Career Opportunities
Recreation Studies Faculty Member, Joanne Edey-Nicoll recently completed a research project on careers in recreation. This project, done in collaboration with the British Columbia Parks and Recreation Association, gives an overview of the career opportunities and earning potentials for recreation professionals. Click here to be directed to Recreation: A Career with Purpose.
The market for trained recreation professionals is expanding. Changes in patterns of leisure time and growth in organized and spontaneous recreational activities have increased demands on recreational facilities and resources.
These trends have created attractive and flexible employment, competitive remuneration, comprehensive benefits, significant vacation allowances and opportunities for self-development and advancement. Full-time and part-time employment and contracting opportunities are available to graduates within:
- community centres, ice arenas, aquatic facilities, and golf courses
- seniors’ centres
- youth centres
- ski hills and fitness centres
- tourism sectors such as cruise ships, hotels and resorts
- health and wellness sectors such as fitness centres,
- YMCAs and YWCAs, boys and girls clubs, neighbourhood houses and other non-profit organizations
- arts and cultural organizations
- Public, private and non-profit sports organizations
- provincial, regional and municipal parks
Positions within these sectors include but are not limited to:
- Directors (aquatic directors, entertainment directors, executive director of a sport governing body; for example)
- Managers (operations managers, sports teams manager, general manager of an organization; for example)
- Coordinators (volunteer coordinators, community arts coordinators, events coordinators; for example)
- Programmers (recreation programmers in hotels, on cruise ships, in seniors centers; for example)
- Youth Leaders
- Administrators
- Instructors (fitness instructors, arts instructors, for example)
- Outdoor guides or Park rangers
