Physical Activity, Nutrition and the Outdoors department

The Physical Activity, Nutrition and the Outdoors department is part of sport and recreation at AUT.

AUT's outdoor education programme enables graduates to work in many fields, like teaching in schools, working in outdoor pursuit centres, as adventure tourism operators, or working in adventure tourism management.

Undergraduate study in Physical Activity, Nutrition and the Outdoors will give you a solid grounding in this area.

Research in sport and recreation

We believe in high-quality research that has impact, and have world-class researchers and research strengths across sport and recreation.

More about our research

Industry associations

AUT has access to the following outdoor facilities to provide students with ‘hands-on’ learning and work experience.

  • MERC (Marine Education and Recreation Centre)
  • Tihoi Venture school
Andrea Wech
Dave Williams
Jake Candy
Andrea Wech
Great graduatesAndrea WechHead of Outdoor Education, Alfriston CollegeBachelor of Sport and RecreationA career in outdoor education is exciting and full of variety, says AUT sport and recreation alumna Andrea Wech who now works at Alfriston College.A career in outdoor education is exciting and full of variety, says AUT sport and recreation alumna Andrea Wech who now works at Alfriston College. Being able to share her love of the outdoors with the children is the highlight for Andrea. Studying outdoor education was the perfect starting point for Andrea’s career, and she says the people really made the programme.
Dave Williams
Great graduatesDave WilliamsHead of the Outdoor Education Department, Botany Downs Secondary CollegeGraduate Diploma in Secondary Teaching
Bachelor of Sport and RecreationAUT sport and recreation alumnus Dave Williams doesn’t just teach others about the outdoors; he spends plenty of time exploring them himself.AUT sport and recreation alumnus Dave Williams doesn’t just teach others about the outdoors; he spends plenty of time exploring them himself. His goal is to become the first person to climb the highest mountain on each of the seven continents, as measured from sea level. So far, he has climbed four of the seven highest peaks. A highlight for him was running ten marathons in ten days before climbing Mt Kilimanjaro.
Jake Candy
Great graduatesJake CandyTeacher of Outdoor Education, St Joseph’s College, Colo, New South Wales, AustraliaBachelor of Sport and RecreationHe can’t think of a more dynamic working environment than the outdoors, says Jake Candy who now teaches outdoor education in New South Wales, Australia.He can’t think of a more dynamic working environment than the outdoors, says Jake Candy who teaches outdoor education at St Joseph’s College in New South Wales, Australia. He wasn’t always sure what he wanted to do after high school, says Jake who went to school in the Mornington Peninsula near Melbourne. When his great aunty suggested AUT’s Bachelor of Sport and Recreation, it sparked his interest.

Contact us

Matt Barker

Matt Barker
Stream Leader, Outdoors
Phone: +64 9 921 9999 ext 7147

matt.barker@aut.ac.nz

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