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2023 Best Value Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in California (With Aid)

10 Ranked Colleges
678 Degrees Awarded
$13,700 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies is the 166th most popular major in the country with 3,106 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $31,801 and had an average of $23,333 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 678 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,222 and $17,096 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 10 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in parks, recreation and leisure studies. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality parks, recreation and leisure studies programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the parks, recreation and leisure studies program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

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When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid.

Top 10 Best Value Colleges for Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies in California (With Aid)

1

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #1 spot on the list. CSULB is a public institution located in Long Beach, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 91 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

CSULB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend CSULB is $10,054 for california parks & rec students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at California State University - Long Beach

2

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Sacramento landed the #2 spot on the list. Sac State is a large public school situated in Sacramento, California. It awarded 100 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Sac State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Sacramento is $11,178 for california parks & rec students with aid.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full California State University - Sacramento Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

3

Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the #3 spot on the list. Fresno State is a large school located in Fresno, California that handed out 37 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

Fresno State also took the #8 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Fresno is $6,230 for California Parks & Rec students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at Fresno State

4
San Jose State crest
San Jose State University
San Jose, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend San Jose State University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid. Located in San Jose, California, this large public school awarded 40 diplomas to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.

San Jose State also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend San Jose State is $16,542 for california parks & rec students with aid.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at San Jose State University

5

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Chico. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Chico, California, this fairly large public school handed out 99 degrees to qualified ’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.

Chico State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” list. It costs about $16,218 for California Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend Chico State.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Chico State Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

6

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in San Luis Obispo, California, and it awarded 119 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california parks & rec students with aid list, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $20,677 for California Parks & Rec students with aid per year to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

7

California State University - East Bay did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #7. Cal State East Bay is located in Hayward, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 31 ’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

Cal State East Bay also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #9. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - East Bay is $13,298 for California Parks & Rec students with aid.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at California State University - East Bay

8
SFSU crest
San Francisco State University
San Francisco, California

San Francisco State University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. SFSU is a public institution located in San Francisco, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 46 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

SFSU also took the #6 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $14,459 for california parks & rec students with aid per year to attend San Francisco State University.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full San Francisco State University Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Report

9
SDSU crest
San Diego State University
San Diego, California

San Diego State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. San Diego State University is a large school located in San Diego, California that handed out 32 ’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.

SDSU also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $13,845 for california parks & rec students with aid per year to attend SDSU.

With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies at San Diego State University

10
Humboldt State University crest
Humboldt State University
Arcata, California

Humboldt State University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Humboldt State University is a public institution located in Arcata, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 31 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Humboldt State University also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #10. The estimated yearly cost for Humboldt State University is $14,956 for california parks & rec students with aid.

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

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