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2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Colleges for Veterans in California

10 Ranked Colleges
678 Degrees Awarded
$26,500 Avg Cost*
Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, veterans have many different options to choose from. College Factual has developed its “Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

In 2020-2021, 3,106 people earned their degree in parks, recreation and leisure studies, making the major the 218th most popular in the United States.

Across California, there were 678 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec” ranking analyzed 10 colleges that offered a degree in parks, recreation and leisure studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent parks, recreation and leisure studies programs, but they also offer a lot of support to veterans and active service members.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as veteran satisfaction, veteran affordability, and overall quality of the parks, recreation and leisure studies program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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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 “Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. 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.

Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec

The following schools top our list of the Best “Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec”.

Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Colleges for Veterans in California

1

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Long Beach. The school came in at #1 for the Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec. California State University - Long Beach is located in Long Beach, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 91 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our california vets studying parks & rec list, CSULB has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 822 of the 40,069 students enrolled at California State University - Long Beach were GI Bill® students, of which 310 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $3,845. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. California State University - Long Beach offers credit for military training for eligible students.

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

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2
San Jose State crest
San Jose State University
San Jose, California

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Jose State University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec list. San Jose State University is located in San Jose, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 40 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

San Jose State also made our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list, coming in at #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS].According to our most recent data, San Jose State supports 36,208 students, and 660 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 384 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $4,909. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. San Jose State offers credit for military training for eligible students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full San Jose State Veteran Student Life Report

3

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Chico. The school came in at #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec. Chico State is a public institution located in Chico, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 99 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Chico State also made our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list, coming in at #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS].Our most recent data shows that 354 of the 16,746 students enrolled at California State University - Chico were GI Bill® students, of which 166 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $5,098. During this same period, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Chico State Veteran Student Life Report

4

Out of the 10 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Sacramento landed the #4 spot on the list. Sac State is a public institution located in Sacramento, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 100 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Sac State, the school also landed the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.According to our most recent data, California State University - Sacramento supports 32,293 students, and 34 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 23 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $4,555. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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%.

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5
SDSU crest
San Diego State University
San Diego, California

Out of the 10 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec that were part of this year’s ranking, San Diego State University landed the #5 spot on the list. San Diego, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s parks and rec degrees to 32 students in 2020-2021.

SDSU also took the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Among the 36,334 students enrolled at San Diego State University, 1,433 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 853 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $4,806. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read More…

6
SFSU crest
San Francisco State University
San Francisco, California

San Francisco State University landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec ranking. This large school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 46 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california vets studying parks & rec list, SFSU has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Of the 27,349 students enrolled at SFSU, 950 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 536 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $5,581. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. SFSU does offer credit for military training for eligible students.

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

Full SFSU Veteran Student Life Report

7

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec ranking. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is located in San Luis Obispo, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 119 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.According to our most recent data, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo supports 22,440 students, and 268 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 128 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $6,027. During this same period, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

[Read full report on veteran student life at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo]](/colleges/california-polytechnic-state-university-san-luis-obispo/student-life/veterans/)

8

California State University - Fresno ranked #8 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec list. California State University - Fresno is located in Fresno, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 37 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

Fresno State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Among the 25,497 students enrolled at California State University - Fresno, 471 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 211 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $3,324. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

[Read full report on veteran student life at California State University - Fresno]](/colleges/california-state-university-fresno/student-life/veterans/)

9
Humboldt State University crest
Humboldt State University
Arcata, California

Humboldt State University ranked #9 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec list. Humboldt State University is located in Arcata, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 31 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

Humboldt State University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.According to our most recent data, Humboldt State University supports 6,612 students, and 177 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 68 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $3,772. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Humboldt State University offers credit for military training for eligible students.

[Read full report on veteran student life at Humboldt State University]](/colleges/humboldt-state-university/student-life/veterans/)

10

California State University - East Bay landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in California for Parks & Rec ranking. Hayward, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s parks and rec degrees to 31 students in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california vets studying parks & rec list, Cal State East Bay has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Among the 16,253 students enrolled at California State University - East Bay, 32 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 16 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $7,956. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read More…

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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