2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools
Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School for You
In 2020-2021, 73,813 people earned a degree or certificate in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies, making the major the #15 most popular in the United States.
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. 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 & Fitness Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 579 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the best for parks and rec majors pursuing a .
Top 25 Top Schools in Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness
Our 2023 rankings named International Sports Sciences Association the best school in the United States for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. ISSA is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the medium-sized suburb of Carpinteria.
Parks & Rec majors at ISSA take out an average of $17,163 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Out of the 579 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Focus Personal Training Institute landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the large city of New York, FPTI is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.
Parks & Rec majors at FPTI take out an average of $7,355 in student loans while working on their egree.
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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Rice University is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the city of Houston, Rice is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
Parks & Rec majors at Rice take out an average of $10,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend American Public University System. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools list. American Military University is a very large private for-profit school located in the town of Charles Town.
While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at American Military University accumulate an average of around $21,148 in student debt.
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Out of the 579 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Maryville University of Saint Louis landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the suburb of Saint Louis, Maryville U is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
On average, parks and rec graduates from Maryville U take out $21,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Southern Methodist University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Dallas, SMU is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at SMU take out is $21,500.
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With a ranking of #7, Columbia University in the City of New York did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.
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With a ranking of #8, South Dakota State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the remote town of Brookings, South Dakota State is a public school with a fairly large student population.
After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from South Dakota State carry an average student debtload of $24,907.
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Northwestern University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools list. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
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Saint Cloud State University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the city of Saint Cloud, St. Cloud State University is a public college with a fairly large student population.
After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from St. Cloud State University carry an average student debtload of $27,000.
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University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Parks & Rec majors at U-M take out an average of $17,507 in student loans while working on their egree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $531.
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Dickinson State University landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. DSU is a small public school located in the remote town of Dickinson.
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California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a public school with a very large student population.
After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo carry an average student debtload of $17,428. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $299.
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Emory University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools list. Located in the large city of Atlanta, Emory is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
Parks & Rec majors at Emory take out an average of $19,250 in student loans while working on their egree.
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University of Virginia - Main Campus landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. University of Virginia is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.
On average, parks and rec graduates from University of Virginia take out $20,750 in student loans while working on their degree.
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With a ranking of #16, Simpson College did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Simpson College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the fringe town of Indianola.
While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at Simpson College accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.
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With a ranking of #17, Northwestern Oklahoma State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. NWOSU is a small public school located in the town of Alva.
The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at NWOSU take out is $20,125.
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Syracuse University ranked #18 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools list. Located in the city of Syracuse, Syracuse is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at Syracuse take out is $27,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $555.
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With a ranking of #19, University of Florida did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the city of Gainesville, UF is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at UF take out is $17,586. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $239, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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Seton Hall University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. It came in at #20 on the list. Seton Hall is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of South Orange.
On average, parks and rec graduates from Seton Hall take out $24,125 in student loans while working on their degree.
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The University of Texas at Austin ranked #21 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools list. Located in the city of Austin, UT Austin is a public college with a fairly large student population.
After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from UT Austin carry an average student debtload of $21,765. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $385.
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With a ranking of #22, Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Texas A&M College Station is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of College Station.
After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from Texas A&M College Station carry an average student debtload of $19,500. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $345, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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University of North Dakota came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools ranking. Located in the city of Grand Forks, UND is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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Citadel Military College of South Carolina landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. The Citadel is a small public school located in the medium-sized city of Charleston.
The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at The Citadel take out is $19,790. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $426.
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North Carolina State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. It came in at #25 on the list. Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public college with a fairly large student population.
After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from NC State carry an average student debtload of $22,134. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $206.
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Remaining Award Winners
This list represents the remainder of the colleges awarded a Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 579 different United States parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools we analyzed.
Additional Noteworthy Schools
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 & Fitness Schools award.
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies by Region
View the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness 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, & Fitness Studies Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to Parks & Rec
Parks & Rec Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Health & Physical Education | 67,146 |
| Recreation Administration | 3,122 |
| Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies | 3,106 |
| Outdoor Education | 265 |
| Other Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies | 174 |
Majors Similar to Parks & Rec
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting | 142,610 |
| Public Administration & Social Service | 98,583 |
| Legal Professions | 61,055 |
| Military Technologies & Applied Sciences | 4,477 |
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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to NPS Photo/Zurbuch.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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