MAJORS · 42 OF 115 SUBFIELDS BY ROI
Is a recreation management degree worth it?
Part of Public Administration and Human Services — see the whole category’s numbers.
On average, yes — the mean lifetime ROI is +$164,945. But the spread is the real story.
MEAN LIFETIME ROI · FREOPP 2021 · COHORT-WEIGHTED
+$164,945
across 64 bachelor’s programs · 6,439 graduates
MEDIAN GRADUATE
+$167K
MIDDLE 50% LAND BETWEEN
+$92K ⟷ +$239K
NEVER BREAK EVEN
10.2%
MEDIAN PROGRAM-ESTIMATED BREAK-EVEN AGE
36
Among programs that break even; weighted by graduate cohorts. These are program estimates, not tracked individual graduate outcomes.
ADJUSTED FOR REAL COMPLETION RATES
+$63K
IF YOU DROP OUT
−$109K
Questions
- Is a recreation management degree worth it?
- On average yes — across 64 U.S. bachelor’s programs (FREOPP 2021, cohort-weighted), the mean lifetime ROI for Recreation Management is +$164,945 and the median is +$166,564. 10.2% of graduate cohort weight with reported break-even data is in programs flagged as never breaking even. The honest answer depends heavily on the specific program and school: the middle half of graduates land between +$91,935 and +$238,690.
- How long until a recreation management degree pays off?
- For Recreation Management, Among programs that break even, the median program-estimated break-even age, weighted by graduate cohorts, is 36. 10.2% of graduate cohort weight with reported break-even data is in programs flagged as never breaking even. FREOPP 2021.
- Does the school matter for a recreation management major?
- Enormously. The middle 50% of Recreation Management graduates span +$91,935 to +$238,690 — a +$147K spread within one major. The same field can be a strong trade at one school and a losing one at another, which is why the per-school number matters more than the field average.
↓ Download the data (CSV) · All 115 subfields with full statistics. Free to cite with attribution. · Methodology
Cite this:
LE TEEN (2026). “Recreation Management: lifetime ROI statistics.” Data: FREOPP 2021. https://le-teen.com/majors/recreation-management