Currently accepting students?
Career Pathway Certificate: Healthy Older Adult Fitness	Less than 1 year		Limited entry, see how to get into this program

Learn more about Exercise Science and all 5 awards available »

Courses

Course listing for the 2024-2025 catalog year.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
FT 100	Emergency Response for Fitness Professionals	1
FT 110	Injury Prevention & Management	2
FT 131	Structure & Function of the Human Body	4
FT 180	Exercise Science Internship Preparation	1
FT 202	Fitness and Aging	3
FT 280	Exercise Science Internship I	4
or FT 280C	Exercise Science Professional Project II
HE 295 & PE 295	Health and Fitness for Life and Health and Fitness for Life Lab	3
PE 287	Professional Activities: Aquatics	2
HUS 102	Mental Health First Aid: Adult	1
or HUS 106	Mental Health First Aid: Youth
or HUS 107	Mental Health First Aid: Older Adult
PE 181A	Weight Training I	1
or PE 181B	Weight Training II
or PE 181C	Weight Training III
PE 281	Professional Activities: Resistance Training	2
PE 282B	Professional Activities: Older Adult Fitness	2
SOC 223	Sociology of the Life Course	4
or SOC 231	Sociology of Healthy Aging
Total Credits		30

Jobs

The average full-time wage is $30,000 to $50,000 per year, with typical entry-level rates at $15 to $25 per hour.

Finish your degree

The Healthy Older Adult Fitness Career Pathway Certificate leads to additional certificates and degrees. Continue your education to give yourself more job opportunities and career advancement.

Is it for me?

• Who: High school graduates (and high school equivalency). Completion of IRW 115 or (WR 115 and RD 115) and MTH 20 or equivalent placement test scores. If you do not meet all the placement recommendations, contact us for other options.
• Where: PCC Sylvania Campus
• When: Three terms

Program cost

Use the cost calculator to see the estimated costs. For more detailed cost sheets contact 971-722-4210.

Career exploration