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Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

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2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

24 Colleges
$41,687 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Master's Degree 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.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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 the Plains States Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 24 schools in the Plains States Region to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Master's Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Master's Degree Schools

Our analysis found South Dakota State University to be the best school for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the Plains States Region . Located in the remote town of Brookings, South Dakota State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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

#2

Saint Cloud State University

Saint Cloud, MN

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Saint Cloud State University is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the small city of Saint Cloud, St. Cloud State University is a public school with a large student population.

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Out of the 24 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities landed the # 3 spot on the list. UMN Twin Cities is a fairly large public school located in the city of Minneapolis.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Concordia University, Nebraska. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Concordia University, Nebraska is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Seward.

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The excellent master’s degree programs at Iowa State University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in the Plains States Region . Located in the city of Ames, Iowa State is a public college with a very large student population.

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

#6

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

University of Iowa came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Iowa is a very large public school located in the small city of Iowa City.

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

With a ranking of #7, Minot State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the town of Minot, MSU is a public school with a small student population.

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

With a ranking of #8, University of Missouri - Columbia did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Columbia, Mizzou is a public college with a very large student population.

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Minnesota State University - Mankato landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the small city of Mankato, Minnesota State Mankato is a public college with a large student population.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Minnesota State University - Mankato

#10

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA

With a ranking of #10, University of Northern Iowa did quite well on this year’s best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. UNI is a moderately-sized public school located in the small city of Cedar Falls.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at University of Northern Iowa 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 Plains States region.

State Degrees Awarded
Kansas 50
Missouri 247
Minnesota 151
Iowa 136
North Dakota 36
Nebraska 36
South Dakota 61

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 24 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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