COURSE CURRICULUM

The Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management at Kent State is designed to equip students with both theoretical knowledge and practical experience for careers in recreation, park, and tourism industries. The program requires completion of foundational courses such as Foundations of Recreation and Leisure, Career Exploration in Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management, Community Development in Recreation, Leadership in Recreation, Parks and Tourism, Introduction to Global Tourism, and Principles of Outdoor Recreation, among others. Students also complete courses on inclusion, entrepreneurial approaches, experience design, resource interpretation, tourism development, leisure behavior, administration, and legal issues in sport and recreation. A significant component of the curriculum is a required internship, allowing students to apply their learning in professional settings.The program offers three concentrations to allow specialization: Park Management, Recreation Management, and Tourism Management. The Park Management concentration emphasizes outdoor recreation and resource conservation, requiring courses in Biological Diversity, General Ecology, Geographic Information Science, Environmental Education, and Conservation. Students also choose from natural resource electives such as Local Flora, Conservation Biology, Population and the Environment, and Geology of the National Parks. The Recreation Management concentration focuses on community health, nonprofit management, and recreational programming. Core courses include Introduction to Financial Accounting, Interpersonal or Intercultural Communication, Nonprofit Fundraising and Grantwriting, Event Management, Principles of Marketing, and Public Administration. Students can select concentration electives from areas such as Human Development, Community Health, Environmental Sustainability, and Esport Management. The Tourism Management concentration prepares students for careers in sustainable tourism and hospitality, emphasizing courses in Global Issues of Tourism Trade, geography electives, and business electives like Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Marketing, and Information Systems. Additional requirements across all concentrations include foundational courses in economics, psychology, statistics, communication, and Kent Core curriculum in composition, humanities, social sciences, mathematics, and basic sciences.Overall, the program provides a total of 120 credit hours, integrating academic learning with applied experience to develop students’ professional competence, leadership, and management skills for diverse careers in recreation, parks, and tourism.