2025 Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in Illinois
18
Colleges in Illinois
2,341
Parks & Rec Degrees Awarded
$34,494
Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in
parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #15 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 18 schools in Illinois to determine which ones were the best for parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 2,341 degrees in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School
The parks & rec program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies rankings. For our Best Overall Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Rankings by Degree Level
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies Schools in Illinois ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat.
Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.
If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.
Best Schools for Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies in Illinois
The schools below may not offer all types of parks & rec degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.
10 Top Illinois Schools in Parks & Rec
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies. UIUC is a very large public university located in the city of Champaign. A Best Colleges rank of #41 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.
There were approximately 329 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign earn a boost of approximately $2,418 over the typical income of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies graduates.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Concordia University, Chicago is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies. Located in the suburb of River Forest, Concordia University, Chicago is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #125 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Concordia University, Chicago is a great university overall.
There were about 375 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Concordia University, Chicago in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Concordia University, Chicago earn a boost of around $10,876 over the typical income of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Concordia University, Chicago
University of Illinois at Chicago is a great decision for students pursuing a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies. Located in the city of Chicago, UIC is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #254 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UIC is a great university overall.
There were approximately 131 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at UIC in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, parks & rec degree recipients usually make around $28,874 at the beginning of their careers.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from University of Illinois at Chicago
It's hard to beat North Central College if you wish to pursue a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies. North Central is a small private not-for-profit college located in the midsize city of Naperville. This college ranks 32nd out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.
There were approximately 53 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at North Central in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the parks & rec program report average early career income of $34,609.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from North Central College
Illinois State is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Normal. A Best Colleges rank of #210 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Illinois State is a great university overall.
There were about 219 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Illinois State in the most recent year we have data available. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Illinois State University receive an earnings boost of about $4,262 above the typical earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Illinois State University
Aurora is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Aurora. A Best Colleges rank of #348 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Aurora is a great university overall.
There were about 104 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Aurora in the most recent data year. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies degree recipients from Aurora University get an earnings boost of approximately $2,762 over the average earnings of parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies majors.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Aurora University
Located in the small suburb of Dekalb, NIU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #529 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means NIU is a great university overall.
There were about 134 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at NIU in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, parks & rec degree recipients generally make an average of $34,745 at the beginning of their careers.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Northern Illinois University
Located in the remote town of Charleston, EIU is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 52nd out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.
There were approximately 105 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at EIU in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, parks & rec degree recipients typically earn about $35,637 in their early careers.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Eastern Illinois University
Located in the town of Macomb, WIU is a public university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 37th out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.
There were about 91 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at WIU in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the parks & rec program make about $32,402 in their early career salary.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Western Illinois University
Located in the large suburb of Elmhurst, Elmhurst is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #730 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Elmhurst is a great university overall.
There were about 37 parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies students who graduated with this degree at Elmhurst in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the parks & rec program state that they receive average early career wages of $31,538.
More information about a degree in parks, recreation, leisure, & fitness studies from Elmhurst University
