College Scorecard · field of study · all U.S. colleges

Is a Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Facilities Management degree worth the debt?

The figures below lead with the Bachelor's, aggregated across 54 colleges (54 of 54 programs report earnings). Other credential levels are in the table further down.

Median pay · 1 yr after

$32,018

Graduates only, early career.$31,662 two years out.

Median federal debt

$22,883

Federal loans only — not private or Parent PLUS.

Debt vs a year's pay

0.72×

72% of a first year's earnings.

Typical debt is under a year's early-career pay.

The college you pick moves this a lot

The middle 50% of Bachelor's programs in Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Facilities Management report early-career pay between $29,378 and $33,475 — a spread of $4,097 that depends on the program and who attends it, not the major alone.

25th pct $29,378 median $32,018 75th pct $33,475

By degree level

Each level is a separate decision — more schooling usually means more pay and more debt.

LevelPay · 1yrDebtDebt/pay

Bachelor's 54 colleges $32,018 $22,883 0.72×

Master's 9 colleges $41,564 $36,000 0.82×

Where a Bachelor's in this field reports the highest early-career pay

The 15 programs with the highest reported pay one year after completion. This reflects who enrolls and where they live as much as the program itself — it is not a causal quality ranking.

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo CA $39,393 —

Saint Cloud State University MN $36,965 $21,500 debt

Minnesota State University-Mankato MN $36,914 $25,500 debt

Southwestern Oklahoma State University OK $36,232 $16,500 debt

St. Joseph's University-New York NY $36,149 $20,000 debt

University of Northern Colorado CO $35,985 $23,875 debt

Illinois State University IL $34,835 $19,236 debt

University of New Hampshire-Main Campus NH $33,992 $27,000 debt

University of Florida FL $33,795 $16,172 debt

University of Florida-Online FL $33,795 $16,172 debt

Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus PA $33,729 $23,000 debt

Pennsylvania State University-World Campus PA $33,729 $23,000 debt

Clemson University SC $33,548 $19,500 debt

Eastern Illinois University IL $33,478 $21,500 debt

Kansas State University KS $33,465 $21,500 debt

What these numbers are — and are not

Every figure here is a median across college programs in Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Facilities Management, from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. It is not a prediction of what you would earn (your college, effort, and local job market vary enormously — see the spread above), not lifetime earnings (it is measured 1–2 years after completion, early career), not proof the major caused the outcome (who enters a field differs by field — selection, not causation), and not a "best majors" ranking: earnings are one dimension of worth, not the whole of it. Teaching and social work pay far less than the fields at the top of this list and matter enormously. Earnings cover federally-aided completers at programs large enough to report.

Also available: structured data (JSON-LD) · plain text · JSON. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard — Field of Study (2026-06-10 release). · explore this field on the official Scorecard