2022 Best Value Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies (Income $48-$75k) in Illinois

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 3,224 people earned their degree in parks, recreation and leisure studies, making the major the 152nd most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,957 and had an average of $22,487 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 167 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,733 and $24,414 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking analyzed 4 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 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.

More Ways to Rank Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k” list to help you make the college decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k

The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois parks & rec students whose families make $48-$75k.

Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies (Income $48-$75k) in Illinois

#1

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Champaign, Illinois

#1 in overall quality

$13,351 Average Net Price

$49,122 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #1 spot on the list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 130 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC also took the #1 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in Illinois” ranking. It costs about $13,351 for Illinois Parks & Rec students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UIUC.

The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#2

Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Carbondale, Illinois

#2 in overall quality

$14,985 Average Net Price

$38,710 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k. This fairly large school is located in Carbondale, Illinois, and it awarded 29 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in Illinois” list. The yearly cost to attend SIUC is $14,985 for illinois parks & rec students whose families make $48-$75k.

Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#3

Aurora University

Aurora, Illinois

#4 in overall quality

$15,881 Average Net Price

$43,032 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Aurora University landed the #3 spot on the list. Aurora is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Aurora, Illinois. It awarded 4 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our illinois parks & rec students whose families make $48-$75k list, Aurora has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in Illinois” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Aurora University is $15,881 for illinois parks & rec students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low student loan default rate of 4.4% 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 Aurora University Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

#4

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, Illinois

#3 in overall quality

$17,841 Average Net Price

$46,385 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Olivet Nazarene University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k list. Olivet Nazarene University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Bourbonnais, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 4 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Olivet Nazarene also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #3. It costs about $17,841 for Illinois Parks & Rec students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Olivet Nazarene.

The low student loan default rate of 3.4% 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 Olivet Nazarene

• Best Value Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies (Income $48-$75k) in the Great Lakes Region
• Best Value Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies (Income $48-$75k)

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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