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Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in Virginia

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2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in Virginia

8 Colleges
$41,687 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Master's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 433 degrees and certificates were awarded to parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who went to a Virginia college or university. This makes it the #15 most popular major in the state.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in Virginia to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 8 schools in Virginia to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences 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 Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia

The colleges and universities below are the best for parks and rec majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top Virginia Schools for a Master's in Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness

Our 2023 rankings named University of Virginia - Main Campus the best school in Virginia for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. University of Virginia is a very large public school located in the suburb of Charlottesville.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Virginia - Main Campus

#2

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

The excellent master’s degree programs at George Mason University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in Virginia. GMU is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Fairfax.

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

#3

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA

The excellent master’s degree programs at James Madison University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in Virginia. Located in the small city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public college with a very large student population.

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

#4

Old Dominion University

Norfolk, VA

The excellent master’s degree programs at Old Dominion University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in Virginia. Old Dominion is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Norfolk.

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

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Virginia Commonwealth University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia list. VCU is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Richmond.

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#6

Randolph College

Lynchburg, VA

Randolph College ranked #6 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia list. Randolph is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Lynchburg.

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#7

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

Liberty University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia list. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.

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

#8

Hampton University

Hampton, VA

Hampton University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Hampton, Hampton is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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

Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Mississippi 160
Florida 448
North Carolina 289
Tennessee 287
Georgia 308
South Carolina 220
Louisiana 152
West Virginia 236
Kentucky 279
Arkansas 292
Alabama 216

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 8 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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