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Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Doctor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Doctor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

11 Colleges
$69,500 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor's Degree 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.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. 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 assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Doctor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This report analyzed 11 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones were the most popular doctor's degree programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for parks and rec majors pursuing a doctor's degree.

#1

Concordia University, Chicago

River Forest, IL

Our analysis found Concordia University, Chicago to be the most popular school for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in the Great Lakes Region . Concordia University, Chicago is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of River Forest.

Of the 32 students majoring in parks and rec at Concordia University, Chicago, 59% are male and 41% are female.

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#2

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

The in-demand doctor’s degree programs at Michigan State University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in the Great Lakes Region . Michigan State is a fairly large public school located in the city of East Lansing.

Of the 12 students majoring in parks and rec at Michigan State, 50% are male and 50% are female.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Indiana University - Bloomington. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. IU Bloomington is a fairly large public school located in the city of Bloomington.

Women make up 30% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Indiana University - Bloomington Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Ohio State University - Main Campus. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the large city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 43% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 57% are male.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Ohio State University - Main Campus Report

Out of the 11 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public college with a very large student population.

About 60% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 40% are male.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Report

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public school with a very large student population.

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#7

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

With a ranking of #7, Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Purdue University - Main Campus

University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the large city of Milwaukee, UWM is a public school with a very large student population.

Women make up 50% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

#7

University of Toledo

Toledo, OH

University of Toledo did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the large city of Toledo, University of Toledo is a public school with a fairly large student population.

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University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular doctor’s degree parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public school with a very large student population.

About 50% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 50% are male.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Wisconsin - Madison Report

Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Indiana 1,818
Michigan 2,279
Ohio 2,647
Illinois 2,396
Wisconsin 1,001

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 11 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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