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2023 Most Focused Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies in the New England Region

77 Ranked Colleges
2,777 Degrees Awarded
$32,900 Avg Cost*
Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the 15th most popular major in the country with 73,813 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $31,423 and had an average of $24,388 in loans still to pay off.

Across the New England region, there were 2,777 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,506 and $25,928 respectively.

This year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region” ranking looked at 77 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.

See our ranking methodology to learn more.

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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 “Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region” 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. 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.

Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region

The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region”.

Top 25 Most Focused Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies in the New England Region

1
Springfield College crest
Springfield College
Springfield, Massachusetts

Out of the 77 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Springfield College landed the #1 spot on the list. This small school is located in Springfield, Massachusetts, and it awarded 129 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Springfield College

2
Lasell crest
Lasell University
Newton, Massachusetts

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Lasell University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Lasell University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Newton, Massachusetts. It awarded 80 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Lasell

3
Castleton crest
Castleton University
Castleton, Vermont

Out of the 77 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Castleton University landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Castleton, Vermont, this small public school awarded 58 diplomas to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.

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

4
Colby - Sawyer crest
Colby - Sawyer College
New London, New Hampshire

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Colby - Sawyer College. The school came in at #4 for the Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region. Located in New London, New Hampshire, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 20 degrees to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Colby - Sawyer College

5
Dean College crest
Dean College
Franklin, Massachusetts

Out of the 77 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Dean College landed the #5 spot on the list. Franklin, Massachusetts is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s parks and rec degrees to 32 students in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Dean College

6
Mitchell College crest
Mitchell College
New London, Connecticut

Mitchell College ranked #6 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Mitchell College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in New London, Connecticut. It awarded 13 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Mitchell College

7
Nichols crest
Nichols College
Dudley, Massachusetts

Nichols College ranked #7 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Located in Dudley, Massachusetts, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 47 diplomas to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.

Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Nichols College

8
Sterling crest
Sterling College
Craftsbury Common, Vermont

Sterling College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking, coming in at #8. Sterling College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Craftsbury Common, Vermont. It awarded 3 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Sterling College

9

Northern Vermont University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking. Northern Vermont University is a small public school situated in Johnson, Vermont. It awarded 42 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Full Northern Vermont University Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report

10
Endicott crest
Endicott College
Beverly, Massachusetts

Endicott College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking, coming in at #10. Endicott College is located in Beverly, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 102 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Endicott College Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report

11
Plymouth State crest
Plymouth State University
Plymouth, New Hampshire

Plymouth State University ranked #11 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Plymouth State is a small school located in Plymouth, New Hampshire that handed out 81 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Full Plymouth State University Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report

12
Husson crest
Husson University
Bangor, Maine

Husson University landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking. Husson is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Bangor, Maine. It awarded 59 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.9% 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 more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Husson University

13
Thomas College crest
Thomas College
Waterville, Maine

Thomas College ranked #13 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Waterville, Maine is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s parks and rec degrees to 13 students in 2020-2021.

Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Thomas College

14
JWU Online crest
Johnson & Wales University - Online
Providence, Rhode Island

With a ranking of #14, Johnson & Wales University - Online did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Providence, Rhode Island is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s parks and rec degrees to 29 students in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at JWU Online

15
ENC crest
Eastern Nazarene College
Quincy, Massachusetts

Eastern Nazarene College ranked #15 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. ENC is a small school located in Quincy, Massachusetts that handed out 10 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at ENC

16
Franklin Pierce crest
Franklin Pierce University
Rindge, New Hampshire

With a ranking of #16, Franklin Pierce University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Located in Rindge, New Hampshire, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 27 degrees to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%.

Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Franklin Pierce University

17

Johnson & Wales University - Providence came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking. Johnson & Wales University - Providence is a medium-sized school located in Providence, Rhode Island that handed out 77 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at JWU Providence

18

Southern Connecticut State University landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking. Southern Connecticut State University is a medium-sized school located in New Haven, Connecticut that handed out 100 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Southern Connecticut State University

19
Westfield crest
Westfield State University
Westfield, Massachusetts

Westfield State University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking, coming in at #19. Westfield is a medium-sized public school situated in Westfield, Massachusetts. It awarded 56 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

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

20

Saint Joseph’s College of Maine did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking, coming in at #20. Saint Joseph’s Maine is a private not-for-profit institution located in Standish, Maine. The school has a small population, and it awarded 21 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Saint Joseph’s College of Maine Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report

21

University of New Hampshire - Main Campus landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking. UNH is a fairly large public school situated in Durham, New Hampshire. It awarded 160 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad 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 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of New Hampshire - Main Campus

22

University of Massachusetts - Boston did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking, coming in at #22. University of Massachusetts - Boston is a fairly large public school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 143 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Massachusetts - Boston

23
UNE crest
University of New England
Biddeford, Maine

With a ranking of #23, University of New England did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. UNE is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Biddeford, Maine. It awarded 57 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

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%.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of New England

24
Fisher College crest
Fisher College
Boston, Massachusetts

Fisher College landed the #24 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region ranking. Fisher College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 12 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Fisher College

25
URI crest
University of Rhode Island
Kingston, Rhode Island

University of Rhode Island ranked #25 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Parks & Rec Major in the New England Region list. Located in Kingston, Rhode Island, this fairly large public school handed out 167 degrees to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.3% 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 more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Rhode Island

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