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2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid

77 Ranked Colleges
2,732 Degrees Awarded
$13,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor's For Those Getting Aid

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies is the 191st most popular major in the country with 3,224 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 2,732 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,303 and $24,501 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 77 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in parks, recreation and leisure studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great parks, recreation and leisure studies programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the parks, recreation and leisure studies program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid

The colleges and universities below are the best for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies (With Aid)

#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to 99 students in 2019-2020.

UIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $15,880 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

#20 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Fresno. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid. This large school is located in Fresno, California, and it awarded 37 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

Fresno State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #20 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Fresno State is $5,464 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at California State University - Fresno

#3

Indiana University - Bloomington

Bloomington, Indiana
#2 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Indiana University - Bloomington. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Bloomington, Indiana, this large public school awarded 181 degrees to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.

IU Bloomington did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Indiana University - Bloomington is $13,253 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 4.3% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at IU Bloomington

#4

Lehman College

Bronx, New York

Out of the 77 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Lehman College landed the #4 spot on the list. Lehman is a fairly large school located in Bronx, New York that handed out 14 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Lehman is $1,814 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

Full Lehman Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#13 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Long Beach. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Long Beach is located in Long Beach, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 87 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid list, CSULB has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $9,622 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid per year to attend CSULB.

With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 1.6% 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%.

Full California State University - Long Beach Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#12 in overall quality

California State University - Sacramento came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Sac State is a public institution located in Sacramento, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 121 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid list, Sac State has also earned the #12 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $9,979 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend Sac State.

The low student loan default rate of 4.6% 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 full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Sac State

#6 in overall quality

Brigham Young University - Provo did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #7. This large school is located in Provo, Utah, and it awarded 78 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at BYU, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend BYU is $13,322 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Brigham Young University - Provo

Southeastern Oklahoma State University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Durant, Oklahoma is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to 11 students in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Southeastern Oklahoma State University is $8,237 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

Full Southeastern Oklahoma State University Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#9

University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Greensboro, North Carolina

University of North Carolina at Greensboro came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Greensboro, North Carolina, this fairly large public school handed out 69 degrees to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend UNC Greensboro is $12,748 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of North Carolina at Greensboro

#10

Shepherd University

Shepherdstown, West Virginia

Shepherd University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. This small school is located in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, and it awarded 40 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Shepherd University is $11,021 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

Full Shepherd University Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#11

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#18 in overall quality

San Diego State University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in San Diego, California, and it awarded 41 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

SDSU also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #18. The yearly cost to attend San Diego State University is $14,788 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at San Diego State University

#12

San Jose State University

San Jose, California
#8 in overall quality

San Jose State University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. San Jose State University is located in San Jose, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 31 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

San Jose State also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #8. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State University is $14,928 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at San Jose State

#3 in overall quality

University of Missouri - Columbia ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. University of Missouri - Columbia is a large school located in Columbia, Missouri that handed out 126 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

Mizzou did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $16,001 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend Mizzou.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Missouri - Columbia

#14

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, Iowa
#7 in overall quality

University of Northern Iowa came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of Northern Iowa is a medium-sized public school situated in Cedar Falls, Iowa. It awarded 48 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

UNI also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $15,620 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend UNI.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full UNI Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#15

University of Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah
#22 in overall quality

University of Utah did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #15. Salt Lake City, Utah is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to 38 students in 2019-2020.

U of U also took the #22 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for U of U is $14,773 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 2.6% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full U of U Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#16

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa
#4 in overall quality

With a ranking of #16, University of Iowa did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Iowa is a public institution located in Iowa City, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 67 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Iowa is $19,145 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

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

#17

MSU Texas

Wichita Falls, Texas

MSU Texas came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Wichita Falls, Texas, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for MSU Texas is $10,045 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at MSU Texas

#25 in overall quality

California State University - East Bay came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Hayward, California, this fairly large public school awarded 32 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cal State East Bay, the school also landed the #25 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State University - East Bay is $11,116 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Cal State East Bay

#19

University of Arkansas

Fayetteville, Arkansas
#10 in overall quality

University of Arkansas ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Fayetteville, Arkansas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to 101 students in 2019-2020.

UARK not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend UARK is $16,381 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.

Full University of Arkansas Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#20

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, Minnesota
#5 in overall quality

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #20. Located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, this large public school handed out 26 degrees to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.

UMN Twin Cities also took the #5 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UMN Twin Cities is $17,740 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 2.2% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Full University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#11 in overall quality

With a ranking of #21, University of Nebraska at Kearney did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Kearney, Nebraska, this medium-sized public school handed out 57 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.

UNK also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #11. The yearly cost to attend UNK is $16,017 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Nebraska at Kearney

#22

Winona State University

Winona, Minnesota
#9 in overall quality

Winona State University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Winona State is a medium-sized school located in Winona, Minnesota that handed out 38 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

Winona State also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #9. The estimated yearly cost for Winona State is $17,656 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Winona State University

Northwest Missouri State University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Maryville, Missouri, and it awarded 43 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Northwest Missouri State University is $12,354 for bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.

Full Northwest Missouri State University Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#14 in overall quality

California State University - Chico landed the #24 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Chico State is a fairly large public school situated in Chico, California. It awarded 87 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

Chico State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #14 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Chico is $15,017 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Chico State

With a ranking of #25, University of Nebraska at Omaha did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. University of Nebraska at Omaha is a public institution located in Omaha, Nebraska. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for UNOMAHA is $14,040 for Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Nebraska at Omaha

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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

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees 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.

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