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Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in New York

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2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in New York

9 Colleges
$33,338 Avg Salary
$21,820 Avg Student Debt

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

In 2020-2021, 327 degrees and certificates were awarded to parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students who went to a New York college or university. This makes it the #25 most popular major in the state.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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 Schools in New York ranking. Our analysis looked at 9 schools in New York to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in New York

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

Top New York Schools in Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness

Our 2023 rankings named Columbia University in the City of New York the best school in New York for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. Located in the city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York

#2

Canisius College

Buffalo, NY

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Canisius College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in New York list. Canisius is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Buffalo.

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#3

Manhattanville College

Purchase, NY

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Manhattanville College. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in New York list. Manhattanville is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Purchase.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Manhattanville College Report

#4

Brooklyn College

Brooklyn, NY

The excellent programs at Brooklyn College helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in New York. Located in the large city of Brooklyn, Brooklyn College is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Brooklyn College Report

#5

SUNY Cortland

Cortland, NY

Out of the 9 schools in New York that were part of this year’s ranking, SUNY Cortland landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the distant town of Cortland, SUNY Cortland is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at SUNY Cortland Report

St John’s University - New York landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Located in the large city of Queens, STJ is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at St John’s University - New York Report

#7

Queens College

Queens, NY

Queens College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students. It came in at #7 on the list. QC is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Queens.

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#8

Niagara University

Niagara University, NY

Niagara 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 #8 on the list. Niagara is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Niagara University.

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

#9

Adelphi University

Garden City, NY

Adelphi University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Schools in New York ranking. Adelphi is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Garden City.

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

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

State Degrees Awarded
Pennsylvania 610
Maryland 32
New Jersey 79
District of Columbia 213
Delaware 23

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 9 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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