2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies in California (With Aid)
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the 15th most popular major in the country with 72,122 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. 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 California, there were 11,357 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,588 and $23,018 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 6,201 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,907 and $21,546 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 36 colleges that offered 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.
To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness 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 “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique 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 California For Those Getting Aid
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies in California (With Aid)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Los Angeles. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Los Angeles is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 268 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid list, Cal State LA has also earned the #21 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Los Angeles is $2,768 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
The low student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 Cal State LA Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fullerton. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Fullerton, California, this large public school awarded 562 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
Cal State Fullerton did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Fullerton is $7,991 for california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.
The low student loan default rate of 2.7% 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 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Out of the 36 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the #3 spot on the list. California State University - Fresno is located in Fresno, California and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 271 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.
Fresno State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #17 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $5,464 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend Fresno State.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full Fresno State Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Dominguez Hills. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid. CSUDH is located in Carson, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 140 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.
The yearly cost to attend California State University - Dominguez Hills is $4,215 for california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at CSUDH
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Northridge. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid. Located in Northridge, California, this large public school awarded 443 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
CSUN did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $8,414 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend California State University - Northridge.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at CSUN
California State University - Long Beach came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in Long Beach, California, and it awarded 305 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
CSULB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend CSULB is $9,622 for california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
California State University - San Bernardino landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. CSUSB is located in San Bernardino, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 276 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.
CSUSB also took the #22 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State University - San Bernardino is $7,342 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at CSUSB
California State University - Sacramento ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Sac State is a large school located in Sacramento, California that handed out 438 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Sac State also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #8. It costs about $9,979 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend Sac State.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Sac State Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
California State University - Stanislaus landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. California State University - Stanislaus is a fairly large school located in Turlock, California that handed out 117 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Stan State is $6,019 for california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full California State University - Stanislaus Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
San Diego State University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in San Diego, California, this large public school awarded 427 degrees to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
SDSU also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #3. It costs about $14,788 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend SDSU.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at SDSU
San Jose State University landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. San Jose State is a large public school situated in San Jose, California. It awarded 263 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at San Jose State, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State is $14,928 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
The low student loan default rate of 3.7% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.
Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at San Jose State University
With a ranking of #12, California State University - Bakersfield did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Bakersfield is located in Bakersfield, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 117 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Bakersfield is $5,318 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at CSUB
San Francisco State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #13. San Francisco, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to 247 students in 2019-2020.
SFSU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Francisco State University is $15,113 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
Full San Francisco State University Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
With a ranking of #14, California State University - East Bay did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in Hayward, California, and it awarded 191 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Cal State East Bay also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #15. It costs about $11,116 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend Cal State East Bay.
Full Cal State East Bay Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
With a ranking of #15, California State University - San Marcos did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. This fairly large school is located in San Marcos, California, and it awarded 207 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
CSUSM did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #19 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $13,399 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend CSUSM.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
California State University - Monterey Bay did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #16. California State University - Monterey Bay is located in Seaside, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 185 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.
CSUMB also took the #14 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $12,212 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend CSUMB.
The student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at CSUMB
California State Polytechnic University - Pomona landed the #17 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Cal Poly Pomona is a large public school situated in Pomona, California. It awarded 160 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Cal Poly Pomona did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #18 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Cal Poly Pomona is $12,734 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full Cal Poly Pomona Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
California State University - Chico landed the #18 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. California State University - Chico is a fairly large school located in Chico, California that handed out 307 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
Chico State also took the #12 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Chico is $15,017 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Chico Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
With a ranking of #19, Sonoma State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Rohnert Park, California, this medium-sized public school handed out 102 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Sonoma State University is $17,478 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
The low student loan default rate of 4.7% 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 SSU Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
Humboldt State University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Arcata, California, this medium-sized public school handed out 111 degrees to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Humboldt State University is $14,692 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Humboldt State University
The University of Arizona Global Campus landed the #21 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in San Diego, California, and it awarded 58 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
UAGC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #24 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for UAGC is $20,510 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
National University landed the #22 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. National University is a fairly large school located in La Jolla, California that handed out 9 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
National University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #23 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” list.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at National University
With a ranking of #23, Vanguard University of Southern California did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid list. Vanguard University of Southern California is a private not-for-profit institution located in Costa Mesa, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 28 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Vanguard University of Southern California is $20,051 for California Bachelor’s Degree Parks & Rec students with aid.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Vanguard Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
Holy Names University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #24. HNU is a small school located in Oakland, California that handed out 17 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Holy Names University is $23,034 for california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low student loan default rate of 3.5% 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 HNU Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report
California Baptist University landed the #25 spot on the 2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Bachelor’s in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. California Baptist University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Riverside, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 129 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid list, Cal Baptist has also earned the #16 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $24,707 for california bachelor’s degree parks & rec students with aid per year to attend Cal Baptist.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Cal Baptist
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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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