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Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor's Degree Schools in Colorado

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2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor's Degree Schools in Colorado

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

6 Colleges
$10,257 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$28,979 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor's Degree School for You

With 1,093 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies is the #15 most popular major in Colorado.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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 & Fitness Bachelor's Degree Schools in Colorado ranking. Our analysis looked at 6 schools in Colorado to see which bachelor's degree 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.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.

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

2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Colorado

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

Best Colorado Schools for Affordable Quality for a Bachelor's in Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness

Our analysis found University of Northern Colorado to be the best value school for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Colorado. Located in the city of Greeley, University of Northern Colorado is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at University of Northern Colorado are $10,666 a year.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Northern Colorado

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Colorado State University - Fort Collins. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Colorado list. Located in the city of Fort Collins, Colorado State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Colorado State are $12,188 per year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Colorado State is ranked #3 for overall quality for parks and rec in Colorado.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Colorado State University - Fort Collins

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Metropolitan State University of Denver is a great value for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. MSU Denver is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Denver.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at MSU Denver are $10,021 a year.

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#4

Colorado Mesa University

Grand Junction, CO

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Colorado Mesa University is a great value for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of Grand Junction, Colorado Mesa is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Colorado Mesa are $9,000 a year.

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#5

Fort Lewis College

Durango, CO

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Fort Lewis College is a great value for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the distant town of Durango, FLC is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at FLC are $9,004 a year.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Fort Lewis College Report

Western Colorado 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 #6 on the list. Western is a small public school located in the town of Gunnison.

Western undergraduate students pay an average of $10,662 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Rocky Mountains Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Utah 1,178
Montana 94
Idaho 249
Wyoming 126

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

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 6 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.

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