2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois
Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor's Degree School for You
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the #17 most popular major in Illinois with 2,396 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best 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 assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. Our analysis looked at 20 schools in Illinois to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois
The colleges and universities below are the best for parks and rec majors pursuing a bachelor's degree.
Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools
Our analysis found Illinois State University to be the best school for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Illinois. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Normal.
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The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in Illinois. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public college with a fairly large student population.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend North Park University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the city of Chicago, North Park is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of St Francis. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. University of Saint Francis is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Joliet.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend North Central College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. North Central is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Naperville.
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Eastern Illinois University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the town of Charleston, EIU is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
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Monmouth College ranked #7 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the distant town of Monmouth, Monmouth is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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Benedictine University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Benedictine U is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Lisle.
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University of Illinois at Chicago came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. UIC is a very large public school located in the city of Chicago.
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Quincy University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Quincy U is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Quincy.
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Request InformationBest Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
Explore all the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Indiana | 1,818 |
| Michigan | 2,279 |
| Ohio | 2,647 |
| Wisconsin | 1,001 |
More Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Rankings in Illinois
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 20 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.