Objectives: To investigate the effects of participation in a physical fitness programme on anxiety and physical self-concept of female university students in Turkey.Design: True experimental design with repeated measures.Methods: 40 female university students volunteered to participate in this study and were randomly assigned to experimental (n=20; M a g e =21.35+/-0.88) or control (n=20; M a g e =21.20+/-1.67) groups. The experimental group participated in one aerobic and two step dance sessions per week for ten weeks at 60-80 % of heart rate reserve. During this period, the control group did not participate in any regular physical activity programme. The State-Trait Anxiety Scale (STAI) and Physical Self-Description Questionnaire (PSDQ) were administered to participants before, in the middle, and after the ten week treatment.Results: Participants in the experimental group improved more in physical activity, coordination, sport competence and flexibility subscales of physical self-concept than the control group. In addition, there was a significant reduction in trait anxiety scores of participants in the experimental group in comparison to the control group.Conclusions: A ten-week physical fitness programme was effective in reducing trait anxiety and strengthening the physical self-perceptions of female university students.