2022 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

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 Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 72,122 people earned their degree in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies, making the major the 15th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,823 and had an average of $24,576 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 2,352 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $31,766 and $23,636 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 25 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,900 and $148,219 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 2 colleges that offer a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The parks & rec school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k”.

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. 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 Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 2 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies (Income $0-$30k) in Illinois

#1

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Champaign, Illinois

#1 in overall quality

$30,083 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

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 Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Champaign, Illinois, this large public school awarded 12 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.

UIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are $30,083, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full UIUC Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report

#2

Concordia University, Chicago

River Forest, Illinois

#1 in overall quality

$9,378 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 2 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in Illinois For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Concordia University, Chicago landed the #2 spot on the list. Concordia University, Chicago is a medium-sized school located in River Forest, Illinois that handed out 13 doctorate’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.

Concordia University, Chicago also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #1. Average graduate tuition and fees at Concordia University, Chicago are $9,378, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full Concordia University, Chicago Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report

• Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies (Income $0-$30k) in the Great Lakes Region
• Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies (Income $0-$30k)

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.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to NPS Photo/Zurbuch.

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