The Institute conducts academic courses for training of coaches and looks after research and development in sports related subjects. It conducts 24 months' diploma courses in fifteen sports disciplines and also offers 22 months' specialised post diploma master's course and 1 year post graduate diploma course in sports medicine. NSNIS is the only institute of its kind in the country and has so far trained 11,751 coaches at Patiala and at its centres at Bangalore (established in 1975), Calcutta (1983) and Gandhinagar (1987). In addition, under the Mass Sports Participation Programme, certificate courses of six weeks duration were held at these centres and 15,601 sports instructors have so far been trained. NSNIS is also conducting one year post MBBS Diploma course in sports medicine and 28 doctors have so far qualified. The period of this course has been raised to two year from the academic session 1993- 94.