Not all careers in recreation management look the same, and that's where choosing a specialization can make a big difference. At BYU-Idaho, students get to shape their degree towards a career they want. If you’re more interested in helping a community, or working in a commercial space, or even being outdoors, then these specializations can help you go farther in your career.
Learn how specializations work for the BYU-Idaho Recreation Management degree and how students can make the most out of their required credits with specializations.
What is Recreation Management at BYU-Idaho?
Before we dive into all the specializations, it helps to know what recreation management is and how specializations work for the degree. This program focuses on planning and managing recreation activities, facilities, and services for the public. You’ll learn leadership, event planning, risk management, and how to deliver meaningful experiences.
When you choose a specialization for your recreation management degree, you’re choosing a certain selection of courses, about 12-15 credits in total. It’s similar to a minor, but it has less credits and your choice of specializations is limited to those related to recreation. There’s 8 specializations to choose from, all within the three main areas of employment for recreation management, which are:
- Community Recreation
- Commercial Recreation
- Outdoor Recreation
Community Recreation
Community recreation is all about supporting local, non-profit programs, activities, and facilities. If you’ve ever had a recreation center in your community, or a park with basketball, tennis, or pickle-ball courts, that’s all thanks to recreation management.
If you want to work in this sector, the specializations that will prepare you for a career are:
- Aquatic Management: This specialization teaches you to manage and direct recreational water facilities, like a pool, water park, or splash pad. You’ll earn important certifications like Certified Pool Operator, Water Safety Instruction, Lifeguard, and Lifeguard Instructor. This is perfect for anyone who loves the water and wants to teach others how to swim.
- Inclusive Recreation: This specialization focuses on creating inclusive and accessible recreational experiences for individuals of all abilities. This is especially important for communities with diverse members and needs. If you want to help everyone enjoy recreation, this is the area for you.
- Sports Management: There’s more to sports than physical fitness, and this specialization teaches you all about the ethics, leadership, and business that goes into it. If you love sports and want to share that passion with others, this area is perfect for you.
- Program and Event Management: A big part of community recreation is planning and managing events for families, communities, and even churches. You’ll learn how to make engaging events on a budget, and how to market these events to your audience. This is a great area for anyone interested in business and community recreation.
Commercial Recreation
Any recreation that is privately owned, like golf courses, bowling alleys, gyms, theme parks, or even cruise lines, is commercial recreation. Because there’s so many different companies in the commercial sector, there’s usually more jobs, too.
If you want to work in commercial recreation, these specializations can help you get your foot in the door:
- Commercial Recreation: You’ll learn the essentials of business and participate in BYU-Idaho’s unique Integrated Business Core experience. This specialization focuses on the business side of commercial recreation, so if accounting, marketing, and leadership, then this is the area for you.
- Personal Training: This specialization prepares you to work as a personal trainer after you pass your certification exam. The courses not only walk you through designing workouts for individuals, but also teaches you how to advertise on social media and how to design nutrition plans. This is perfect for anyone that likes fitness and working with other people.
Outdoor Recreation
Outdoor recreation is any recreation done out in nature. Think hiking, kayaking, canoeing, skiing, camping, and whatever else your family enjoys doing outside. But working in outdoor recreation is more than having fun: you’ll lead activities, inform the public on safety matters, and protect the environment.
If you’re interested in working in outdoor recreation, consider choosing these specializations:
- Natural Resource: This specialization is a collection of courses all about managing the resources and environment we’re in for recreation. This can include wildlife, fish, and range management, environmental biology, and even spatial analysis. This area is great for anyone who wants to work in national or state parks, making sure people have fun and stay respectful of the outdoors.
- Outdoor Recreation Administration: With courses focused on outdoor experiences, leadership, and environmental stewardship, this specialization prepares students to be leaders in the outdoors. You’ll plan and lead programs that help people enjoy the outdoors now, and for years to come. If you’re not sure where you want to focus on for outdoor recreation, this gives you a broad overview of the field.
Find What Your Passionate About
With so many different specializations, you have plenty of options for your degree. You could look into aquatic management or inclusive recreation, or, if you’re more interested in the commercial sector, you can focus on personal training. You can even work outdoors with the outdoor recreation specializations.
When it finally comes down to deciding what’s right for you, it’s important to look ahead. The specialization you choose now is going to lead you into your career, so find out what you're passionate about now. It can help make your career path a lot smoother.
If you want to learn more about recreation management, check out BYU-Idaho’s Recreation Management program and what it can offer you.
Citations
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Aquatic Management
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Inclusive Recreation Programming
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Sport Management
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Program and Event Management
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Commercial Recreation
Integrated Business Core (IBC)
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Personal Training
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Natural Resource
BYU-Idaho Academic Catalog: Outdoor Recreation Administration