2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Maryland
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School for You
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the #18 most popular major in Maryland with 832 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. 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Maryland ranking. Our analysis looked at 7 schools in Maryland to see which 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.
Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. 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.
In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Best Maryland Schools for Affordable Quality in Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness
Our 2023 rankings named Towson University the best value school in Maryland for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Towson is a very large public school located in the small city of Towson.
Towson undergraduate students pay an average of $10,464 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Parks & Rec majors at Towson take out an average of $20,664 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $270, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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The excellent programs at Salisbury University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in Maryland. Located in the suburb of Salisbury, Salisbury is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
Salisbury undergraduate students pay an average of $10,188 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, parks and rec graduates from Salisbury take out $21,604 in student loans while working on their degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $377.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Maryland - College Park. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Maryland list. UMCP is a very large public school located in the suburb of College Park.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UMCP are $10,955 a year. Parks & Rec majors at UMCP take out an average of $21,615 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $366, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
UMCP did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Maryland list.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Maryland Eastern Shore is a great value for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. UMES is a small public school located in the fringe town of Princess Anne.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UMES are $8,724 per year. The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at UMES take out is $29,264. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $338.
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Out of the 7 schools in Maryland that were part of this year’s ranking, Frostburg State University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Frostburg State is a small public school located in the small suburb of Frostburg.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Frostburg State are $9,594 per year. The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at Frostburg State take out is $26,000.
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With a ranking of #6, Mount St Mary’s University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. The Mount is a small private not-for-profit school located in the fringe town of Emmitsburg.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at The Mount are $44,750 a year. On average, parks and rec graduates from The Mount take out $23,399 in student loans while working on their degree.
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McDaniel College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Maryland ranking. McDaniel is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Westminster.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at McDaniel are $46,336 per year. Parks & Rec majors at McDaniel take out an average of $26,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, McDaniel also is in the top 20% of our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Maryland ranking.
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Request InformationBest Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region
Explore all the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| New Jersey | 1,047 |
| Pennsylvania | 2,734 |
| New York | 2,477 |
| Delaware | 342 |
| District of Columbia | 319 |
More Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Rankings in Maryland
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 7 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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