Find Grad Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in New York

Find Schools Near

2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in New York

13 Colleges
$41,687 Avg Salary

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

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in New York to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 13 schools in New York to see which master's degree programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies program at each school on the list.

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

#1

SUNY Cortland

Cortland, NY

Our 2023 rankings named SUNY Cortland the most popular school in New York for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the town of Cortland, SUNY Cortland is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Women make up 41% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Columbia University in the City of New York is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Of the 67 students majoring in parks and rec at Columbia, 73% are male and 27% are female.

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

#3

Canisius College

Buffalo, NY

The in-demand master’s degree programs at Canisius College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies schools in New York. Canisius is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Buffalo.

Women make up 32% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Read More…

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means St John’s University - New York is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Queens, STJ is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

About 42% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 58% are male.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at St John’s University - New York

#5

Brooklyn College

Brooklyn, NY

Out of the 13 schools in New York that were part of this year’s ranking, Brooklyn College landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the large city of Brooklyn, Brooklyn College is a public college with a large student population.

Women make up 32% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

#6

Adelphi University

Garden City, NY

With a ranking of #6, Adelphi University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Adelphi is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Garden City.

About 42% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 58% are male.

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

#7

Queens College

Queens, NY

Queens College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. QC is a large public school located in the large city of Queens.

Of the 22 students majoring in parks and rec at QC, 41% are male and 59% are female.

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

#8

Manhattanville College

Purchase, NY

With a ranking of #8, Manhattanville College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Manhattanville is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Purchase.

Women make up 57% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Read More…

#9

Niagara University

Niagara University, NY

Niagara University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in New York ranking. Niagara is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Niagara University.

Of the 9 students majoring in parks and rec at Niagara, 33% are male and 67% are female.

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

Teachers College at Columbia University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the city of New York, Teachers College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Women make up 17% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Teachers College at Columbia University Report

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

Explore all the Most Popular 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 13 schools only.

  • 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.