2023 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in the Great Lakes Region
7
Ranked Colleges
358
Degrees Awarded
$29,962
Avg Salary
Veterans have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 3,106 people earned their degree in parks, recreation and leisure studies, making the major the 166th most popular in the United States. 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 the Great Lakes region, there were 475 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,140 and $23,596 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 358 parks, recreation and leisure studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,343 and $26,790 respectively.
This year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s” ranking looked at 7 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in parks, recreation and leisure studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent parks, recreation and leisure studies programs, but they also offer a lot of support to veterans and active service members.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the parks, recreation and leisure studies program at the school, veteran affordability, and veteran population. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
More Ways to Rank Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Schools
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 Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s”.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s
The following schools top our list of the Best “Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s”.
Top 7 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in the Great Lakes Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The school came in at #1 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 99 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
UIUC also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #1.Our most recent data shows that 10 of the 52,679 students enrolled at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign were GI Bill® students, of which 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $0. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students qualified for 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 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read More…
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Indiana University - Bloomington. The school came in at #2 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. Indiana University - Bloomington is a public institution located in Bloomington, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 134 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree vets studying parks & rec list, IU Bloomington has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking.Of the 43,064 students enrolled at IU Bloomington, 1 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $0. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
[Read full report on veteran student life at IU Bloomington]](/colleges/indiana-university-bloomington/student-life/veterans/)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Ohio University - Athens Campus. The school came in at #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. OHIO Athens is a public institution located in Athens, Ohio. The school has a large population, and it awarded 28 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
OHIO Athens also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #3.Of the 25,714 students enrolled at Ohio University - Athens Campus, 726 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 324 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $6,725. To help with additional expenses, 10 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Ohio University - Athens Campus does offer credit for military training for eligible students.
[Read full report on veteran student life at OHIO Athens]](/colleges/ohio-university-main-campus/student-life/veterans/)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The school came in at #4 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s. SIUC is a public institution located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 18 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
SIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list.Of the 11,366 students enrolled at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, 1 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $0. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Southern Illinois University Carbondale does offer credit for military training for eligible students.
Full SIUC Veteran Student Life Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bowling Green State University - Main Campus. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s list. Located in Bowling Green, Ohio, this fairly large public school awarded 45 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s parks and rec students in 2020-2021.
BGSU also made our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #5.Of the 18,142 students enrolled at BGSU, 577 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 258 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $6,808. In addition to receiving other benefits, 3 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. BGSU does offer credit for military training for eligible students.
Read More…
With a ranking of #6, Northern Michigan University did quite well on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s list. Northern Michigan University is a medium-sized public school situated in Marquette, Michigan. It awarded 16 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Northern Michigan University, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking.Among the 7,368 students enrolled at Northern Michigan University, 337 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 136 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $8,630. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Northern Michigan University does offer credit for military training for eligible students.
Full Northern Michigan University Veteran Student Life Report
With a ranking of #7, Olivet Nazarene University did quite well on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Great Lakes Region for Parks & Rec for a Bachelor’s list. This small school is located in Bourbonnais, Illinois, and it awarded 6 bachelors’s parks and rec degrees in 2020-2021.
Olivet Nazarene did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list.According to our most recent data, Olivet Nazarene University supports 3,764 students, and 57 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 35 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $12,334. In addition to receiving other benefits, 11 students received funds through 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%.
Full Olivet Nazarene Veteran Student Life Report
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Notes and References
References
- 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 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).
- Veteran-specific data can be found at the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
- *Avg Salary and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate are for the top schools only.
- **GI Bill® student total includes all chapters of the GI Bill® program (e.g., Post-9/11, Montgomery GI Bill, Reserve Education Assistance Program, and Veteran Readiness and Employment)
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
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