Parks, Recreation, & Leisure

Contains Stem Majors

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    Total Degrees​
    Awarded in 2024
    70,398
    declining 0.493%
    Median In-State​
    Public Tuition
    $7,488
    growing 2.8%
    Median Out-of-State​
    Private Tuition
    $33,960
    growing 3.29%
    Average Wage
    $78,922
    growing 4.01%
    People in Workforce
    820,179
    growing 5.1%
    Average Employee Age
    36.3
    growing 0.533%

    About

    In 2024, the locations with the highest concentration of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure degree recipients are Los Angeles, CA, Charles Town, WV, and Fullerton, CA. In 2024, the locations with a relatively high number of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure degree recipients are Daphne, AL, Carpinteria, CA, and Babson Park, FL. The most common degree awarded to students studying Parks, Recreation, & Leisure is a bachelors degree.

    Institutions

    Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure and the types of students that study this field. American Public University System awards the most degrees in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure in the US, but Focus Personal Training Institute and National Personal Training Institute have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure.

    Tuition costs for Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors are, on average, $7,488 for in-state public colleges, and $33,960 for out of state private colleges.

    The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Parks, Recreation, & Leisure programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (628 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 4-year or above (44,946 completions).

    Institutions

    Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure (2024)
    1. 683 degrees awarded
    2. 682 degrees awarded
    3. 633 degrees awarded

    The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure, is Public, 4-year or above (44,946 completions in 2024).

    The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Parks, Recreation, & Leisure programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

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    Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

    $7,488
    Median In-State Public
    $33,960
    Median Out of State Private

    American Public University System has the most Parks, Recreation, & Leisure degree recipients, with 683 degrees awarded in 2024.

    The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure.

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    Specialized Colleges

    Out of all institutions that offer Parks, Recreation, & Leisure programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Focus Personal Training Institute has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure, with 100%.

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    Degrees Awarded by County

    Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure
    1. 3,093 degrees awarded
    2. 1,312 degrees awarded
    3. 1,067 degrees awarded

    This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure by year.

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    Employment

    Information on the businesses and industries that employ Parks, Recreation, & Leisure graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

    The average salary for Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors is $78,922 and the most common occupations are Physical therapists, Elementary & middle school teachers, and Secondary school teachers.

    The industry that employs the most Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Nonferrous metal (except aluminum) production & processing.

    Yearly Income for Common Jobs

    $78,922
    Average Wage in Workforce
    ± $2,142
    4.01%
    1 Year Growth
    ± 3.74%

    The average salary for Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors is $78,922 and the most common occupations are Physical therapists, Elementary & middle school teachers, and Secondary school teachers.

    This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors.

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    Highest Paying Locations

    This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors.

    Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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    Most Specialized

    Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors working as Recreational therapists, Physical therapists, and Recreation & fitness workers.

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    Occupations by Share

    820,179
    2024 Workforce
    ± 22,176
    5.1%
    1 Year Growth
    ± 3.68%

    The number of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 5.1%, from 780,408 in 2023 to 820,179 in 2024.

    The largest single share of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure graduates go on to work as Physical therapists (5.16%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure by share of the total number of graduates.

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    Industries by Share

    820,179
    2024 Workforce
    ± 22,176
    5.1%
    1 Year Growth
    ± 3.68%

    The number of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 5.1%, from 780,408 in 2023 to 820,179 in 2024.

    The industry which employs the most Parks, Recreation, & Leisure graduates by share is Elementary & secondary schools, followed by General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure.

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    Specialty Locations

    This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors.

    Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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    Diversity

    Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure in the United States.

    The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure is 36.3.

    The most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Male employees are more likely to hold Parks, Recreation, & Leisure degrees, and White students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure (37,964 students).

    Workforce Age

    36.3
    Average Age in 2024
    ± 0.29 Years
    0.533%
    1 Year Change
    ± 1.14%

    This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure. The most common ages of employees with this major are 29 and 31 years old, which represent 4.79% and 4.71% of the population, respectively.

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    Degrees Awarded

    The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.

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    Workforce Degrees

    The most common degree types held by the working population in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Doctorate degree.

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    Sex Imbalance for Common Institutions

    Male (52.8%)
    Most Common Sex with a Degree in this Field

    This chart shows the granted degrees by sex at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure.

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    Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

    Degrees
    Most Common Race or Ethnicity
    1. White
      37,964 degrees awarded in 2024
    2. Hispanic or Latino
      13,137 degrees awarded in 2024
    3. Black or African American
      8,376 degrees awarded in 2024

    This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure for each race & ethnicity.

    In 2024, White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

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    Race & Ethnicity by Sex

    Degrees
    Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Sex Combination
    1. White Male
      14,968 degrees awarded
    2. White Female
      14,509 degrees awarded
    3. Hispanic or Latino Female
      4,436 degrees awarded

    This chart illustrates the differences by sex for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Parks, Recreation, & Leisure.

    White Male students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and sex.

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    Global Diversity

    Most Common Countries of Origin
    1. India
      5,592 degree recipients
    2. Mexico
      5,414 degree recipients
    3. Philippines
      4,276 degree recipients
    High Relative Number of Students
    1. Libya
      12.7 times more than expected
    2. England
      5.24 times more than expected
    3. Grenada
      4.65 times more than expected

    There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Libya that hold Parks, Recreation, & Leisure degrees (12.7 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is India (5,592 degree recipients).

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    Skills

    Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Parks, Recreation, & Leisure field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors need many skills, but most especially Speaking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors need more than the average amount of Service Orientation, Management of Financial Resources, and Troubleshooting.

    These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Parks, Recreation, & Leisure majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Service Orientation is very distinctive for majors, but the Speaking, Instructing, and Active Listening are the three most important skills for people in the field.

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    Bar Chart

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