2023 Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Outdoor Education

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2020-2021, 265 people earned their degree in outdoor education, making the major the 313th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, outdoor education graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $27,786 and had an average of $18,614 in loans still to pay off.

At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 28 outdoor education graduates with average earnings and debt of $58,425 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in outdoor education. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in outdoor education.

See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The outdoor ed school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major”.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major

The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major”.

Top 5 Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Outdoor Education

1

Alaska Pacific University
Anchorage, Alaska

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Alaska Pacific University. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major. Alaska Pacific is a small school located in Anchorage, Alaska that handed out 5 masters’s outdoor ed degrees in 2020-2021.

The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Full Alaska Pacific Outdoor Education Report

2

Prescott College
Prescott, Arizona

Out of the 5 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Prescott College landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Prescott, Arizona, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 7 diplomas to qualified masters’s outdoor ed students in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full Prescott College Outdoor Education Report

3

Plymouth State University
Plymouth, New Hampshire

Out of the 5 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Plymouth State University landed the #3 spot on the list. Plymouth State University is a small school located in Plymouth, New Hampshire that handed out 6 masters’s outdoor ed degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Outdoor Education at Plymouth State

4

Minnesota State University - Mankato
Mankato, Minnesota

Out of the 5 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Minnesota State University - Mankato landed the #4 spot on the list. Minnesota State Mankato is a public institution located in Mankato, Minnesota. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 10 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Outdoor Education at Minnesota State Mankato

5

Western Carolina University
Cullowhee, North Carolina

Out of the 5 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Outdoor Ed Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Carolina University landed the #5 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Cullowhee, North Carolina, and it awarded 0 masters’s outdoor ed degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Outdoor Education at Western Carolina University

Notes and References

References

• 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 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).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Avg Salary and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to SLenartowicz.