2022 Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region

Students 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 “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 72,122 people earned their degree in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies, making the major the 15th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,823 and had an average of $24,576 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Middle Atlantic region, there were 7,835 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,659 and $25,497 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 19 parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $73,944 and $116,843 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking looked at 4 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great parks, recreation, leisure, and fitness studies programs and cost less that 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, leisure, and fitness studies program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

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 Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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. 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.

Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for middle atlantic region doctor’s degree parks & rec students.

Top 5 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies in the Middle Atlantic Region

#1

Temple University

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

#1 in overall quality

$24,236 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Temple University landed the #1 spot on the list. Temple is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 5 doctorate’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

Temple also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” list, coming in at #1. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Temple are $24,236.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Temple

#2

University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, Maryland

#2 in overall quality

$30,885 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Maryland - College Park landed the #2 spot on the list. College Park, Maryland is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s parks and rec degrees to 2 students in 2019-2020.

UMCP also took the #2 spot in our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Maryland - College Park are $30,885, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full UMCP Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Report

#3

Rutgers University - New Brunswick

New Brunswick, New Jersey

#4 in overall quality

$32,132 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Rutgers University - New Brunswick. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region. Rutgers New Brunswick is located in New Brunswick, New Jersey and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 4 doctorate’s parks and rec degrees to qualified students.

Rutgers New Brunswick not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Rutgers New Brunswick are $32,132, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Rutgers University - New Brunswick

#4

Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, New York

#1 in overall quality

$51,194 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Columbia University in the City of New York. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region. Columbia University in the City of New York is a private not-for-profit institution located in New York, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Columbia did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Columbia University in the City of New York are $51,194, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York

#4

Pennsylvania State University - University Park

University Park, Pennsylvania

#3 in overall quality

$38,728 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Parks & Rec Schools for a Doctorate in the Middle Atlantic Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Pennsylvania State University - University Park landed the #4 spot on the list.

Penn State University Park also made our “Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Doctor’s Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region” list, coming in at #3. Average graduate tuition and fees at Pennsylvania State University - University Park are $38,728, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies at Penn State University Park

• Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies

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).
• 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

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• 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.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to NPS Photo/Zurbuch.

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