The United States devotes more of its public lands to recreation use than any other country, so it’s natural that
those who manage these areas are concerned with the planning, management, and overall sustainability of these unique
recreation resources. For over 30 years, the OSU Recreation Resource Management (RRM) program has been preparing
students to meet the challenges of providing quality recreation opportunities to visitors. If you care about the
ecological integrity of our natural resources and you want to ensure that you and future generations will be able
to enjoy them, the RRM program is for you!
The core
curriculum provides the opportunity for students to study recreation
behavior, recreation planning and management, communication, wilderness
management,
resource economics, resource ecology and conservation, and resource
analysis and policy. In addition, there are 16 different options
or minors to help
you narrow your focus. If you’re thinking about starting your own whitewater
rafting business, for example, then perhaps a minor in business administration
is for you. Or, if your interest runs to anthropology and history,
you may want to choose the cultural resources management option.
If you want
to give others new understanding and insights into the natural world,
you might select an environmental resource interpretation option.
Our sociology option helps students understand group dynamics and
behavior. We also have a popular law enforcement option.
Many laboratory courses take you out to the College of Forestry’s Research Forests. Field school is an added experiential dimension. In recent years, students have traveled to Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument in Utah, Glacier National Park in Montana, the Gila Wilderness Area in New Mexico, and to Spain to work directly with managers solving real on-the-ground problems. Students can also apply for national and international exchange programs for travel and learning opportunities in such counties as New Zealand, Germany and Spain.
RRM graduates find employment as managers and planners for federal land managing agencies such as the US Forest Service, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, or as recreation consultants, as recreation guides for river rafting and sea kayaking companies, or as rangers, naturalists, resource planners, environmental educators, wilderness managers, wildland law enforcement officers, ecotourism planners, or nature-based tourism specialists.
Come join us in the exciting task of managing some of the best real estate in America!
