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Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

14 Colleges

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Graduate Certificate 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.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 14 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones were the most popular graduate certificate 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.

Check out the parks and rec graduate certificate programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in the Great Lakes Region .

Our analysis found Miami University - Oxford to be the most popular school for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the fringe town of Oxford, Miami University - Oxford is a public school with a large student population.

Of the 7 students majoring in parks and rec at Miami University - Oxford, 29% are male and 71% are female.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Miami University - Oxford

#2

Marquette University

Milwaukee, WI

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Marquette University is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their graduate certificate. Marquette is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Milwaukee.

Of the 5 students majoring in parks and rec at Marquette, 40% are male and 60% are female.

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

#2

Concordia University, Chicago

River Forest, IL

The in-demand graduate certificate programs at Concordia University, Chicago 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 . Concordia University, Chicago is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of River Forest.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Concordia University, Chicago Report

Out of the 14 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Ohio State University - Main Campus landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the large city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public school with a very large student population.

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

#5

Central Michigan University

Mount Pleasant, MI

The in-demand graduate certificate programs at Central Michigan University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in the Great Lakes Region . Central Michigan is a large public school located in the town of Mount Pleasant.

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

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Wright State University - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #6 on the list. Wright State University - Main Campus is a large public school located in the large suburb of Dayton.

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#7

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

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Western Illinois University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the remote town of Macomb, WIU is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Western Illinois University Report

With a ranking of #7, University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their graduate certificate. UW Oshkosh is a large public school located in the city of Oshkosh.

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

#7

Tiffin University

Tiffin, OH

Tiffin University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Tiffin University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Tiffin.

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

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 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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