2025 Best Outdoor Education Master's Degree Schools

Outdoor Educationmaster's programs are on the lower end of the spectrum in terms of popularity. In fact, the major degree program ranks #282 out of the 343 majors we look at each year. While this may limit the number of schools that offer the degree program, there are still top-quality ones to be found.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 2 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Outdoor Education Master's Degree Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 65 master's degrees in outdoor education during the <nil> academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

• Best Master’s Degree Schools List

Average Early-Career Salaries

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their master's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your master's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

• Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to outdoor education students as compared to other majors.
• Major Demand - The number of outdoor education students who choose to seek a master's degree at the school.
• Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
• Student Debt - How easy is it for outdoor education to pay back their student loans after receiving their master's degree.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized outdoor education related body.

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for outdoor education students working on their master's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Outdoor Education Master's Degree Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Outdoor Education in the United States

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in outdoor education.

Top Schools for a Master's in Outdoor Ed

1

Minnesota State University - Mankato
Mankato, MN

15 Annual Graduates

It is hard to beat Minnesota State University - Mankato if you want to pursue a master's degree in outdoor education. Minnesota State Mankato is a large public university located in the city of Mankato.More information about a master’s in outdoor education from Minnesota State University - Mankato

2

Western Carolina University
Cullowhee, NC

17 Annual Graduates

It's difficult to beat Western Carolina University if you want to pursue a master's degree in outdoor education. Located in the town of Cullowhee, WCU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in outdoor education from Western Carolina University

Outdoor Education by Region

View the Best Outdoor Education Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

View All Rankings >

Outdoor Education Related Rankings by Major

Outdoor Education is one of 4 different types of Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies programs to choose from.

Outdoor Ed Focus Areas

Major	Annual Graduates
Outdoor Education	65

Most Popular Majors Related to Outdoor Ed

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Health & Physical Education	9,192
Recreation Administration	360
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies	174
Other Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies	25

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• 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 SLenartowicz. More about our data sources and methodologies.