2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Alabama
9
Ranked Colleges
974
Degrees Awarded
$24,900
Avg Cost*
When it comes to choosing a college, veterans have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2020-2021, 73,813 people earned their degree in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies, making the major the 15th most popular in the United States. 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 Alabama, there were 974 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,352 and $27,732 respectively.
This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec” ranking analyzed 9 colleges that offered a degree 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.
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, veteran affordability, and veteran population. 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 “Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec”.
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.
Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec
The colleges and universities below are the best for alabama vets studying parks & rec.
Top 9 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Alabama
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Troy University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec list. This fairly large school is located in Troy, Alabama, and it awarded 111 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our alabama vets studying parks & rec list, TROY has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 1 of the 16,497 students enrolled at TROY were GI Bill® students, of which 2 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $1,250. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
[Read full report on veteran student life at TROY]](/colleges/troy-university/student-life/veterans/)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Samford University. The school came in at #2 for the Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec. Samford is a medium-sized school located in Birmingham, Alabama that handed out 30 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
Samford also took the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Among the 5,729 students enrolled at Samford University, 162 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 101 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $15,201. On top of their other funding sources, 36 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. 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%.
Full Samford University Veteran Student Life Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend United States Sports Academy. The school came in at #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec. Daphne, Alabama is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s parks and rec degrees to 50 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our alabama vets studying parks & rec list, The Academy has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Among the 338 students enrolled at The Academy, 47 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 36 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $6,163. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
The impressive undergraduate 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 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%.
Read More…
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Auburn University at Montgomery. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec list. This medium-sized school is located in Montgomery, Alabama, and it awarded 57 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at AUM, the school also landed the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.According to our most recent data, AUM supports 5,212 students, and 608 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 193 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $5,654. On top of their other funding sources, 8 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
Full AUM Veteran Student Life Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Alabama in Huntsville. The school came in at #5 for the Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec. UAH is a medium-sized public school situated in Huntsville, Alabama. It awarded 48 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
UAH also made our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list, coming in at #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS].Of the 9,999 students enrolled at University of Alabama in Huntsville, 645 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 294 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $5,721. 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%.
[Read full report on veteran student life at University of Alabama in Huntsville]](/colleges/university-of-alabama-at-huntsville/student-life/veterans/)
University of South Alabama landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec ranking. University of South Alabama is located in Mobile, Alabama and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 41 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at USA, the school also landed the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Among the 14,224 students enrolled at USA, 868 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 411 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $7,549. On top of their other funding sources, 11 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
Read More…
Jacksonville State University landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec ranking. Jacksonville State University is a public institution located in Jacksonville, Alabama. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 56 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Jacksonville State University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Of the 9,238 students enrolled at Jacksonville State University, 371 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 125 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $4,159. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Jacksonville State University offers credit for military training for eligible students.
Read More…
Huntingdon College ranked #8 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec list. Located in Montgomery, Alabama, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 49 degrees to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.
Huntingdon College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Our most recent data shows that 67 of the 920 students enrolled at Huntingdon College were GI Bill® students, of which 40 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $20,283. During this same period, 23 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 Huntingdon College]](/colleges/huntingdon-college/student-life/veterans/)
University of Montevallo came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly in Alabama for Parks & Rec ranking. University of Montevallo is a public institution located in Montevallo, Alabama. The school has a small population, and it awarded 42 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our alabama vets studying parks & rec list, Montevallo has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.According to our most recent data, Montevallo supports 2,600 students, and 117 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 35 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $7,063. 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 University of Montevallo]](/colleges/university-of-montevallo/student-life/veterans/)
Focus on a Specific Degree Level
North Carolina
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in North Carolina
Alabama
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Alabama
Georgia
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Georgia
Louisiana
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Louisiana
South Carolina
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in South Carolina
Virginia
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Virginia
West Virginia
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in West Virginia
Kentucky
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Kentucky
Tennessee
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Tennessee
Mississippi
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Mississippi
Florida
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Florida
Arkansas
Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges for Veterans in Arkansas
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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.
Credits
college factual
