Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Western Kentucky University

If you are interested in studying parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies, you may want to check out the program at Western Kentucky University. The following information will help you decide if it is a good fit for you.

WKU is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky and approximately 17,517 students attend the school each year. In the 2020-2021 academic year, 144 students received a bachelor's degree in parks and rec from WKU.

Want to know more about the career opportunities in this field? Check out the Careers in Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies section at the bottom of this page.

WKU Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Degrees Available

• Bachelor’s Degree in Parks & Rec
• Master’s Degree in Parks & Rec

Online Classes Are Available at WKU

Online courses are a good option for students who need a more flexible schedule that allows them to pursue an education when and where they want. Whether you're going to school part-time or full-time, you may find distance education the right choice for you.

WKU does offer online education options in parks and rec for the following degree levels for those interested in distance learning:

• Master’s Degree

WKU Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Rankings

The following rankings from College Factual show how the parks and rec progam at WKU compares to programs at other colleges and universities.

Note: While rankings may be a good starting point when you're researching a school, they don't necessarily highlight all of a school's strengths. Don't forget to check out the other details that are available for a school to see if it has what you're looking for in a program.

Bachelor’s Degree Overall Quality & Other Notable Rankings

The parks and rec major at WKU is not ranked on College Factual’s Best Colleges and Universities for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies. This could be for a number of reasons, such as not having enough data on the major or school to make an accurate assessment of its quality.

Ranking Type	Rank
Most Popular Online Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools	1
Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools	22
Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools	89
Most Focused Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Basic Certificate Schools	157

In 2021, 72 students received their master’s degree in parks and rec from WKU. This makes it the #22 most popular school for parks and rec master’s degree candidates in the country.

Parks & Rec Student Demographics at WKU

Take a look at the following statistics related to the make-up of the parks and rec majors at Western Kentucky University.

WKU Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Program

Of the 144 students who graduated with a bachelor’s in parks and rec from WKU in 2021, 61% were men and 39% were women.

About 74% of those who receive a bachelor's degree in parks and rec at WKU are white. This is above average for this degree on the nationwide level.

The following table and chart show the race/ethnicity for students who recently graduated from Western Kentucky University with a bachelor's in parks and rec.

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Students
Asian	0
Black or African American	22
Hispanic or Latino	6
White	107
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	9

WKU Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Master’s Program

Of the 72 students who earned a master's degree in Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies from WKU in 2020-2021, 69% were men and 31% were women.

Of the students who received a parks and rec master's degree from WKU, 65% were white. This is above average for this degree on the natiowide level.

The following table and chart show the race/ethnicity for students who recently graduated from Western Kentucky University with a master's in parks and rec.

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Students
Asian	1
Black or African American	19
Hispanic or Latino	4
White	47
International Students	1
Other Races/Ethnicities	0

WKU also has a doctoral program available in parks and rec. In 2021, 0 student graduated with a doctor's degree in this field.

Concentrations Within Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies

The following parks and rec concentations are available at Western Kentucky University. The table shows all degrees awarded in this field awarded for all degree levels at Western Kentucky University. A concentration may not be available for your level.

Concentration	Annual Degrees Awarded
Health & Physical Education	150
Recreation Administration	108

Related Majors

• Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting
• Legal Professions
• Public Administration & Social Service

Careers That Parks & Rec Grads May Go Into

A degree in parks and rec can lead to the following careers. Since job numbers and average salaries can vary by geographic location, we have only included the numbers for KY, the home state for Western Kentucky University.

Occupation	Jobs in KY	Average Salary in KY
General and Operations Managers	30,240	$89,750
Managers	3,260	$92,630
Coaches and Scouts	2,520	$38,740
Fitness Trainers and Aerobics Instructors	2,290	$36,800
Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Supervisors	1,250	$45,210

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• Image Credit: By OPMaster under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.