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Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia

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2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

14 Colleges
$17,109 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$29,109 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School for You

Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the #13 most popular major in Georgia with 1,981 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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.

The Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 14 schools in Georgia to see which ones offered the best value 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. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in Georgia

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges.

Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools

#1

Georgia Southern University

Statesboro, GA
$6,485 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Georgia Southern University the best value school in Georgia for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the distant town of Statesboro, GaSou is a public college with a very large student population.

GaSou undergraduate students pay an average of $6,485 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at GaSou take out is $27,366. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $188.

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$6,436 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Kennesaw State University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia list. KSU Georgia is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Kennesaw.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at KSU Georgia are $6,436 per year. On average, parks and rec graduates from KSU Georgia take out $26,595 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 $244.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Kennesaw State University Report

#3

University of West Georgia

Carrollton, GA
$6,521 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 14 schools in Georgia that were part of this year’s ranking, University of West Georgia landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the fringe town of Carrollton, University of West Georgia is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at University of West Georgia are $6,521 per year. On average, parks and rec graduates from University of West Georgia take out $29,254 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $156, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of West Georgia

#4

Augusta University

Augusta, GA
$9,022 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Augusta University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia list. Augusta University is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Augusta.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Augusta University are $9,022 per year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at Augusta University accumulate an average of around $27,500 in student debt.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Augusta University also did well on our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Augusta University

$5,568 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 14 schools in Georgia that were part of this year’s ranking, Clayton State University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the large suburb of Morrow, Clayton State University is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Clayton State University undergraduate students pay an average of $5,568 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Parks & Rec majors at Clayton State University take out an average of $31,000 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Clayton State University Report

$9,524 Average Tuition & Fees

Georgia College & State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia ranking. Located in the town of Milledgeville, Georgia College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Georgia College are $9,524 a year. After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from Georgia College carry an average student debtload of $25,000. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $180, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Georgia College also is in the top 20% of our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia ranking.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Georgia College & State University Report

$6,583 Average Tuition & Fees

Valdosta State University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. VSU is a large public school located in the small city of Valdosta.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at VSU are $6,583 per year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at VSU accumulate an average of around $25,500 in student debt.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Valdosta State University

#8

University of Georgia

Athens, GA
$12,068 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Georgia landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the city of Athens, UGA is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UGA are $12,068 a year. After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from UGA carry an average student debtload of $23,341. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $226.

UGA did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia list.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Georgia Report

$9,286 Average Tuition & Fees

Georgia State University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia ranking. Georgia State is a very large public school located in the large city of Atlanta.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Georgia State are $9,286 a year.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Georgia State University

#10

Shorter University

Rome, GA
$22,810 Average Tuition & Fees

Shorter University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Georgia list. Shorter is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Rome.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Shorter are $22,810 a year. While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at Shorter accumulate an average of around $26,000 in student debt.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Shorter University Report

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

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

State Degrees Awarded
North Carolina 3,436
West Virginia 1,238
Florida 2,340
Virginia 1,729
Arkansas 1,012
Mississippi 1,128
South Carolina 1,339
Louisiana 703
Alabama 959
Kentucky 1,141
Tennessee 2,462

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 14 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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