General Requirements (Core Areas A - E) Credit Hours: 42

Additional Requirements Credit Hours: 4

Area F - Courses Appropriate to Major Credit Hours: 18

All Recreation students must take

• RECR 1530 - Introduction to Recreation (3 Credit Hours) and
• RECR 2530 - Leadership and Programming in Leisure Services (3 Credit Hours)
• Select 12 credit hours of departmental approved Area F electives. ¹

Major Requirements Credit Hours: 21

• RECR 4430 - Financial and Legal Dimensions of Recreation (3 Credit Hours)
• RECR 4435 - Managing Recreation Organizations (3 Credit Hours)
• RECR 4530 - Marketing Recreation Services (3 Credit Hours)
• RECR 4790 - Internship (12 Credit Hours)

Outdoor Recreation Emphasis Credit Hours: 18

• RECR 3230 - Adventure Education (3 Credit Hours)
• RECR 3235 - Outdoor Recreation Management (3 Credit Hours)
• RECR 4230 - Environmental Education and Interpretation (3 Credit Hours)
• RECR 4630 - Professional Development in Recreation (3 Credit Hours)
• Directed Upper Division Recreation Electives - Choose any two 3000 or higher level RECR courses

Guided Major Electives Credit Hours: 15

• Select 15 credit hours of departmental approved Guided Major Electives or minor coursework. ¹

Free Electives Credit Hours: 6

• Select 6 credit hours of electives in any subject.

Total Credit Hours: 124

¹ Suggested areas of study include Anthropology, Biology, Business, Child & Family Development, Coaching, Health Education & Promotion, Criminal Justice, Geography, Geographic Information Science, History, Hospitality Management, Journalism, Marketing, Management, Nonprofit Management, Public Administration, Public Policy, Public Relations, Psychology, Sociology and Sport Management.

Program Admission Criteria

• 2.0 GPA for Outdoor Recreation, Recreational Therapy, and Tourism and Community Leisure Services
• 2.0 GPA to enroll in Internship
• Students must complete all Area A1 and Area A2 requirements and Introduction to RECR 1530 Introduction to Recreation  prior to admission to the program.

Honors in Recreation

• Be admitted to the Honors College
• Successfully complete at least three credits of HONS 4610  over three semesters
• Successfully complete and present an Honors Thesis or Capstone Project
• Be in good standing in the Honors College at the time of graduation

Other Program Requirements

• A minimum grade of “C” is required for each RECR or non-RECR course taken in Area F, Major Requirements, Areas of Emphasis, and Guided Major Electives.

Accelerated Bachelors to Masters (MPA-ABM) with Recreation B.S.

Degree Requirements: 39 Credit Hours

The MPA-ABM with Recreation B.S. is designed to allow students to enter the Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree program after completing 90 credit hours. Students admitted into the MPA-ABM program may take up to 12 graduate credit hours within the undergraduate Recreation degree program that will count toward the MPA. There must be a minimum of 150 unique credit hours between the two programs. 

Admission Requirements

Regular Admission

Students may be accepted into the MPA-ABM program if all of the criteria are met:

1. Student must have earned a minimum of 90 credit hours and have completed an application for admission to the MPA-ABM program.
2. Student must be a declared major in the Recreation B.S. degree program, with an emphasis in Outdoor Recreation or Tourism and Community Leisure Services.
3. Student must have a minimum GPA of 3.25.
4. Student must meet all of the other criteria for Regular Admission into the MPA program. Provisional Admission will not be allowed.

Program of Study

Students in the MPA-ABM should take the following courses as “Guided Major Electives,” preferably during their senior year:

• PBAD 7130 - Ethics for Public Service Organizations (3 Credit Hours)
• PBAD 7230 - Budgeting in Public Service Organizations (3 Credit Hours)
• PBAD 7530 - Research Methods For Public Service Organizations (3 Credit Hours)
• PBAD 7631 - Foundations of Public Administration (3 Credit Hours)

Total Credit Hours: 12

Students may declare a Minor in Public Administration and fulfill the minor requirements by completing an additional PBAD/NMLI course in the minor program. The MPA-ABM courses substitute for courses in the minor program as follows: PBAD 7130  for PBAD 4232 , PBAD 7230  for PBAD 3431 , PBAD 7530  for PBAD 4235 , and PBAD 7631  for PBAD 2231 . 

Advisement

Undergraduate Academic Advisement at Georgia Southern is provided to all degree-seeking undergraduate students by professional advisors. Academic Advisors are located on all three Georgia Southern University campuses. Students are required to meet with their assigned Academic Advisor at least once a semester. For more information visit the Academic Advisement  catalog page.