Find Grad Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

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

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the Far Western US Region

32 Colleges
$31,616 Avg Salary
$20,987 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School for You

Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies is the #18 most popular major in the country with 10,452 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. This report analyzed 32 schools in the Far Western US Region to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in the Far Western US Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for parks and rec majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Concordia University, Irvine the best school in the Far Western US Region for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the city of Irvine, Concordia University, Irvine is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read More…

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo Report

Out of the 32 schools in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Eastern Washington University landed the # 3 spot on the list. EWU is a large public school located in the fringe town of Cheney.

Read More…

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Point Loma Nazarene University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the city of San Diego, PLNU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Point Loma Nazarene University Report

#5

University of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of San Francisco. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the Far Western US Region list. USFCA is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of San Francisco.

Read More…

#6

Seattle University

Seattle, WA

Seattle University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Seattle U is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Seattle.

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

#7

Gonzaga University

Spokane, WA

Gonzaga University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Gonzaga is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Spokane.

Read More…

Washington State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Located in the town of Pullman, Wazzu is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Washington State University Report

With a ranking of #9, University of the Pacific did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Pacific is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Stockton.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of the Pacific Report

California Baptist University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the city of Riverside, Cal Baptist is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at California Baptist University Report

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

Explore the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools for a specific state in the Far Western US region.

State Degrees Awarded
California 1,097
Washington 122
Oregon 67
Nevada 13
Hawaii 12
Alaska 5

Parks & Rec Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Health & Physical Education 9,742
Recreation Administration 441
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies 206
Other Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies 35
Outdoor Education 28

Majors Similar to Parks & Rec

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Administration & Social Service 53,252
Legal Professions 45,189
Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting 13,045
Military Technologies & Applied Sciences 1,613

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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 the rest 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to NPS Photo/Zurbuch.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Graduate Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited graduate schools across the U.S.