Career Options with a Leisure and Recreation Management Diploma

Healthy living is directly connected to our overall physical and mental well-being. And this is why everyone around seems to be indulged in therapeutic recreation, lifestyle changes, healthy and conscious eating, and yoga and meditation.

Fitness is the latest mantra. However, it's not restricted to just the physical health; rather it covers mental and emotional health as well. No matter what their age is, people nowadays make informed choices to maintain a healthy lifestyle. They even consult wellness experts on regular basis to implement recreation and leisure programs in their daily routine.

Not only this, even companies hire recreation experts who can help their employees reduce their stress levels and motivate them to maintain active and healthy lifestyles. This has resulted in a significant increase in the demand for recreation and leisure services professionals. Therefore, current is the right time to consider building a career in leisure and recreation management.

Career Options in Leisure and Recreation Management

The field offers numerous career opportunities to professionals who have specialized knowledge, skills and experience in recreation and leisure services. They can be employed with hospitals, long-term care settings, school-aged childcare centres, youth-focused organizations, rehabilitation centres, municipal community recreation centres, long-term care settings, state and municipal parks, fitness centres, community centres, sports organizations and businesses. Some of the most popular career options include:

Fitness Coach: Fitness coaches work with individuals towards achieving their personal fitness goals. They create, plan, implement and evaluate recreation and leisure programs and special events, which suit to their specific needs and requirements. Coaching may involve developing physical fitness and psychological fitness, and helping people maximize their performance. The job also involves assessing the strengths and weaknesses in a participant's performance and identifying areas of improvement.

Recreation Centre Manager: Recreation centre managers are generally associated with sports halls, gyms, sports clubs, fitness centres, community parks and municipal community recreation centres. They are responsible for designing and promoting fitness activities, events and programs and fitness products. They are also responsible for overseeing the operations of the fitness centre and checking budget, purchasing equipment, handling complaints, acquiring clients and recruiting and training staff.

Fitness Counselor: Fitness counselors play a critical role in helping individuals plan and implement changes in their lifestyles, in order to help them achieve their fitness goals. The job not only includes developing programs for physical fitness but also extends to ensuring mental fitness of the mental wellbeing of clients. The list doesn't end here. The professionals may also find employment as fitness event organizer, fitness administrator, outdoor activities manager, theme park managers and fitness advocates.

Building Careers in Leisure and Recreation Management

Centennial College's post-secondary recreation management courses prepare students for careers in this field in just two years. These programs provide them with the ability to establish programs, prepare budgets, market activities and recruit, train, assign and evaluate teams of volunteers, and necessary skills, such as leadership, communication and interpersonal.

These courses prepare them for entry-level jobs in recreation and leisure services. However, for more advanced career opportunities, they may consider enrolling in recreation management degree program.