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Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Pennsylvania

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2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Pennsylvania

66 Colleges
$31,681 Avg Salary
$27,043 Avg Student Debt

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

With 2,734 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies is the #15 most popular major in Pennsylvania.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

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 Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Our analysis looked at 66 schools in Pennsylvania to see which 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 programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in Pennsylvania.

Our 2023 rankings named California University of Pennsylvania the most popular school in Pennsylvania for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Cal U is a moderately-sized public school located in the small suburb of California.

On average, parks and rec graduates from Cal U take out $32,130 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $169.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at California University of Pennsylvania

#2

Temple University

Philadelphia, PA

Out of the 66 schools in Pennsylvania that were part of this year’s ranking, Temple University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, Temple is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Parks & Rec majors at Temple take out an average of $26,000 in student loans while working on their egree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $384.

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

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend West Chester University of Pennsylvania. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the large suburb of West Chester, WCUPA is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Pennsylvania list. East Stroudsburg University is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of East Stroudsburg.

After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from East Stroudsburg University carry an average student debt load of $25,500. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $314, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#5

Lock Haven University

Lock Haven, PA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Lock Haven University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the town of Lock Haven, LHU is a public college with a small student population.

After completing their degree, parks and rec graduates from LHU carry an average student debt load of $27,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $254.

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With a ranking of #6, Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. IUP is a medium-sized public school located in the distant town of Indiana.

The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at IUP take out is $27,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $269.

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Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Pennsylvania list. SRU is a moderately-sized public school located in the distant town of Slippery Rock.

The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at SRU take out is $26,500. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $375, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania

With a ranking of #8, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Kutztown University is a moderately-sized public school located in the fringe town of Kutztown.

The average amount in student loans that parks and rec majors at Kutztown University take out is $26,999. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $197, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

#9

Lebanon Valley College

Annville, PA

Lebanon Valley College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. LVC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Annville.

On average, parks and rec graduates from LVC take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read More…

#10

University of Scranton

Scranton, PA

With a ranking of #10, University of Scranton did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the city of Scranton, University of Scranton is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

While working on their degree, parks and rec majors at University of Scranton accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.

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

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional popular schools for Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness students in the state of Pennsylvania that almost earned our Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in Pennsylvania award.

Rank College Location
11 Gannon University Erie, PA
12 Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania Bloomsburg, PA
13 Clarion University of Pennsylvania Clarion, PA

Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
New Jersey 1,047
New York 2,477
Maryland 832
Delaware 342
District of Columbia 319

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 25 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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