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Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Southeast Region

2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Southeast Region

16 Colleges
$28,183 Avg Salary
$28,553 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies School for You

Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies is the #169 most popular major in the country with 3,106 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Southeast Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 16 schools in the Southeast Region to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Southeast Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Colleges.

Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools

#1

University of Arkansas

Fayetteville, AR

Our analysis found University of Arkansas to be the best school for parks, recreation and leisure studies students who want to pursue a degree in the Southeast Region . Located in the city of Fayetteville, UARK is a public college with a fairly large student population.

On average, parks and rec graduates from UARK take out $22,630 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#2

Shepherd University

Shepherdstown, WV

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Shepherd University is a great place for parks, recreation and leisure studies students. Shepherd University is a small public school located in the town of Shepherdstown.

The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at Shepherd University take out is $23,184. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $224, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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The excellent programs at Georgia College & State University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation and leisure studies schools in the Southeast Region . Located in the distant town of Milledgeville, Georgia College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

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#4

Radford University

Radford, VA

Out of the 16 schools in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Radford University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Radford is a moderately-sized public school located in the small suburb of Radford.

After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from Radford carry an average student debtload of $26,239. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $166.

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#5

Newberry College

Newberry, SC

Out of the 16 schools in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Newberry College landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the town of Newberry, Newberry College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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#6

Georgia Southern University

Statesboro, GA

Georgia Southern University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Southeast Region list. Located in the distant town of Statesboro, GaSou is a public college with a very large student population.

On average, parks and rec graduates from GaSou take out $28,731 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $141, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#7

Carson - Newman University

Jefferson City, TN

With a ranking of #7, Carson - Newman University did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation and leisure studies students. Carson - Newman is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Jefferson City.

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#8

North Greenville University

Tigerville, SC

With a ranking of #8, North Greenville University did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation and leisure studies students. Located in the rural area of Tigerville, North Greenville is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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#9

East Carolina University

Greenville, NC

East Carolina University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for parks, recreation and leisure studies students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Greenville, ECU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at ECU take out is $20,451.

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University of North Carolina at Greensboro came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. UNC Greensboro is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Greensboro.

On average, parks and rec graduates from UNC Greensboro take out $25,599 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $107, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of North Carolina at Greensboro Report

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Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best parks, recreation and leisure studies schools for a specific state in the Southeast region.

State Degrees Awarded
Georgia 77
Virginia 74
North Carolina 125
Florida 0
Tennessee 3
Kentucky 3
South Carolina 13
Louisiana 25
Arkansas 80
Alabama 65
Mississippi 45
West Virginia 27

One of 4 majors within the area of study, parks, recreation and leisure studies has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar 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 16 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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