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Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

10 Colleges
$27,981 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$33,140 Avg Salary

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.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This report analyzed 10 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones offered the best value programs for parks and rec students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for parks and rec majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools

$22,810 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Ohio University - Athens Campus to be the best value school for parks, recreation and leisure studies students who want to pursue a degree in the Great Lakes Region . OHIO Athens is a very large public school located in the distant town of Athens.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at OHIO Athens are $22,810 a year. On average, parks and rec graduates from OHIO Athens take out $24,499 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Ohio University - Athens Campus Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the city of Champaign.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UIUC are $37,632 per year. On average, parks and rec graduates from UIUC take out $20,500 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $226, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UIUC also is in the top 5% of our Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

Read More…

$21,050 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Bowling Green State University - Main Campus helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation and leisure studies schools in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the town of Bowling Green, BGSU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at BGSU are $21,050 a year. After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from BGSU carry an average student debtload of $25,873. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $513, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Bowling Green State University - Main Campus Report

$15,240 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 10 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the small city of Carbondale, SIUC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

SIUC undergraduate students pay an average of $15,240 in tuition and fees each year. Parks & Rec majors at SIUC take out an average of $20,864 in student loans while working on their egree.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Indiana University - Bloomington. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public school with a very large student population.

IU Bloomington undergraduate students pay an average of $38,352 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at IU Bloomington accumulate an average of around $19,500 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $478, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, IU Bloomington also is in the top 10% of our Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

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#6

Aurora University

Aurora, IL
$26,760 Average Tuition & Fees

Aurora University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the large suburb of Aurora, Aurora is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Aurora are $26,760 per year.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Aurora University

$18,828 Average Tuition & Fees

Northern Michigan University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Northern Michigan University is a medium-sized public school located in the remote town of Marquette.

Northern Michigan University undergraduate students pay an average of $18,828 in tuition and fees each year. On average, parks and rec graduates from Northern Michigan University take out $18,420 in student loans while working on their degree.

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Miami University - Oxford landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value parks, recreation and leisure studies programs. Miami University - Oxford is a large public school located in the fringe town of Oxford.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Miami University - Oxford are $36,288 a year.

Miami University - Oxford also claimed a spot on our Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Miami University - Oxford Report

#9

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, IL
$37,440 Average Tuition & Fees

Olivet Nazarene University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Olivet Nazarene is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Bourbonnais.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Olivet Nazarene are $37,440 a year.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Olivet Nazarene University Report

#10

University of Toledo

Toledo, OH
$20,239 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #10, University of Toledo did quite well on this year’s best value schools for parks, recreation and leisure studies students. University of Toledo is a large public school located in the large city of Toledo.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at University of Toledo are $20,239 a year.

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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 Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 16
Ohio 101
Illinois 196
Indiana 161

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

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 10 schools only.

  • 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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