Recreation facility manager education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a recreation facility manager. Recreation facility managers usually study kinesiology, business, or recreation management. 70% of recreation facility managers hold a bachelor's degree, and 15% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 190 real recreation facility manager resumes to see exactly what recreation facility manager education sections show.

The most common colleges for recreation facility managers are the Ohio State University and the Ohio State University.

There are also many online recreation facility manager courses to help get the education required to be a recreation facility manager.

What education do you need to become a recreation facility manager?

What degree do you need to be a recreation facility manager?

The most common degree for recreation facility managers is bachelor's degree, with 70% of recreation facility managers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 15% and master's degree degree at 10%.

Bachelor's, 70%

Master's, 15%

Associate, 10%

High School Diploma, 5%

Other Degrees, 0%

What should I major in to become a recreation facility manager?

You should major in kinesiology to become a recreation facility manager. 18% of recreation facility managers major in kinesiology. Other common majors for a recreation facility manager include business and recreation management.

Kinesiology, 18%

Business, 17%

Recreation Management, 11%

Communication, 7%

Other Majors, 47%

Most common colleges for recreation facility managers

Recreation facility managers often get their degrees at Ohio State University, Central Michigan University, and Texas A&M; University. Here are the most common colleges for recreation facility managers in the US based on their resumes.

Recreation facility manager common college	Percentages
Ohio State University	14.29%
Central Michigan University	9.52%
Texas A&M University	7.14%
University of Maryland - College Park	7.14%
University of Southern Maine	4.76%

Show more common recreation facility manager colleges

Best majors for recreation facility managers

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Kinesiology	18.2%
2	Business	17.2%
3	Recreation Management	11.1%
4	Communication	7.1%
5	Health Education	5.1%

Show more common recreation facility manager majors

Best colleges for recreation facility managers

The best colleges for recreation facility managers are Northwestern University, University of Southern California, and Stanford University.

A recreation facility manager with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for recreation facility managers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become recreation facility managers.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

2. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

3. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Enrollment

9,142

4. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

5. SUNY College at Cortland

Cortland, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,536

Enrollment

6,325

6. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

7. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Enrollment

9,394

8. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

9. University of Alaska Anchorage

Anchorage, AK • Private

In-state tuition

$8,580

Enrollment

10,482

10. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Champaign, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$15,094

Enrollment

32,974

20 best online courses for recreation facility managers

Advertising disclosure

1. High Level Biocontainment for Healthcare Facilities

The goal of this 4-week course is to equip learners to safely care for a patient infected with a pathogen requiring high-level biocontainment. This can be accomplished in any healthcare facility given the correct approach and protocols. Please copy and paste the following link into a new tab/browser to view the video overview of our course. http://bit.ly/2bPZ6Cz In this course, we will: 1. Discuss the essentials of intake screening. 2. Investigate pathogen transmission characteristics and the...

2. Recreate the First Ever Easter Egg from Adventure in Unity

In this one-hour, project-based course, we will recreate the first ever "Easter Egg" in game development history! Easter Eggs in video games are hidden features that can be revealed by pressing a combination of buttons, completing a task in a certain way or exploring remote or obscure areas of a game. They can be hidden messages from the programmers, hidden music tracks or art, even a complete hidden level. In this guided project, we will recreate the Easter egg secretly created by developer...

3. Operations Management: Facilities Planning and Management

4.4

(357)

Operations Management Training Program (Course 8 of 8)...

4. The Operations Management Training Program

4.1

(748)

Learn how to design, plan, direct, and improve all the activities that transform resources into goods or services...

5. Career Self-Management Training and Certification

In the business world, smart organizations use branding and strategic management techniques to differentiate themselves from their competition and to achieve a competitive advantage. In this Specialization, you will learn how to use proven brand management methods and tools for individual career development in competitive job environments. You will gain knowledge and analytical skills for career self-management and learn techniques for career brand building. You will create a robust...

6. Data Analytics in Sports Law and Management

Athletes, lawyers and team executive experts provide insight in how law and regulations intersect with data analytics and sports management techniques for best practices in the sports industry. Several courses provide the basis for how data analytics function within player evaluation, team performance, and roster management. The specialization introduces various regulatory, managerial and legal frameworks that includes athlete representation, facilities, and event management and conclude with...

7. Operational Risks Management ORM

4.3

(1,174)

Operational Risks Management ORM Case Studies for Risk Management, Compliance, Audit, IS Security, Banking Professionals...

