Master of Science Major in Recreation and Sport Management Online

Advance your career in leisure services with new professional competencies in management, recreation education, outdoor recreation, and more.

Apply by: 1/4/27
Start class: 1/19/27
Apply Now

Program Overview

Learn more about the online M.S. in Recreation and Sport Management

Whether you want to turn your love of recreation and sports into a fulfilling career or are ready to keep growing and become a leader in the field, the online Master of Science, Major in Recreation and Sport Management program at Texas State University can help get you there. This flexible and affordable program focuses on innovative programming, research, and evidence-based professional preparation so you’re equipped to meet the ever-changing needs of your community.

Prepare for career-appropriate credentials, such as Certified Parks and Recreation Professional or Registry of Collegiate Recreational Sports Professionals. Sharpen your skills in financial management, organizational leadership, problem-solving, and managing human resources. Prepare for advanced roles with new insights into management techniques, recreation education, mindfulness of service to diverse populations, understanding of leisure spaces, and more.

As a student of this master’s online program, you will learn how to:

  • Synthesize and disseminate complex information and apply it to new contexts
  • Identify goals/tasks and create a realistic timeline for completion
  • Think and reason ethically
  • Identify alternative solutions to address changing needs of constituency
  • Manage financial and human resources efficiently and effectively
  • Plan services by integrating diverse viewpoints and needs
As a student of this master’s online program, you will learn how to:
  • Synthesize and disseminate complex information and apply it to new contexts
  • Identify goals/tasks and create a realistic timeline for completion
  • Think and reason ethically
  • Identify alternative solutions to address changing needs of constituency
  • Manage financial and human resources efficiently and effectively
  • Plan services by integrating diverse viewpoints and needs

Also available:

We offer a variety of student-centered online degrees that can help you advance. Explore other graduate programs.

Total Tuition $15,060*
Duration As few as 12 months
Credit Hours 30
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Need More Information?

Call 833.690.1245 today!

Call 833.690.1245 today!

Tuition

Pay by the course for your recreation and sport management degree

Tuition for the Master’s, Major in Recreation and Sport Management degree online program is affordable and paid by the course, so you can achieve your academic goals while remaining within your budget.

View full tuition

Program Per Credit Hour Per Course Per Program
MS in Rec and Sport Management $502 $1,506 $15,060*

*Students in Accelerated Online Programs are not eligible for payment plans or emergency loans. Tuition and fees are subject to change by legislative or Board of Regents action; changes become effective on the date of enactment. BookSmart fees are automatically added each semester but are not included in program costs; students may opt out by the start of each term. Registrations after the tuition deadline require full payment at registration. Cost of Attendance details are available through TXST One Stop.

Tuition breakdown

Total Tuition $15,060*
Per Credit Hour $502

Ready to take the next step toward earning your degree?

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Calendar

Find the start date that works best for your schedule

The Texas State M.S. in Recreation and Sport Management is delivered in a convenient online learning format that offers maximum flexibility for working adults like you. Choose the start date that fits your goals.

View Full Calendar +

TermStart DateApp DeadlineDocument DeadlineRegistration DeadlineTuition DeadlineClass End DateTerm Length
Fall 1 20268/19/268/5/268/12/268/19/268/13/2610/7/268 weeks
Fall 2 202610/8/269/24/2610/1/2610/8/2610/1/2612/10/268 weeks
Spring 1 20271/19/271/4/271/11/271/19/271/14/273/8/278 Weeks
Spring 2 20273/9/272/23/273/2/273/9/273/4/245/12/278 Weeks
Summer 1 20276/1/275/17/275/24/276/1/275/27/277/2/275 Weeks
Summer 2 20277/5/276/21/276/28/277/5/277/1/278/5/275 Weeks
Fall 1 20278/25/278/11/278/18/278/25/278/19/2710/13/278 Weeks
Fall 2 202710/18/2710/4/2710/11/2710/18/2710/14/2712/16/268 Weeks

Now Enrolling

Apply by 1/4/27
Start Class 1/19/27

Admissions

The application for this M.S., Major in Recreation and Sport Management online program is streamlined

Apply to the online M.S. in Recreation and Sport Management program quickly and easily with our streamlined admission process. Review the admission requirements below and take the next step toward your professional goals.

