Book excerpt: A Doody's Core Title for 2015! Principles of Athletic Training: A Competency-Based Approach is designed to be used by athletic trainers in courses concerned with the scientific, evidence-based and clinical foundations of athletic training and sports medicine. The text leads the student from general foundations to specific concepts relative to injury prevention, evaluation, management, and rehabilitation. As the student progresses from beginning to end, he or she will understand the complexities of the profession of athletic training. An over-arching goal of the text is to make certain that each and every one of the educational competencies identified by the Education Council is specifically covered. After using this text the student should be able to apply the appropriate techniques and concepts in the day-to-day performance of his or her job as an athletic trainer. Instructors and students can now access their course content through the Connect digital learning platform by purchasing either standalone Connect access or a bundle of print and Connect access. McGraw-Hill Connect® is a subscription-based learning service accessible online through your personal computer or tablet. Choose this option if your instructor will require Connect to be used in the course. Your subscription to Connect includes the following: • SmartBook® - an adaptive digital version of the course textbook that personalizes your reading experience based on how well you are learning the content. • Access to your instructor’s homework assignments, quizzes, syllabus, notes, reminders, and other important files for the course. • Progress dashboards that quickly show how you are performing on your assignments and tips for improvement. • The option to purchase (for a small fee) a print version of the book. This binder-ready, loose-leaf version includes free shipping. Complete system requirements to use Connect can be found here: http://www.mheducation.com/highered/platforms/connect/training-support-students.html