2024 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools
517
Colleges in the United States
73,813
Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$31,423
Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in
parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #15 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.
College Factual looked at 517 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 73,813 degrees in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies during the 2020-2021 academic year.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School
The parks & rec program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies rankings. For our Best Overall Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Rankings by Degree Level
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 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools list to help you make the college decision.
If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.
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.
Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.
If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.
Best Schools for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies in the United States
The schools below may not offer all types of parks & rec degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
25 Top Schools in Parks & Rec
Rice University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies. Located in the city of Houston, Rice is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #16 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Rice is a great university overall.
There were roughly 104 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Rice in the most recent year we have data available. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from Rice University make $6,809 more than the standard parks & rec grad.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Rice University
Every student pursuing a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies needs to take a look at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. Located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #29 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.
There were approximately 326 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent year we have data available. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor make $7,668 more than the average parks & rec grad.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Columbia University in the City of New York is a wonderful option for students interested in a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies. Columbia is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #14 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Columbia is a great university overall.
There were approximately 71 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies program at Columbia University in the City of New York get $29,278 more than the typical graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Columbia University in the City of New York
Every student who is interested in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies needs to take a look at The University of Texas at Austin. UT Austin is a very large public university located in the city of Austin. A Best Colleges rank of #36 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UT Austin is a great university overall.
There were roughly 313 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UT Austin in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from The University of Texas at Austin earn a boost of approximately $4,575 over the average earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from The University of Texas at Austin
Texas A&M College Station is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of College Station. A Best Colleges rank of #44 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Texas A&M College Station is a great university overall.
There were roughly 646 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Texas A&M College Station in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Texas A&M University - College Station get an earnings boost of about $6,415 over the average earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies graduates.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Texas A&M University - College Station
UW - Madison is a very large public university located in the large city of Madison. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.
There were about 148 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, parks & rec degree recipients generally earn about $27,879 in their early careers.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Wisconsin - Madison
Emory is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Atlanta. A Best Colleges rank of #28 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Emory is a great university overall.
There were about 91 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Emory in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies major at Emory University earn $3,863 more than the standard college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Emory University
Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.
There were about 62 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Northwestern University receive an earnings boost of around $17,474 over the average income of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies graduates.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Northwestern University
Located in the small city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 40 colleges for overall quality in the state of Iowa.
There were roughly 675 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Iowa in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the parks & rec program report average early career wages of $31,398.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Iowa
Located in the city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #55 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means IU Bloomington is a great university overall.
There were approximately 643 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at IU Bloomington in the most recent data year. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from Indiana University - Bloomington make $5,539 more than the average parks & rec student.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Indiana University - Bloomington
UIUC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Champaign. A Best Colleges rank of #34 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.
There were about 317 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent year we have data available. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign earn $4,261 more than the average parks & rec student.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
UF is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville. A Best Colleges rank of #58 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UF is a great university overall.
There were approximately 306 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UF in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies major at University of Florida make $5,630 more than the average college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Florida
Located in the fringe town of Oxford, Miami University - Oxford is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 3rd out of 96 colleges for overall quality in the state of Ohio.
There were roughly 348 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Miami University - Oxford in the most recent data year. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from Miami University - Oxford make $3,743 more than the average parks & rec grad.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Miami University - Oxford
Clemson is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Clemson. This university ranks 1st out of 44 schools for overall quality in the state of South Carolina.
There were about 227 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Clemson in the most recent year we have data available. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Clemson University get an earnings boost of approximately $5,221 over the average earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Clemson University
Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 96 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.
There were approximately 248 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Ohio State in the most recent year we have data available. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Ohio State University - Main Campus earn a boost of about $6,055 over the average income of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies graduates.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Ohio State University - Main Campus
Located in the small city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 6th out of 63 colleges for overall quality in the state of Virginia.
There were about 326 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at JMU in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from James Madison University get an earnings boost of about $6,168 over the average earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies graduates.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from James Madison University
UMass Amherst is a very large public university located in the large suburb of Amherst. This university ranks 11th out of 63 schools for overall quality in the state of Massachusetts.
There were approximately 144 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UMass Amherst in the most recent year we have data available. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from University of Massachusetts Amherst get an earnings boost of about $8,096 over the average income of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Massachusetts Amherst
Located in the city of Tempe, ASU - Tempe is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 26 schools for overall quality in the state of Arizona.
There were approximately 391 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at ASU - Tempe in the most recent data year. After graduating, parks & rec degree recipients generally earn about $31,674 in their early careers.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Arizona State University - Tempe
UNH is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Durham. This university ranks 2nd out of 17 schools for overall quality in the state of New Hampshire.
There were approximately 160 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UNH in the most recent year we have data available. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from University of New Hampshire - Main Campus receive an earnings boost of around $2,559 above the average earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies graduates.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of New Hampshire - Main Campus
American Military University is a fairly large private for-profit university located in the town of Charles Town. This university ranks 1st out of 28 colleges for overall quality in the state of West Virginia.
There were about 683 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at American Military University in the most recent year we have data available. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from American Public University System make $19,445 more than the typical parks & rec grad.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from American Public University System
Located in the small city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #43 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UNC Chapel Hill is a great university overall.
There were roughly 401 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UNC Chapel Hill in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies program at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill earn $5,242 above the standard graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Located in the city of Salt Lake City, U of U is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 3rd out of 13 colleges for overall quality in the state of Utah.
There were approximately 382 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at U of U in the most recent data year. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from University of Utah make $3,675 more than the typical parks & rec student.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Utah
Located in the medium-sized city of Columbia, UofSC is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 44 colleges for overall quality in the state of South Carolina.
There were approximately 275 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UofSC in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from University of South Carolina - Columbia earn a boost of approximately $8,496 over the typical income of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of South Carolina - Columbia
UCONN is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Storrs. This university ranks 2nd out of 28 schools for overall quality in the state of Connecticut.
There were about 51 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UCONN in the most recent data year. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from University of Connecticut earn $11,302 more than the average parks & rec grad.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Connecticut
SMU is a large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Dallas. This university ranks 4th out of 115 schools for overall quality in the state of Texas.
There were about 105 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at SMU in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies major at Southern Methodist University make $15,473 more than the average graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Southern Methodist University