Find Affordable College Courses

What Do You Want to Study?

Most Popular Schools for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies

2026 Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools

There are 152 colleges that offer a degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies. The most popular schools, by student demand, are below:

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

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies program is right for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you’re no longer limited to schools in your local area.

The Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 152 schools in the United States offering Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies programs. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from each school’s program.

Check out the Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in the United States.

Our 2026 rankings named Brigham Young University the most popular school in the U.S. for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Located in Provo, UT, this is a private nonprofit institution. This school awarded 125 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $50,157. Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Brigham Young University Report

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign landed the #2 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Champaign, IL, this is a public institution. This school awarded 108 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $53,513. Read More…

Indiana University-Bloomington comes in at #3 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Located in Bloomington, IN, this is a public institution. This school awarded 101 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $48,621. Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Indiana University-Bloomington

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo comes in at #4 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo is a public school located in San Luis Obispo, CA. This school awarded 93 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $62,831. Read More…

#5

University of Arkansas

Fayetteville, AR

University of Arkansas landed the #5 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Fayetteville, AR, this is a public institution. This school awarded 78 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $47,767. Read More…

Northwest Missouri State University landed the #6 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Maryville, MO, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 74 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $40,274. Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Northwest Missouri State University Report

University of Missouri-Columbia landed the #7 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. University of Missouri-Columbia is a public school located in Columbia, MO. This school awarded 70 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $48,326. Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Missouri-Columbia

California State University-Sacramento landed the #8 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. California State University-Sacramento is a public school located in Sacramento, CA. This school awarded 69 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $42,434. Read More…

California State University-Chico landed the #9 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Chico, CA, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 65 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $42,772. Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at California State University-Chico Report

Kutztown University of Pennsylvania comes in at #10 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Located in Kutztown, PA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 60 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $39,923. Read More…

Texas A&M University-College Station comes in at #11 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Located in College Station, TX, this is a public institution. This school awarded 50 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $54,018. Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Texas A&M University-College Station

California State University-Long Beach landed the #12 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Long Beach, CA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 48 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $38,082. Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at California State University-Long Beach

University of Nebraska at Kearney comes in at #13 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Located in Kearney, NE, this is a public institution. This school awarded 47 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $43,093. Read More…

Arizona State University Digital Immersion comes in at #14 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Arizona State University Digital Immersion is a public school located in Scottsdale, AZ. During the most recent year for which we have data, 45 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $48,210. Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Arizona State University Digital Immersion Report

#15

Northern Arizona University

Flagstaff, AZ

Northern Arizona University landed the #15 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Flagstaff, AZ, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 39 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $45,100. Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Northern Arizona University Report

University of North Carolina at Greensboro landed the #16 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Greensboro, NC, this is a public institution. This school awarded 35 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $37,785. Read More…

Bowling Green State University-Main Campus landed the #17 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Bowling Green, OH, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 34 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $40,263. Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Bowling Green State University-Main Campus

#18

Pittsburg State University

Pittsburg, KS

Pittsburg State University landed the #18 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Pittsburg, KS, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 34 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $45,942. Read More…

#19

University of Utah

Salt Lake City, UT

University of Utah landed the #19 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. University of Utah is a public school located in Salt Lake City, UT. This school awarded 34 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $52,685. Read More…

California State University-Fresno comes in at #20 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. California State University-Fresno is a public school located in Fresno, CA. During the most recent year for which we have data, 33 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $36,356. Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at California State University-Fresno Report

South Georgia Technical College landed the #21 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Americus, GA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 32 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $35,410. Read More…

#22

Western Washington University

Bellingham, WA

Western Washington University comes in at #22 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Located in Bellingham, WA, this is a public institution. During the most recent year for which we have data, 32 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $35,723. Read More…

#23

Shepherd University

Shepherdstown, WV

Shepherd University landed the #23 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Shepherd University is a public school located in Shepherdstown, WV. During the most recent year for which we have data, 31 people earned their degree in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies from this school. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $43,801. Read More…

California State University-East Bay comes in at #24 on our 2026 list of the most popular colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies majors. Located in Hayward, CA, this is a public institution. This school awarded 30 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates who hold this degree go on to make a median salary of $47,959. Read More…

#25

Jacksonville State University

Jacksonville, AL

Jacksonville State University landed the #25 spot in the 2026 edition of our Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools ranking. Located in Jacksonville, AL, this is a public institution. This school awarded 30 degrees in Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the most recent reporting year. Graduates of this program go on to a median salary of $42,602. Full Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Jacksonville State University Report

#26

Oregon State University

Corvallis, OR
#28

Radford University

Radford, VA
#33

Allan Hancock College

Santa Maria, CA
#34

East Carolina University

Greenville, NC
#35

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA
#36

Georgia Southern University

Statesboro, GA
#38

Grambling State University

Grambling, LA
#40

San Jose State University

San Jose, CA
#44

Winona State University

Winona, MN
#45

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA
#46

Emporia State University

Emporia, KS
#47

Fresno City College

Fresno, CA
#49

Southern Utah University

Cedar City, UT

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for this major that just missed the list above.

