Licensure, Public Disclosure and Accreditation
Licensure or Public Disclosures
Please visit our Licensure or Public Disclosure page with the School of Applied Sciences for information about licensure and public disclosure for:
- Bachelor of Arts in Sport and Recreation Administration with a Minor in Recreational Therapy (mRT)
- Master of Science in Sport and Recreation Administration with a Minor in Recreational Therapy (mRT).
Accreditation
The undergraduate major in Sport and Recreation Administration at the University of Mississippi is accredited by the Council on Accreditation for Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Related Professions (COAPRT).
COAPRT recognizes academic programs in colleges and universities that prepare new professionals to enter the parks, recreation, tourism and related professions. COAPRT Accreditation is a status granted to an academic program that meets or exceeds stated criteria of educational quality. In the United States, accreditation of professional preparation curricula is conferred by non-governmental bodies, which are often closely associated with professional associations in the field. COAPRT accredits baccalaureate degree programs in this profession.
COAPRT Accreditation Standards
The UM sport and recreation degree programs have been accredited since 2000 and will be reviewed for re-accreditation in 2022. In 2015, based on University strategic planning initiatives, faculty evaluation, and advisory board recommendations, the program was renamed Sport and Recreation Administration.
Sport and Recreation Administration students attend at least one professional conference within the field prior to graduation to gain insight about the profession, attend continuing education programs, and meet other professionals.
| The UM sport and recreation degree programs have been accredited since 2000 and were reviewed for re-accreditation spring, 2022. In 2015, based on university strategic planning initiatives, faculty evaluation, and advisory board recommendations, the program was renamed Sport and Recreation Administration. The University of Mississippi sport and recreation degree program curriculum is compliant with COAPRT standards and focused on preparing students for professional careers as certified professionals. This includes the Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) and Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS). Figure 1a. illuminates the focus of the “Education-to-Vocation” model beginning with learning-based profession outcomes with practical classroom field experiences, to a 400-hour internship experience to associated certification. |
The UM degree program curriculum is focused on competencies needed to become professionally certified and simultaneously linked to COAPRT accreditation standards. Our model prepares students for positions with the competitive sport, recreation, tourism and related professions.
Continuous data-based assessment and evaluation of the curriculum is completed by the SRA faculty annually to decide the strengths and weaknesses of the curriculum in relation to both contemporary professional standards as well as COAPRT accreditation standards. Data analyses of the curriculum and programmatic changes within the UM Sport and Recreation Administration Program (2016-2021) linked to COAPRT standards 7.01, 7.02. 7.03 are found here:
Internship Site Evaluators assessment of Students ability in CPRP competencies
1= Excellent Proficiency ————————– Poor Proficiency =5
| Finance | Human Resource | Operations | Programming | Planning | Professional Communication | |
| 2016 | 1.71 | 1.58 | 1.55 | 1.36 | 1.50 | 1.25 |
| 2017 | 1.50 | 1.52 | 1.33 | 1.30 | 1.60 | 1.50 |
| 2018 | 2.14 | 1.67 | 1.63 | 1.58 | 1.60 | 1.65 |
| 2019 | 2.26 | 1.74 | 1.85 | 1.62 | 1.75 | 1.71 |
| 2020 | 1.86 | 1.53 | 1.25 | 1.43 | 1.25 | 1.38 |
| 2021 | 1.89 | 1.76 | 1.78 | 1.63 | 1.68 | 1.74 |
| Supervisor-rated Proficiency Score averages 2016-2021 |
| Mean | Ranking | ||||||
| Programming | 1.54 | #1 | |||||
| Human Resource | 1.64 | #2 | |||||
| Operations | 1.65 | #3 | |||||
| Professional Communication | 1.67 | #4 | |||||
| Planning | 1.68 | #5 | |||||
| Finance | 1.94 | #6 | |||||
The contemporary Sport and Recreation Administration degree program curriculum culminates in a professional internship experience that requires students to apply the knowledge from their degree program (COAPRT 7.04).
In 2021:
- 91% of graduating students reported that the University of Mississippi COAPRT-based curriculum effectively prepared them for internship responsibilities.
- 100% of graduating students reported that their internship used knowledge gotten from their sport and recreation coursework.
- 86% of graduating students reported that the SRA degree program RACE (Recreation administration Continuing Education) experiences supplied professional preparation for their internship experience.
- 86% of graduating students showed that their University of Mississippi advisors were helpful in advising toward a career-oriented internship.
- 79% of students achieved or exceeded the rating of Excellent from their on-site internship supervisors.
- All students (100%) completing the internship were certified in CPR and First Aid prior to the internship.
Important Information Regarding Degree Mills Please watch this important video
(http://youtu.be/a1voHNMQDrk) regarding degree and accreditation mills. According to CHEA, “Degree mills and accreditation mills mislead and harm. In the United States, degrees and certificates from mills may not be acknowledged by other institutions when students seek to transfer or go to graduate school. Employers may not acknowledge degrees and certificates from degree mills when providing tuition assistance for continuing education. “Accreditation” from an accreditation mill can mislead students and the public about the quality of an institution. In the presence of degree mills and accreditation mills, students may spend a good deal of money and receive neither an education nor a useable credential.” Read more on CHEA’s website (http://www.chea.org/degreemills/).