Nathan Samuda

Nathan studies BSc (Hons) Strength and Conditioning and works with Modern Pentathlon and Netball at Hartpury running their strength and conditioning programmes.

Hartpury experience

"‘I studied BTech Level 3 in rugby at Hartpury College but got injured and decided I wanted more out of Hartpury than just rugby. I completed my Level 2 YMCA gym instructing course at college and fell in love with training in the gym as well as coaching in that environment. Staying at Hartpury for university was an easy decision; I knew the process, the campus and had friends who were staying, as well as meeting some of the lecturers for the Strength and conditioning course. The strength and conditioning degree at Hartpury is now CIMPSA accredited and cannot be competed against by any other university. There are so many elite sports teams on campus and the lecturers work hard to provide you with the opportunities that suit you best."

Developing industry connections

"My lecturer Greg recommended the University of Bath placement to me. I liked that it was a bigger institution than Hartpury and they support 10 performance academy sports. I wanted a change from the rugby environment that I was so used to and it gave me the chance to experience what it’s like to be in the industry full-time. I had up to 40 hours coaching each week along with CPD and monthly department meetings, so my academic learning never stopped. I had the chance to travel with the BUCS super rugby team to matches and by the end of the season I played a huge role in the running of the programme. During my placement I got involved in strength and conditioning training for the Team Bath Futures programme, training young people who were involved in a variety of sports. This gave me the opportunity to get involved with a more varied group of students than I had worked with previously.

On returning to Hartpury for my third year, my lecturer Greg encouraged me to continue coaching alongside my degree. I was able to get involved with Modern Pentathlon and Netball. Modern Pentathlon is a small group and I’ve learnt that if you can programme for a sport that's got five different events in it, you can programme for anything. Whereas Netball is a much bigger squad, so this gives me the chance to work with more students with different strengths and weaknesses.

After Hartpury, I'm looking to lead Strength and Conditioning for an elite rugby academy or Netball programme."

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