2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate
8
Ranked Colleges
5,979
Degrees Awarded
$26,246
Avg Salary
When it comes to choosing a college, veterans 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 “Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
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.
At the associate degree level specifically, there were 5,979 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,806 and $19,336 respectively.
This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate” ranking looked at 8 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs and a strong support system for veterans and active service members.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies program at the school, veteran affordability, and veteran satisfaction. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate
The colleges and universities below are the best for associate degree vets studying parks & rec.
Top 8 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Colleges for Veterans
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale. The school came in at #1 for the Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate. Fort Lauderdale, Florida is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out associates’s parks and rec degrees to 94 students in 2020-2021.
Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” list, coming in at #1.Our most recent data shows that 75 of the 20,330 students enrolled at Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale were GI Bill® students, of which 56 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $17,004. On top of their other funding sources, 21 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale offers credit for military training for eligible students.
Read More…
Out of the 8 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate that were part of this year’s ranking, Bob Jones University landed the #2 spot on the list. Bob Jones University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Greenville, South Carolina. The school has a small population, and it awarded 3 associates’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Bob Jones University also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” list, coming in at #3.According to our most recent data, Bob Jones University supports 3,029 students, and 75 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 37 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $14,092. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, 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 veteran student life at Bob Jones University]](/colleges/bob-jones-university/student-life/veterans/)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Findlay. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate list. Findlay is a small school located in Findlay, Ohio that handed out 7 associates’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our associate degree vets studying parks & rec list, Findlay has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 67 of the 4,829 students enrolled at The University of Findlay were GI Bill® students, of which 45 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $13,332. To help with additional expenses, 6 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 veteran student life at The University of Findlay]](/colleges/the-university-of-findlay/student-life/veterans/)
Out of the 8 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate that were part of this year’s ranking, International Sports Sciences Association landed the #4 spot on the list. Carpinteria, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out associates’s parks and rec degrees to 113 students in 2020-2021.
ISSA not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” list.According to our most recent data, ISSA supports 431 students, and 2 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 24 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $908. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. ISSA offers credit for military training for eligible students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read More…
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Utah Valley University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate list. UVU is located in Orem, Utah and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 associates’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.
UVU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” list.Among the 40,936 students enrolled at Utah Valley University, 813 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 379 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $4,550. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 veteran student life at Utah Valley University]](/colleges/utah-valley-university/student-life/veterans/)
Webber International University did quite well in the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Babson Park, Florida, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 2 degrees to qualified associates’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.
Webber International University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” list.Our most recent data shows that 32 of the 812 students enrolled at Webber International University were GI Bill® students, of which 9 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $12,178. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Webber International University does offer credit for military training for eligible students.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Webber International University]](/colleges/webber-international-university/student-life/veterans/)
South Texas College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate ranking. Located in McAllen, Texas, this large public school awarded 40 degrees to qualified associates’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.
South Texas College also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” list, coming in at #8.Of the 28,233 students enrolled at South Texas College, 532 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 193 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $1,731. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
Full South Texas College Veteran Student Life Report
With a ranking of #8, Mt. San Antonio College did quite well on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly for Parks & Rec for an Associate list. Mt. San Antonio College is a public institution located in Walnut, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 500 associates’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our associate degree vets studying parks & rec list, Mt. SAC has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Associate Degree Schools” ranking.Of the 28,393 students enrolled at Mt. SAC, 581 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 435 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $276. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Mt. SAC]](/colleges/mt-san-antonio-college/student-life/veterans/)
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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).
- Veteran-specific data can be found at the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
- 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
- *Avg Salary and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate are for the top schools only.
- **GI Bill® student total includes all chapters of the GI Bill® program (e.g., Post-9/11, Montgomery GI Bill, Reserve Education Assistance Program, and Veteran Readiness and Employment)
- 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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