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2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in the Southwest Region

5 Ranked Colleges
145 Degrees Awarded
$20,900 Avg Cost*
Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor's

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for veterans. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies is the 218th most popular major in the country with 3,106 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.

Across the Southwest region, there were 247 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 145 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,112 and $26,227 respectively.

This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s” ranking analyzed 5 colleges that offered a degree in parks, recreation and leisure studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great parks, recreation and leisure studies programs and a strong support system for veterans and active service members.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as veteran satisfaction, veteran affordability, and overall quality of the parks, recreation and leisure studies program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools

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The parks & rec school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s”.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s

The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region bachelor’s degree vets studying parks & rec.

Top 5 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in the Southwest Region

1

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Oklahoma State University - Main Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s list. This large school is located in Stillwater, Oklahoma, and it awarded 28 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our southwest region bachelor’s degree vets studying parks & rec list, OSU has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking.Among the 24,535 students enrolled at OSU, 1,038 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 439 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $7,226. In addition to receiving other benefits, 39 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

[Read full report on veteran student life at OSU]](/colleges/oklahoma-state-university-main-campus/student-life/veterans/)

2
NAU crest
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, Arizona

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northern Arizona University. The school came in at #2 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. Flagstaff, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to 52 students in 2020-2021.

NAU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list.Of the 29,566 students enrolled at Northern Arizona University, 1,055 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 622 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $6,378. During this same period, 56 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

[Read full report on veteran student life at Northern Arizona University]](/colleges/northern-arizona-university/student-life/veterans/)

3

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Central Oklahoma. The school came in at #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. University of Central Oklahoma is located in Edmond, Oklahoma and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 8 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

UCO also took the #4 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking.Of the 14,132 students enrolled at UCO, 934 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 428 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $6,062. During this same period, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. UCO offers credit for military training for eligible students.

Full UCO Veteran Student Life Report

4

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southeastern Oklahoma State University. The school came in at #4 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. This medium-sized school is located in Durant, Oklahoma, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Southeastern Oklahoma State University also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #6.Our most recent data shows that 265 of the 5,607 students enrolled at Southeastern Oklahoma State University were GI Bill® students, of which 152 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $3,866. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

[Read full report on veteran student life at Southeastern Oklahoma State University]](/colleges/southeastern-oklahoma-state-university/student-life/veterans/)

5
MSU Texas crest
MSU Texas
Wichita Falls, Texas

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend MSU Texas. The school came in at #5 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. MSU Texas is a medium-sized public school situated in Wichita Falls, Texas. It awarded 12 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

MSU Texas also took the #5 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking.Among the 5,860 students enrolled at MSU Texas, 318 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 137 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $4,829. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

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Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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