2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the New England Region
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School for You
Out of all the majors we analyze each year, parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies was ranked #15 in the country. In fact 73,813 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
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 Schools in the New England Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 35 schools in the New England Region 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.
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 Schools
Our analysis found Johnson & Wales University - Online to be the best value school for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who want to pursue a degree in the New England Region . Located in the midsize city of Providence, JWU Online is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
JWU Online undergraduate students pay an average of $13,365 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at JWU Online accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $430, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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Out of the 35 schools in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Westfield State University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the large suburb of Westfield, Westfield is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Westfield are $17,219 a year. Parks & Rec majors at Westfield take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Post University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the New England Region list. Post University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the medium-sized suburb of Waterbury.
Post University undergraduate students pay an average of $15,458 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from Post University carry an average student debtload of $33,750.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Fitchburg State University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the New England Region list. Fitchburg State is a medium-sized public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Fitchburg.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Fitchburg State are $16,735 per year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at Fitchburg State accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Salem State University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the New England Region list. Salem State is a moderately-sized public school located in the large suburb of Salem.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Salem State are $18,480 per year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at Salem State accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $220, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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With a ranking of #6, Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network did quite well on this year’s best value schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Boston.
Northeastern University Professional Advancement Network undergraduate students pay an average of $13,392 in tuition and fees each year.
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Lasell University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the New England Region list. Located in the city of Newton, Lasell is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Lasell are $42,000 a year. After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from Lasell carry an average student debtload of $27,000. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $443, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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Endicott College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the large suburb of Beverly, Endicott is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Endicott are $36,614 per year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at Endicott accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $470, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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Northeastern University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the New England Region ranking. Northeastern is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Boston.
Northeastern undergraduate students pay an average of $57,592 in tuition and fees each year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Northeastern also is in the top 15% of our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the New England Region ranking.
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With a ranking of #10, Castleton University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the town of Castleton, Castleton is a public college with a small student population.
Castleton undergraduate students pay an average of $30,046 in tuition and fees each year. On average, parks and rec graduates from Castleton take out $26,500 in student loans while working on their degree.
Request InformationBest Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges by State
Explore the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools for a specific state in the New England region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| New Hampshire | 569 |
| Maine | 200 |
| Rhode Island | 291 |
| Massachusetts | 1,195 |
| Connecticut | 332 |
| Vermont | 165 |
More Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Rankings in the New England Region
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 25 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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