“USC has an incredible reputation for their sport science programs, and the athletic
training program has diverse clinical opportunities with a final spring semester immersion
allowing you to go anywhere in the world to complete,” says Kimberly Nardi, who graduates in May with an M.S. in Athletic Training from the Department of Exercise Science. “Some of the hundreds of sites offered include professional, collegiate, high school,
orthopedic or specialty clinics, industrial etc. Other programs cannot match the widespread
network that USC Athletic Training has created.”
Nardi experienced a diverse array of these clinical placements during her program
– including USC Women’s Soccer and the Savannah Ghost Pirates’ professional ice hockey
team. She also conducted research with Prisma Pediatric Concussion Clinic – circling
back to the reason she entered into sports medicine in the first place.
Growing up in Maryland, Nardi experienced concussions as a high school athlete, leading
her to study neuroscience at Christopher Newport University. As an undergrad, she
discovered the athletic training profession, which ticked all of her boxes for a career
in sports and health care and opened her eyes to how she could make an impact on patients.
“I do not know if I can pick one and talk about just them because I would have too
much to say; they all care about their students, and I never once felt like a number
or that I was alone,” she says. “When I was struggling one semester, I reached out
and they all immediately were by my side helping me stand back up. I have a lot of
love and appreciation for the USC Athletic Training program. They are incredible mentors
and professors who have pushed me to become the best version of myself.”
She also loved living and learning at a university located in South Carolina’s capital
city.
“It was easy to get around campus and make friends along the way,” Nardi says. “I
will miss game days and the feeling of the entire city shutting down to support the
university.”
After graduating in May, the Professional Athletic Training Student Above and Beyond
Award winner will begin working with professional and collegiate athletes at a performance-based
sports complex in Georgia. She feels well-prepared for this role, particularly from
her immersion experience with the Ghost Pirates that she is completing this semester.
It’s the perfect path for Nardi, but it’s also one that many people are not familiar
with. She’s discovered that people often confuse athletic training with personal training
or other professions and has learned first-hand about the uniqueness of this career.
“We are there before, during and after injuries; this means we are the first responder
to a scene sometimes, and we evaluate the patient to determine the next steps,” Nardi
says. “We rehabilitate our patients from various injuries/surgeries and build powerful
connections with our patients while working hard to provide them with the best care
possible.”