2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools
Finding the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies School for You
In 2020-2021, 3,106 people earned a degree or certificate in parks, recreation and leisure studies, making the major the #169 most popular in the United States.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 78 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the United States
Check out the parks and rec programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.
Top 15% Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools
Our analysis found California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo to be the best school for parks, recreation and leisure studies students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a very large public school located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo.
The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo take out is $18,356. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $272.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Texas A&M University - College Station. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools list. Located in the midsize city of College Station, Texas A&M College Station is a public college with a very large student population.
Parks & Rec majors at Texas A&M College Station take out an average of $19,500 in student loans while working on their egree.
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The excellent programs at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation and leisure studies schools in the United States. UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Champaign.
After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from UIUC carry an average student debtload of $20,500. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $226.
Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Report
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Out of the 78 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Brigham Young University - Provo landed the # 4 spot on the list. BYU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Provo.
While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at BYU accumulate an average of around $10,000 in student debt.
Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Brigham Young University - Provo Report
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The excellent programs at Indiana University - Bloomington helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation and leisure studies schools in the United States. Located in the small city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public college with a very large student population.
On average, parks and rec graduates from IU Bloomington take out $19,500 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $478.
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Winona State University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools list. Winona State is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Winona.
Parks & Rec majors at Winona State take out an average of $25,447 in student loans while working on their egree.
Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Winona State University Report
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Arizona State University - Skysong came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. ASU - Skysong is a very large public school located in the city of Scottsdale.
The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at ASU - Skysong take out is $24,363.
Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Arizona State University - Skysong Report
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Eastern Washington University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in the town of Cheney, EWU is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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University of Missouri - Columbia ranked #9 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools list. Mizzou is a fairly large public school located in the city of Columbia.
On average, parks and rec graduates from Mizzou take out $25,000 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $277.
Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Missouri - Columbia Report
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With a ranking of #10, Northwest Missouri State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation and leisure studies students. Northwest is a medium-sized public school located in the remote town of Maryville.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Northwest Missouri State University
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San Jose State University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. San Jose State is a very large public school located in the city of San Jose.
Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at San Jose State University Report
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These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | University of Iowa | Iowa City, IA |
| 13 | University of Northern Iowa | Cedar Falls, IA |
| 14 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | Omaha, NE |
| 15 | Ithaca College | Ithaca, NY |
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies by Region
View the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Rankings
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Related Rankings by Major
One of 4 majors within the area of study, parks, recreation and leisure studies has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Majors Related to Parks & Rec
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Health & Physical Education | 67,146 |
| Recreation Administration | 3,122 |
| Outdoor Education | 265 |
| Other Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies | 174 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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