Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

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

Find Schools Near

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

23 Colleges

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

Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the #15 most popular major in the country with 73,813 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 23 schools in the Southeast Region to see which graduate certificate programs were the most popular 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 Southeast Region .

#1

Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green, KY

Our 2023 rankings named Western Kentucky University the most popular school in the Southeast Region for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the small city of Bowling Green, WKU is a public school with a large student population.

About 38% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 62% are male.

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

Out of the 23 schools in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, American Public University System landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the fringe town of Charles Town, American Military University is a private for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

About 17% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 83% are male.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at American Public University System Report

#3

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

The in-demand graduate certificate programs at Liberty University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in the Southeast Region . Located in the city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

About 45% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 55% are male.

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

The in-demand graduate certificate programs at North Carolina State University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in the Southeast Region . NC State is a very large public school located in the city of Raleigh.

Of the 10 students majoring in parks and rec at NC State, 40% are male and 60% are female.

Read More…

#5

University of Kentucky

Lexington, KY

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Kentucky. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southeast Region list. Located in the city of Lexington, UK is a public school with a fairly large student population.

About 25% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 75% are male.

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

#5

East Carolina University

Greenville, NC

The in-demand graduate certificate programs at East Carolina 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 Southeast Region . Located in the city of Greenville, ECU is a public college with a very large student population.

Of the 8 students majoring in parks and rec at ECU, 75% are male and 25% are female.

Read More…

University of Southern Mississippi landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular graduate certificate parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the city of Hattiesburg, Southern Miss is a public school with a large student population.

Women make up 60% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Southern Mississippi

#8

Georgia Southern University

Statesboro, GA

With a ranking of #8, Georgia Southern University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the town of Statesboro, GaSou is a public school with a fairly 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 Georgia Southern University Report

#8

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

University of Florida came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. UF is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Gainesville.

About 25% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 75% are male.

Read More…

#10

Clemson University

Clemson, SC

With a ranking of #10, Clemson University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their graduate certificate. Clemson is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Clemson.

Of the 2 students majoring in parks and rec at Clemson, 50% are male and 50% are female.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Clemson University 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 Southeast region.

State Degrees Awarded
North Carolina 3,436
West Virginia 1,238
South Carolina 1,339
Florida 2,340
Virginia 1,729
Arkansas 1,012
Mississippi 1,128
Louisiana 703
Alabama 959
Kentucky 1,141
Georgia 1,981
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 23 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.

Featured Schools

Find Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited colleges across the U.S.