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Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in Iowa

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2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in Iowa

7 Colleges
$41,687 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Master's Degree School for You

Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is one of the most popular subjects to study in Iowa. With 1,491 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, it ranked 8th out of all the majors we track in the state.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

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 Master's Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Our analysis looked at 7 schools in Iowa to see which master's degree 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.

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

#1

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

Our 2023 rankings named University of Iowa the most popular school in Iowa for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Iowa is a fairly large public school located in the city of Iowa City.

About 37% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 63% are male.

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#2

Upper Iowa University

Fayette, IA

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Upper Iowa University is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. UIU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Fayette.

Women make up 36% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Upper Iowa University Report

#3

William Penn University

Oskaloosa, IA

The in-demand master’s degree programs at William Penn 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 Iowa. William Penn University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the remote town of Oskaloosa.

About 33% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 67% are male.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at William Penn University Report

#4

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA

Out of the 7 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Northern Iowa landed the # 4 spot on the list. UNI is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Cedar Falls.

Of the 15 students majoring in parks and rec at UNI, 47% are male and 53% are female.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Northern Iowa

Out of the 7 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Iowa State University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the city of Ames, Iowa State is a public school with a very large student population.

Women make up 25% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

#5

Grand View University

Des Moines, IA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Grand View University is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the midsize city of Des Moines, Grand View University is a private not-for-profit college with a small 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 Grand View University Report

#7

Briar Cliff University

Sioux City, IA

With a ranking of #7, Briar Cliff University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the small city of Sioux City, Briar Cliff is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Briar Cliff University Report

Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Plains States Region

Explore all the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Kansas 710
Minnesota 1,139
South Dakota 342
Missouri 1,342
Nebraska 429
North Dakota 266

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 7 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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