Universities play a pivotal role in shaping students' holistic development by fostering not only intellectual growth but also physical and mental well-being. This study investigates the effects of extracurricular sports participation on the physical fitness and mental health of students at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Education (HCMUTE), Vietnam. Employing a mixed-methods design, 200 male students aged 18-22 engaged in structured extracurricular sports clubs (football, volleyball, badminton, martial arts, and athletics) for eight months. Physical performance was measured using five standard tests - sit-up (30 s), hand-grip strength, standing long jump, shuttle run, and 30 m sprint - while mental health was assessed using the SF-36 Quality-of-Life questionnaire. Pre- and post-intervention data were analyzed via ANOVA and paired-sample t-tests. Results revealed statistically significant improvements (p < 0.05) across all physical indicators, with gains of 5.5-14.8%, and parallel increases in all eight SF-36 domains, particularly Vitality (+10.6%), Social Functioning (+9.9%), and Mental Health (+11.1%). A moderate-to-strong correlation (r = 0.63, p < 0.01) was observed between physical and psychological improvements, confirming the biopsychosocial interdependence of health. These findings substantiate that sustained extracurricular sports engagement enhances students' muscular strength, endurance, agility, and emotional resilience, thereby reinforcing the holistic-education principle of
Duc et al. (Wed,) studied this question.