2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor's Degree Schools in Michigan
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor's Degree School for You
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the #13 most popular major in Michigan with 2,279 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
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 & Fitness Bachelor's Degree Schools in Michigan ranking. This report analyzed 18 schools in Michigan to see which ones offered the best value bachelor's degree 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. 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.
Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools
Our 2023 rankings named University of Michigan - Ann Arbor the best value school in Michigan for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public college with a very large student population.
U-M undergraduate students pay an average of $17,193 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
U-M not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #1 on our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Michigan list.
Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Report
Request Information
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Saginaw Valley State University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Michigan list. Located in the suburb of University Center, Saginaw Valley State University is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Saginaw Valley State University are $11,130 a year.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Saginaw Valley State University
Request Information
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Grand Valley State University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best value parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in Michigan. Located in the large suburb of Allendale, GVSU is a public college with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at GVSU are $13,900 a year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, GVSU also is in the top 20% of our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Michigan ranking.
Request Information
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Central Michigan University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Michigan list. Central Michigan is a large public school located in the distant town of Mount Pleasant.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Central Michigan are $13,094 a year.
Request Information
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Michigan State University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Michigan list. Michigan State is a fairly large public school located in the small city of East Lansing.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Michigan State are $15,966 a year.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Michigan State is ranked #3 for overall quality for parks and rec in Michigan.
Request Information
Western Michigan University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. WMU is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Kalamazoo.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at WMU are $13,434 a year.
Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Western Michigan University Report
Request Information
Eastern Michigan University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Michigan ranking. Eastern Michigan is a large public school located in the suburb of Ypsilanti.
Eastern Michigan undergraduate students pay an average of $15,500 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Eastern Michigan University Report
Request Information
With a ranking of #8, Northern Michigan University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the town of Marquette, Northern Michigan University is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
Northern Michigan University undergraduate students pay an average of $13,206 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
Request Information
With a ranking of #9, Davenport University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Davenport University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Grand Rapids.
Davenport University undergraduate students pay an average of $20,964 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Davenport University
Request Information
Wayne State 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. Wayne State is a very large public school located in the large city of Detroit.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Wayne State are $15,199 per year.
Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Wayne State University Report
Request InformationBest Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
Explore all the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Indiana | 1,818 |
| Ohio | 2,647 |
| Illinois | 2,396 |
| Wisconsin | 1,001 |
More Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Rankings in Michigan
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 |
Most Popular Majors Related 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 18 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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to NPS Photo/Zurbuch.
More about our data sources and methodologies.