Career Options

Imagine your future outside the box.

What can you do with a M.Ed. in Outdoor Education Administration? 

Many students in the M.Ed. in Outdoor Education Administration have worked as a professional outdoor educator and want to establish a career path in the profession, want to change career paths to outdoor education and have an unrelated undergraduate degree that will limit their options, or come from a wide range of undergraduate degrees and want to establish a potential career path. 

Graduates from the M.Ed. in Outdoor Education Administration are qualified for positions in recreation, education, corporate, and therapeutic organizations that use outdoor and adventure education to enhance their missions. Some positions, depending on the organization and the applicant's past experience are front-line, others are middle-level administration that require time in the field, and others are mostly administrative. There are a wide range of positions that vary based on context, outcomes sought, location, type of client or student, and regulatory requirements. We recommend reviewing potential job advertisements accessible below or speaking with the Coordinator of Graduate Studies in the Department of Outdoor Education. 

Some graduate students initially seek employment in student activity outdoor programs at colleges or universities.  Often they are asked to teach lower level or skill-related courses that lead them to a desire to become academic faculty and therefore pursue doctoral studies as a part-time student.  Some graduate students see the M.Ed. as preparation for doctoral studies and wish to apply to a doctoral program immediately or soon after graduating from Georgia College.

The lists below provide an overview of the wide range of career options that may be of interest to potential or existing graduate students.

Potential settings

• Non profit organizations (YMCA, 4-H, Girl Scouts, Heifer International, churches,  environmental agencies)
• Federal, state, & local natural resource management areas (parks, wilderness areas, and national forests)
• Wilderness and residential treatment organizations
• Corporate training and development organizations
• Colleges & universities
• Public, independent, and charter schools
• Social Service agencies
• Youth-serving agencies: Big Brothers/Big Sisters; Boys and Girls club
• Parks and recreation agencies, outfitters, camps, and expedition organizations
• Professional service and training organizations (challenge course construction and training, Outward Bound, National Outdoor Leadership School)
• Nature Centers
• Charter Schools
• Tourism and hospitality service providers  (resorts, eco-tourism providers, guides and outfitters)                 

Potential work-related activities

• Client assessment, program design, implementation, and evaluation
• Program management
• Resource management
• Strategic Management 
• Facility Planning
• Marketing
• Personnel Administration
• Visitor services
• Curriculum design and implementation
• Therapeutic programming and treatment input
• Technical skill instruction 
• Staff training
• Logistical support
• Personnel training and development
• Program leadership
• Organizational development

Beneficial knowledge & skills

• Computer technology
• Organization & record keeping skills
• Able to work independently & as a team
• Report writing, grant writing
• Teaching, assessing, planning, and evaluating
• Intra & interpersonal skills
• Individual/Group processing skills
• Knowledge of technical pursuits
• Risk management
• Marketing, public relations
• Leadership skills
• Research and evaluation
• Ecosystem and environmental issues

Areas of advanced study (doctoral level) to which our graduates have been accepted

• Social work
• Educational Psychology
• Business Administration
• Leisure Studies
• Recreation Management
• Education
• Outdoor Education
• Counseling Psychology
• Law
• Experiential Education
  
  Job banks
• Association for Outdoor Recreation and Education
• Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education
• National Recreation and Parks Association
• Association for Experiential Education
• American Camping Association
• Outdoor Ed
• Backdoor Jobs

Outdoor Education Administration Menu
Application Procedures
Graduate Catalog
Program of Study (.pdf)
Program Goals and Objectives
Graduate Student Handbook (.pdf)

Tuition
Financial Aid
Academic Common Market