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

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

9 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.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master's Degree Schools in Virginia ranking. This report analyzed 9 schools in Virginia to see which ones were the most popular master's degree programs 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

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

Our 2023 rankings named Liberty University the most popular school in Virginia for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.

Women make up 42% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

Out of the 9 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, Virginia Commonwealth University landed the # 2 spot on the list. VCU is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Richmond.

Women make up 51% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Full Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University Report

#3

Old Dominion University

Norfolk, VA

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Old Dominion University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia list. Old Dominion is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Norfolk.

Women make up 46% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

#4

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means James Madison University is a great place for parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public college with a very large student population.

Of the 34 students majoring in parks and rec at JMU, 41% are male and 59% are female.

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

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure & Fitness Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia list. University of Virginia is a very large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.

Women make up 55% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

#6

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

George Mason University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. GMU is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Fairfax.

Women make up 48% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

#7

Virginia State University

Petersburg, VA

Virginia State University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Virginia State is a small public school located in the suburb of Petersburg.

Women make up 50% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

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

#8

Hampton University

Hampton, VA

Hampton 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 #8 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Hampton, Hampton is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

About 36% of the students majoring in parks and rec at the school are women while 64% are male.

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

#9

Randolph College

Lynchburg, VA

Randolph College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular master’s degree parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs. Randolph is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.

Women make up 13% of the parks and rec majors at the school.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Randolph College

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

Explore all the Most Popular Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools 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 9 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.

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