View all admission requirements

To be eligible to earn your M.S. in Recreation and Sport Management online from Texas State University, you must have the following:

  • Completed online application
  • Nonrefundable application fee of $55 ($90 for international*)
  • Baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited university
  • Copy of official transcripts from all institutions where course credit was granted
  • Minimum 2.75 GPA overall or 2.75 GPA in your last 60 hours of undergraduate course work including any completed graduate courses
  • Resume/CV
  • 500-word, double-spaced, and typed statement of purpose addressing the following:
    • What experiences have led you to pursue graduate studies in recreation management?
    • What qualities, values, characteristics do you possess that will enable you to meet the academic rigors of graduate education?
    • What are your career goals relating to obtaining a master's degree?

For applicants without a U.S. bachelor’s degree (or equivalent)**:
You must submit an approved English proficiency exam score that meets the minimum program requirements.

  • Official TOEFL iBT scores required with a 78 overall and minimum individual module scores of
    • 19 listening
    • 19 reading
    • 19 speaking
    • 18 writing
  • Official PTE scores required with a 52 overall
  • Official IELTS (academic) scores required with a 6.5 overall and minimum individual module scores of 6.0
  • Official Duolingo scores required with a 110 overall
  • Official TOEFL Essentials scores required with an 8.5 overall

**Exemption: Applicants who have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited U.S. institution or an equivalent degree from a country on our exempt countries list are not required to submit an English proficiency exam score.

Transcripts may be sent electronically to [email protected] or mailed to:

TXST One Stop
Texas State University – Graduate Admissions
601 University Dr.
San Marcos, TX 78666

*Texas State defines an on-campus international student as anyone with a nonimmigrant visa status, including H-1B visa holders, or those seeking a visa to enroll. If you are not a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, refugee, or asylee, you will be classified as an international applicant.

An online international student is someone who holds citizenship in another country, is not a U.S. permanent resident, and resides outside the U.S. while enrolling in an online program.

Students who are not on a visa but are graduating from a Texas high school after three years in residence are considered domestic applicants.

If you are a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, refugee, or asylee, you are considered a domestic applicant.

Admission Requirements

  • Minimum 2.75 GPA
  • No GMAT/GRE required
  • Official transcripts

Courses

Here’s what you will learn in this online recreation and sport management degree program

To graduate from the M.S. in Recreation and Sport Management online degree program, you must complete a total of 30 credit hours, including 24 credit hours of core courses and six credit hours of electives.

Expand All
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course introduces and explores the meanings of recreation, sport, and leisure behaviors and services from historical, philosophical, sociological, and political perspectives. Students will develop a philosophical view of recreation and sport based on exploration of the history as well as consideration of the nature of the individual and society.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Individual study related to recreational administration under direct supervision of a faculty member. May be repeated for additional credit at the discretion of the department chair.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course provides an exploration of management issues related to the role of the leader as a conduit for effectiveness in recreation and sport management service agencies. Content will include practices associated with managing human resources such as hiring, supervising, evaluating, and compensating. Content will include examination of federal and state laws impacting employment and the manager’s role in operationalizing both legislative mandates and agency policy.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course provides an introduction and overview of the personal, social and social-psychological contexts of leisure; utilizing current literature the course will focus on examining sport and recreation behavior from psychological, sociological and social-psychological constructs that are contributing to a contemporary, interdisciplinary understanding of the leisure phenomenon.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
The course provides an analytical investigation of research techniques and steps necessary to address research questions related to professional practice. Students will examine methods of locating and securing research findings and reports and develop the ability to discuss current literature in the field of recreation and sport.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course focuses on legal and ethical issues related to recreation and sport management. Tort law, participant rights, accessibility, credentialing, and others are topics to be addressed in this course.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course is a study of financial concepts, principles, and techniques as they relate to recreation and sport delivery systems. These include full cost accounting, pricing, financial management, and alternative funding proposals. Prerequisite: REC 5380 with a grade of "C" or better or instructor approval.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course provides students with organizational planning and administration tools developed and tested within the recreation and sport industries. Topics may include the exploration of programming and organizational theory, administrative processes, and the application of the organizational principles to the recreation and sport delivery systems. Emphasis will be placed on various planning functions including strategic, evaluation, and marketing.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
The course provides an overview of practice of facility management. Explorations will include the role of facility manager, work management functions, and user interaction. In addition, students will investigate concepts of health and safety, accessibility, environment and sustainability, technologies, sourcing, emergency preparedness, and space interrogation. Basics of design drawing literacy and evaluation will be discussed.

