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2024 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region

48 Colleges in the Far Western US Region
13,000 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$31,446 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.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 48 schools in the Far Western US Region to determine which ones were the best for parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 13,000 degrees in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School

Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region 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

Associate Degrees in Parks & Rec
Bachelor's Degrees in Parks & Rec
Master's Degrees in Parks & Rec
Doctor's Degrees in Parks & Rec

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. 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 Far Western US Region

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.

10 Top Far Western US Region Schools in Parks & Rec

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
370 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$42,406 Median Starting Salary

Every student pursuing a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies has to take a look at Concordia University, Irvine. Concordia University, Irvine is a small private not-for-profit university located in the city of Irvine. This university ranks 54th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 370 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Concordia University, Irvine in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Concordia University, Irvine earn a boost of about $10,959 above the typical income of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Concordia University, Irvine

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
472 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$35,451 Median Starting Salary

Every student who is interested in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies needs to look into California State University - Long Beach. Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #186 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means CSULB is a great university overall.

There were about 472 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies program at California State University - Long Beach get $4,005 above the typical college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from California State University - Long Beach

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
226 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$26,952 Median Starting Salary

University of Nevada - Las Vegas is a wonderful choice for students pursuing a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies. Located in the city of Las Vegas, UNLV is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #149 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UNLV is a great university overall.

There were about 226 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UNLV in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, parks & rec degree recipients generally earn around $26,952 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Nevada - Las Vegas

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
427 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$28,564 Median Starting Salary

Every student who is interested in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies needs to take a look at San Diego State University. Located in the large city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #141 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means SDSU is a great university overall.

There were about 427 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at SDSU in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the parks & rec program make about $28,564 for their early career.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from San Diego State University

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
124 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$39,538 Median Starting Salary

Wazzu is a very large public university located in the distant town of Pullman. A Best Colleges rank of #175 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Wazzu is a great university overall.

There were about 124 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Wazzu in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies degree program at Washington State University earn $8,091 above the average graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Washington State University

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
310 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
6.5% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #161 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means San Jose State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 310 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at San Jose State in the most recent year we have data available. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from San Jose State University receive $9,224 more than the typical parks & rec graduate.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from San Jose State University

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$38,239 Median Starting Salary
$15,250 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Seattle, Seattle U is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #155 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Seattle U is a great university overall.

There were roughly 26 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Seattle U in the most recent year we have data available. Those parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who get their degree from Seattle University receive $6,793 more than the typical parks & rec graduate.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Seattle University

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
170 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$40,641 Median Starting Salary

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a very large public university located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo. A Best Colleges rank of #95 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a great university overall.

There were about 170 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies program at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo get $9,195 more than the standard college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
61 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$41,108 Median Starting Salary

Gonzaga is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Spokane. A Best Colleges rank of #172 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Gonzaga is a great university overall.

There were about 61 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Gonzaga in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies program at Gonzaga University get $9,662 more than the standard graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Gonzaga University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
236 Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$38,802 Median Starting Salary

Cal Baptist is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Riverside. This university ranks 82nd out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 236 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Cal Baptist in the most recent year we have data available. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from California Baptist University earn a boost of around $7,355 over the typical earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies graduates.

More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from California Baptist University

Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies colleges for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
California3811,234
Washington37673
Oregon37626
Hawaii36171
Nevada35272
Alaska3335

View All Rankings >

Parks & Rec Majors to Study

MajorAnnual Graduates
Health & Physical Education12,171
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies696
Recreation Administration113
Outdoor Education19
Other Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies1

View All Parks & Rec Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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