8. Active Directory & Group Policy Administration for IT Techs

4.5

(651)

Active Directory & Group Policy Administration Basics for Helpdesk and Desktop / IT Support Technicians...

9. [Active Directory] Management using Windows PowerShell

4.5

(1,078)

[Power Shell] Simplified practical knowledge for automation & management of [Active Directory] using Windows Power Shell...

10. Operations Management: Supply Chains, Products and Services

4.3

(833)

Master Supply Chain Management and Product and Service Development in Manufacturing and Service Organizations...

11. Manufacturing Operations - Planning, Management and Control

4.6

(942)

Cutting-Edge Production Management Methods That Will Help You Outperform the Competition...

12. IT service operations and Service Desk management

4.4

(2,841)

Improve Service Desk and IT support processes and service functions. Better preparation for the professional exam...

13. Identity & Access Management - Azure Active Directory

4.5

(636)

Learn about Identity, Directory , SAML , OAUTH , Open ID Connect , Identity Security and Azure Active Directory...

14. Oracle Apps WMS and MSCA Training

4.1

(396)

Oracle EBS R12 Oracle Warehouse Management and Mobile Supply Chain Training...

15. Operations Management in small businesses: key techniques

4.4

(2,020)

A toolkit for making small business operations effective and efficient...

16. MBA: Supply Chain and Operation management

4.5

(266)

Tactics, Tools, and Techniques required to become a Supply chain and operation manager...

17. Operations Management: Inventory Management

(301)

Operations Management Training Program (Course 4 of 8)...

18. Operations Management A-Z: Business Processes and Systems

4.6

(4,741)

Operations Management: Supply Chain & Business Processes in Industry for Manufacturing and Services Organizations...

19. Active Directory on Windows Server

4.6

(8,804)

Learn how to deploy and manage all aspects of Active Directory, Group Policy, DNS and many more technologies...

20. SAP Activate Project Manager Masterclass (C_ACTIVATE_22/13)

4.5

(1,983)

Learn SAP Activate Methodology (Act100) Learn Agile Methodology (Act200) Based on Activate 22 and Activate 13...

Top 10 most affordable universities for recreation facility managers

The most affordable schools for recreation facility managers are SUNY Farmingdale, california state university - bakersfield, and brooklyn college of the city university of new york.

If the best universities for recreation facility managers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for recreation facility managers.

1. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

2. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

3. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

4. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

5. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

6. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

7. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

8. Minot State University

Minot, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$7,064

Cost of attendance

15,576

9. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

10. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for recreation facility managers

The hardest universities for recreation facility managers to get into are Northwestern University, University of Southern California, and Stanford University.

Some great schools for recreation facility managers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for recreation facility managers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

2. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

3. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,497

4. George Washington University, The

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

42%

SAT average

1,380

5. University of Tulsa

Tulsa, OK • Private

Admissions rate

41%

SAT average

1,321

6. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

7. Baylor University

Waco, TX • Private

Admissions rate

39%

SAT average

1,307

8. Syracuse University

Syracuse, NY • Private

Admissions rate

50%

SAT average

1,284

9. Northeastern University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

19%

SAT average

1,466

10. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

Admissions rate

40%

SAT average

1,376

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for recreation facility managers

The easiest schools for recreation facility managers to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, holy names university, and wayland baptist university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a recreation facility manager without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for recreation facility managers.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

3. Wayland Baptist University

Plainview, TX • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

1,003

4. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

5. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

6. Life University

Marietta, GA • Private

Admissions rate

94%

SAT average

979

7. Presentation College

Aberdeen, SD • Private

Admissions rate

97%

SAT average

1,050

8. Manor College

Jenkintown, PA • Private

Admissions rate

94%

SAT average

898

9. Holy Family University

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

72%

SAT average

1,017

10. Saint Joseph's College of Maine

Standish, ME • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,069

Average recreation facility manager salary by education level

According to our data, recreation facility managers with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $61,399 annually. Recreation facility managers with a Bachelor's degree earn an average annual salary of $56,914.

Recreation facility manager education level	Recreation facility manager salary
Master's Degree	$61,399
High School Diploma or Less	$43,380
Bachelor's Degree	$56,914
Some College/ Associate Degree	$51,573

Recreation facility manager education FAQs

What is the best college for Recreation Facility Managers?

Have more questions? See all answers to common personal care and attendants questions.

Search for recreation facility manager jobs

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse personal care and attendants jobs