Students must take 6 hours of electives including REC 5337. Students will work with their advisor to select their additional elective.

Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course provides an in-depth examination of public health practice, past and present. Students study the organization, structure, and function of the United States public health system while analyzing how public health professionals use assessment data to understand population health trends. Emphasis is placed on evaluating public health programs and policies and understanding how the Core Functions of Public Health and the 10 Essential Public Health Services guide the delivery of services. Students engage in evidence-based inquiry and interpret institutional frameworks.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines major theoretical frameworks used to understand and analyze health behavior across research and practice settings. Emphasis is placed on critical comparison, practical application, and integration of individual, interpersonal, community, and systems-level theories relevant to public health. The course explores the role of theory in health behavior research, intervention development, and program implementation while examining the strengths, limitations, and application of commonly used theoretical approaches across various populations, public health issues, and professional practice contexts.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course provides foundational instruction in developing grant proposals within the social sciences and public health contexts. Students examine the components of competitive proposals from concept development through submission. Instruction includes defining program goals and measurable objectives, identifying appropriate strategies and implementation plans, developing evaluation approaches, and preparing detailed budgets and budget justifications. Emphasis is placed on aligning proposals with funding priorities, using evidence to support program design, and applying structured proposal development processes.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines leadership and management principles essential to public health practice, including organizational dynamics, staffing, budgeting, program administration, communication, and evaluation. Students explore leadership frameworks and ethical considerations across public health systems and organizational settings while analyzing real-world challenges that influence decision making. By the end of the course, students develop the ability to evaluate leadership approaches and create practical strategies to support effective management and organizational performance in public health contexts.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines social ecological conditions using public health frameworks and theories to analyze health outcome disparities across populations. Emphasis is placed on factors at the individual, interpersonal, organizational, community, and policy levels that influence quality of life. Topics include socioeconomic stability, education access and quality, health care access and quality, neighborhood and built environment, and social and community context. The course also explores the relationship between social determinants of health and national initiatives such as Healthy People 2030. Students engage with data and research to assess how social determinants shape population health outcomes.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course focuses on research models used in public health education and promotion. Students learn how to design research studies using accepted research methods in the social sciences. In addition, students write the introduction, literature review, and methods sections commonly accepted in public health research.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course focuses on introductory and intermediate statistical methods commonly used in public health practice and research. Emphasis is placed on selecting appropriate methods, interpreting results, and understanding the assumptions underlying common analyses. Students use SPSS statistical software to manage data, conduct statistical analyses, and interpret output using real-world datasets. The course covers application of statistical reasoning to evaluate research findings and support analytic decision-making in public health contexts.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course focuses on principles of international health across global populations by analyzing how social determinants of health influence differences in health outcomes, infectious diseases, reproductive health and nutrition, noncommunicable diseases, mental health, and injury prevention. Emphasis is placed on exploring epidemiological burdens of global disease, as well as the process of assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating prevention strategies. Students explore roles of public health practitioners collaborating with providers of health services to various populations.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course is an examination of the ecological impact on the environment resulting from contemporary sociopolitical action and its resulting influence on human health. Students will be guided to research and interpret evidence-based information on major current environmental issues facing local, national, and global communities.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course is designed to provide sport educators with theory, research, and practical strategies to implement developmentally appropriate sports programs for high-level athletes. Psychological, social, and physical aspects related to athletes’ success and well-being are examined. Research on coaching effectiveness is also explored with emphasis on applying evidence-based practices.
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course investigates the scientific foundations of physical activity in the prevention and treatment of chronic disease. Students examine epidemiological evidence, explore disease pathophysiology, and analyze physiological mechanisms that connect exercise behaviors to health outcomes. Learning activities emphasize evaluation of research methods, approaches to physical activity measurement, and interpretation of clinical and population based findings. By integrating evidence across disciplines, students develop an understanding of how physical activity relates to health related outcomes, chronic disease processes, and factors that inform professional decision making in applied settings.

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