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Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina

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2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

4 Colleges
$13,466 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$24,565 Avg Salary

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

In 2020-2021, 125 degrees and certificates were awarded to parks, recreation and leisure studies students who went to a North Carolina college or university. This makes it the #136 most popular major in the state.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina ranking. Our analysis looked at 4 schools in North Carolina to see which programs offered the best value experiences for parks and rec students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

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. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina

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

Best North Carolina Schools for Affordable Quality in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies

#1

East Carolina University

Greenville, NC

Our analysis found East Carolina University to be the best value school for parks, recreation and leisure studies students who want to pursue a degree in North Carolina. ECU is a very large public school located in the city of Greenville.

ECU undergraduate students pay an average of $7,297 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Parks & Rec majors at ECU take out an average of $20,451 in student loans while working on their egree.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, ECU also did well on our Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at East Carolina University Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of North Carolina at Greensboro. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina list. Located in the city of Greensboro, UNC Greensboro is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UNC Greensboro are $7,468 per year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at UNC Greensboro accumulate an average of around $25,599 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $107.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UNC Greensboro also is in the top 20% of our Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina ranking.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of North Carolina at Greensboro

#3

University of Mount Olive

Mount Olive, NC
$22,618 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Mount Olive. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina list. Located in the town of Mount Olive, UMO is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

UMO undergraduate students pay an average of $22,618 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, parks and rec graduates from UMO take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Mount Olive Report

#4

Shaw University

Raleigh, NC
$16,480 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Shaw University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in North Carolina list. Shaw University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Raleigh.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Shaw University are $16,480 per year.

Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Shaw University Report

Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

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

Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies is one of 4 different types of programs to choose from.

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 4 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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