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2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools

36 Colleges

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Graduate Certificate 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.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Grad Degree Search has created its Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. This report analyzed 36 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best graduate certificate programs for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Graduate Certificate Schools in the United States

Check out the parks and rec graduate certificate programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

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

Our analysis found American Public University System to be the best school for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the United States. American Military University is a very large private for-profit school located in the town of Charles Town.

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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Winona State University is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the town of Winona, Winona State is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

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

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Citadel Military College of South Carolina is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their graduate certificate. The Citadel is a small public school located in the medium-sized city of Charleston.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Citadel Military College of South Carolina Report

Out of the 36 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Columbia University in the City of New York landed the # 4 spot on the list. Columbia is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend North Carolina State University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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

#6

Shenandoah University

Winchester, VA

Shenandoah University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Shenandoah is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Winchester.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Shenandoah University Report

#7

Drexel University

Philadelphia, PA

Drexel University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. Drexel is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Philadelphia.

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

#8

Clemson University

Clemson, SC

Clemson University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Clemson, Clemson is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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#9

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

University of Iowa did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #9 on the list. Iowa is a very large public school located in the city of Iowa City.

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#10

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

University of Florida came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the midsize city of Gainesville, UF is a public school with a fairly large student population.

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

Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies by Region

View the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Graduate Certificate Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

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

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.

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