2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region
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 “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2019-2020, 3,224 people earned their degree in parks, recreation and leisure studies, making the major the 191st most popular in the United States.
Across the Plains States region, there were 521 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 506 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,786 and $25,576 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” ranking looked at 15 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.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the parks, recreation and leisure studies program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. 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.
Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students.
Top 15 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the Plains States Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Winona State University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region. Winona State University is a public institution located in Winona, Minnesota. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 38 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Winona State also took the #5 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Winona State University is $17,656 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Winona State University Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Nebraska at Kearney. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. UNK is a public institution located in Kearney, Nebraska. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 57 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UNK also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #6. The yearly cost to attend University of Nebraska at Kearney is $16,017 for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students.
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%.
Out of the 15 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Northern Iowa landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, this medium-sized public school awarded 48 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
UNI did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The yearly cost to attend UNI is $15,620 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Northern Iowa Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northwest Missouri State University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region. Maryville, Missouri is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to 43 students in 2019-2020.
Northwest did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #10 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $12,354 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students per year to attend Northwest Missouri State University.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Northwest Missouri State University
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Missouri State University - Springfield. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Missouri State University - Springfield is a large school located in Springfield, Missouri that handed out 30 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Missouri State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Missouri State University - Springfield is $16,725 for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students.
Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Missouri State
University of Minnesota - Duluth did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Duluth, Minnesota, this fairly large public school awarded 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
UMN Duluth not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $17,067 for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students per year to attend UMN Duluth.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Minnesota - Duluth
Southeast Missouri State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Southeast Missouri State University is a public institution located in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 13 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Southeast Missouri State University, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $12,774 for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students per year to attend Southeast Missouri State University.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Southeast Missouri State University
Pittsburg State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #8. Pittsburg State University is a medium-sized public school situated in Pittsburg, Kansas. It awarded 23 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Pitt State also took the #11 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Pitt State is $14,436 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Pittsburg State University
Lindenwood University landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. Lindenwood University is a medium-sized school located in Saint Charles, Missouri that handed out 7 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Lindenwood University did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $17,491 for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students per year to attend Lindenwood University.
The low student loan default rate of 4.8% 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 Lindenwood University
Emporia State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking, coming in at #10. Located in Emporia, Kansas, this medium-sized public school awarded 7 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at ESU, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $14,822 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students per year to attend Emporia State University.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Emporia State University
With a ranking of #11, University of Nebraska at Omaha did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. University of Nebraska at Omaha is a fairly large public school situated in Omaha, Nebraska. It awarded 8 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
UNOMAHA also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #12. It costs about $14,040 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students per year to attend University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at University of Nebraska at Omaha
University of Missouri - Columbia landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. University of Missouri - Columbia is a public institution located in Columbia, Missouri. The school has a large population, and it awarded 126 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Mizzou also took the #1 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Missouri - Columbia is $16,001 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students.
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 Mizzou
With a ranking of #13, University of Iowa did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. Iowa is a large public school situated in Iowa City, Iowa. It awarded 67 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Iowa also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #2. The yearly cost to attend University of Iowa is $19,145 for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students.
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 Iowa
With a ranking of #14, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region list. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is a large public school situated in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It awarded 26 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
UMN Twin Cities also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #3. The yearly cost to attend UMN Twin Cities is $17,740 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full UMN Twin Cities Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report
Baker University landed the #15 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region ranking. This small school is located in Baldwin City, Kansas, and it awarded 2 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Baker not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #13 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Baker University is $22,879 for plains states region bachelor’s degree parks & rec students.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full Baker University Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report
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Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
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Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies students with family income $75-$110k in the Plains States Region
Best Value Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the Plains States Region
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies students in the Plains States Region
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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