Rank College Location
51 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA
52 Houghton University Houghton, NY
53 San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA
54 CUNY Lehman College Bronx, NY
55 Salem State University Salem, MA
56 Sierra College Rocklin, CA
57 Paul Smiths College of Arts and Science Paul Smiths, NY
58 State University of New York at Plattsburgh Plattsburgh, NY
59 University of Minnesota-Duluth Duluth, MN
60 Butler County Community College Butler, PA
61 California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt Arcata, CA
62 University of Mount Olive Mount Olive, NC
63 Concordia University-Wisconsin Mequon, WI
64 Feather River Community College District Quincy, CA
65 Garrett College McHenry, MD
66 Mars Hill University Mars Hill, NC
67 Northwest College Powell, WY
68 Olivet Nazarene University Bourbonnais, IL
69 Shaw University Raleigh, NC
70 University of Central Oklahoma Edmond, OK
71 Alaska Pacific University Anchorage, AK
72 Cypress College Cypress, CA
73 Ithaca College Ithaca, NY
74 Miami University-Oxford Oxford, OH
75 University of Alaska Southeast Juneau, AK
76 West Virginia University Institute of Technology Beckley, WV
77 Alcorn State University Alcorn State, MS
78 Central Georgia Technical College Warner Robins, GA
79 Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA
80 Newberry College Newberry, SC
81 University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO
82 University of Maine Orono, ME
83 University of Toledo Toledo, OH
84 York College of Pennsylvania York, PA
85 American River College Sacramento, CA
86 Central State University Wilberforce, OH
87 Central Wyoming College Riverton, WY
88 College of the Canyons Santa Clarita, CA
89 Cuesta College San Luis Obispo, CA
90 Gwinnett Technical College Lawrenceville, GA
91 Lindenwood University Saint Charles, MO
92 Metropolitan State University of Denver Denver, CO
93 North Greenville University Tigerville, SC
94 Simpson University Redding, CA
95 Southeast Missouri State University Cape Girardeau, MO
96 Springfield College Springfield, MA
97 Sullivan County Community College Loch Sheldrake, NY
98 Temple University Philadelphia, PA
99 Tompkins Cortland Community College Dryden, NY
100 Baker University Baldwin City, KS
101 Carson-Newman University Jefferson City, TN
102 DePaul University Chicago, IL
103 Diablo Valley College Pleasant Hill, CA
104 Ferrum College Ferrum, VA
105 Gordon College Wenham, MA
106 Indiana Institute of Technology Fort Wayne, IN
107 Messiah University Mechanicsburg, PA
108 Midwestern State University Wichita Falls, TX
109 Montana State University Billings Billings, MT
110 Northeast Community College Norfolk, NE
111 Red Rocks Community College Lakewood, CO
112 Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, MI
113 William Jewell College Liberty, MO
114 Atlanta Technical College Atlanta, GA
115 Benedict College Columbia, SC
116 Bethune-Cookman University Daytona Beach, FL
117 Black Hills State University Spearfish, SD
118 Brevard College Brevard, NC
119 CUNY Graduate School and University Center New York, NY
120 California State University-Dominguez Hills Carson, CA
121 California State University-Northridge Northridge, CA
122 Catawba College Salisbury, NC
123 Central Arizona College Coolidge, AZ
124 Clemson University Clemson, SC
125 Cumberland University Lebanon, TN
126 Dakota College at Bottineau Bottineau, ND
127 East Mississippi Community College Scooba, MS
128 Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus Portales, NM
129 El Camino Community College District Torrance, CA
130 Frederick Community College Frederick, MD
131 Frostburg State University Frostburg, MD
132 Gallaudet University Washington, DC
133 Georgia College & State University Milledgeville, GA
134 Holmes Community College Goodman, MS
135 Lake Tahoe Community College South Lake Tahoe, CA
136 Mohawk Valley Community College Utica, NY
137 Montgomery College Rockville, MD
138 Niagara County Community College Sanborn, NY
139 Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus Chillicothe, OH
140 Ohio University-Eastern Campus Saint Clairsville, OH
141 Ohio University-Lancaster Campus Lancaster, OH
142 Ohio University-Southern Campus Ironton, OH
143 Ohio University-Zanesville Campus Zanesville, OH
144 Ouachita Baptist University Arkadelphia, AR
145 Palomar College San Marcos, CA
146 SUNY Corning Community College Corning, NY
147 Spring Arbor University Spring Arbor, MI
148 University of Baltimore Baltimore, MD
149 University of Nebraska at Omaha Omaha, NE
150 University of Nevada-Las Vegas Las Vegas, NV
151 Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA
152 Warren County Community College Washington, NJ

Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies by Region

See the most popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies schools in a specific region of the United States.

Region
New England
Middle Atlantic
Great Lakes
Plains States
Southeast
Southwest
Rocky Mountains
Far Western US

More Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Rankings

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this Most Popular Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies 2,155
Related Major Annual Graduates
Health & Physical Education 65,261
Recreation Administration 2,291
Other Parks & Recreation Studies 355
Outdoor Education 336

References

*The average salary above is for the top 25 schools only.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Find Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited colleges across the U.S.