New degree pitched at referees
THEY are no strangers to abuse and their decisions are very often called into question by mere amateurs.
But referees will soon be able to point to the fact they have a degree in officiating, which should give even more weight to their rulings.
Edinburgh Napier University has launched an MSc Performance Enhancement in Sports Officiating course to help international-level referees and umpires improve their knowledge.
It will see students learn ‘ideas on highpressured decision making, developed in the military, firefighting and NASA in order to help understand how to enhance accurate and time-pressured in-game decision making’.
The Referees’ Association, which represents football officials throughout Britain, supports the course but said it should not be seen as a ‘fast track’ into the professional game.
A spokesman said: ‘There is a real need for sound grassroots experience.’
Course leader Dr Duncan Mascarenhas said: ‘To our knowledge there is nothing out there at the moment, both in the UK and in the rest of the world, that provides this sort of education for referees and sports officials, so we are very much seeing this as a welcome addition to the officiating world.
‘The online aspect of this course is very important. Many of those who will choose to undertake this programme will be full-time officials in their own right, so it was important to provide flexibility for them to study when it suits them.’
He added: ‘Hearing feedback on how to handle difficult players and how decisions are managed in other backgrounds can definitely help in developing you as a more rounded sport official and referee.
‘We have had considerable interest from a wide variety of backgrounds and sports so far, and we are looking forward to officially commencing the programme.’
The three-year course will accept its first students in September.