2023 Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the Middle Atlantic Region

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. 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 Parks & Rec Major in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2020-2021, 3,106 people earned their degree in parks, recreation and leisure studies, making the major the 166th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $31,801 and had an average of $23,333 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Middle Atlantic region, there were 284 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,534 and $27,000 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 18 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $62,572 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in parks, recreation and leisure studies. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in parks, recreation and leisure studies.

Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the Middle Atlantic Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the Middle Atlantic Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for middle atlantic region master’s degree parks & rec students.

Top 3 Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in the Middle Atlantic Region

1

SUNY Cortland
Cortland, New York

$42,811 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, SUNY Cortland landed the #1 spot on the list. SUNY Cortland is a medium-sized public school situated in Cortland, New York. It awarded 18 masters’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full SUNY Cortland Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

2

Morgan State University
Baltimore, Maryland

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Morgan State University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the Middle Atlantic Region. Morgan State is a medium-sized public school situated in Baltimore, Maryland. It awarded 0 masters’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

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

2

University of Maryland - College Park
College Park, Maryland

#11 overall quality in Middle Atlantic

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Maryland - College Park. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the Middle Atlantic Region list. This large school is located in College Park, Maryland, and it awarded 0 masters’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full UMCP Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

• Most Focused Master’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies

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.