Department of Physical Education & Human Performance
Outdoor Recreation Degree
The Bachelor of Science Degree in Outdoor Recreation in Parks and Tourism (ORPT) is an interdisciplinary degree program offered by the Department of Physical Education within the College of Education. The interdisciplinary nature of the program includes course work from Agriculture Science, Biology, Communications, Geology, and Hotel and Hospitality Management.
The degree program in ORPT is intended to provide students with training that qualifies them to work in a variety of work settings including outdoor and experiential education, outdoor adventure programming, outdoor leadership, outdoor skills development, outdoor tourism, and outdoor recreation service programs. Employment opportunities typically exist with state and national resource agencies, protected natural areas, outdoor recreation service programs, commercial recreation enterprises, etc. Combined with the broad educational background provided by SUU’s Baccalaureate Core, this program will give students a wide range of opportunities upon graduation including solid preparation for graduate studies at Utah System of Higher Education’s Research 1 institutions in fields such as recreation resource management, parks, recreation, and tourism; or related areas of graduate study.
Southern Utah University is located at the western edge of the Colorado Plateau in Southwest Utah. The university is within ½ day’s drive of at least 11 national parks, national monuments and recreational areas including, Zion National Park, Arches, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, and the Grand Canyon. Few universities in the country can boast such close contact to such a magnificent landscape. ENJOY THE JOURNEY!
Major Course of Study
- General Education
- Core Course Requirements
- Knowledge Areas requirements – (Must take: GEO 2210, GEO 2215, ENGL 1010 ENGL 2010, HSS 1200 or PE 1098)
- University Requirement: BS Degree - Math or Science minimum requirements (12 hours)
Core Courses: 45 Hours
| Course Number & Title | Credits | Pre-requisite |
|---|---|---|
| ORPT 1000 Intro to Outdoor Recreation Tourism and Tourism | 3.0 | |
| ORPT 3050 Risk Management and Safety for Outdoor Recreation | 3.0 | |
| ORPT 4020 Natural Resource Interpretation and Experiential Education | 3.0 | |
| ORPT 4890 Outdoor Recreation Tourism Internship | 9.0 | |
| PE 1542 Wilderness 1st Responder | 3.0 | |
| PE 4740 Organization and Administration of Activity Based Programs | 3.0 | |
| NR 1010 Intro to Natural Resources | 3.0 | |
| NR 3000 Natural Resources Management | 3.0 | |
| BIOL 2000 Natural History | 3.0 | |
| GEO 1050 Geology of National Parks | 3.0 | |
| GEO 1055 Geology of National Parks Lab | 1.0 | |
| HRHM 3000 Introduction to Hospitality Management | 3.0 | |
| HRHM 3600 Guest Service | 3.0 | |
| HRHM 4300 Resort Recreation Management | 3.0 | HRHM 3000 |
| Electives (Choose 2 of the 4 courses - 6 hours) | Credits | Pre-requisite |
| ORPT 1010 Outdoor Skills – Land 1 | 3.0 | |
| ORPT 1020 Outdoor Skills – Land 2 | 3.0 | |
| ORPT 1040 Outdoor Skills – Water | 3.0 | |
| ORPT 1060 Outdoor Skills – Snow | 3.0 | |
| Recommended Electives: | Credits | Pre-requisite |
| AGSC 1750 Horsemanship I | 1.0 | |
| AGSC 2760 Horsemanship II | 2.0 | |
| ART 1050 Photography | 3.0 | |
| BIOL 2050 Southern Utah Flora | 3.0 | |
| BIOL 3030 Ecology/Lab 3035 | 4.0 | BIOL 1610/1615: BIOL 1620/1625; MATH 1040 |
| BIOL 4650 Conservation Biology |
3.0 | |
| COMM 2300 Intro to Public Relations | 3.0 | |
| CJ 1010 Intro to Criminal Justice | 3.0 | |
| GEOG 2900 GPS Theory, Techniques & Methods | 2.0 | |
| GEOG 3220 Weather and Climate/Lab 3230 | 4.0 | |
| GEOG 3400 Environmental Geography | 3.0 | |
| GEO 1110 Physical Geology/Lab 1115 | 4.0 | |
| MGMT 2220 Small Business Management | 3.0 | |
| ENVS 4130 Recreation Policy and Planning* | 3.0 | |
| ENVS 4500 Wildland Recreation Behavior* | 3.0 | |
| Total credits, B.S. Degree | 120 |
*Delivery of these 2 On-line courses is being negotiated with Utah State University.
Recommended Minors:
- Agriculture: 20
- Biology: 19
- Business Management: 18
- Criminal Justice: 21
- Geology: 20
- Interpersonal Communications: 21
- Hotel, Resort & Hospitality Management: 22
- Physical Education: 22
- Public Relations: 21
| Physical Education & Human Performance | College of Education |
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