Recreation Workers
What Recreation Workers Do
Conduct recreation activities with groups in public, private, or volunteer agencies or recreation facilities. Organize and promote activities, such as arts and crafts, sports, games, music, dramatics, social recreation, camping, and hobbies, taking into account the needs and interests of individual members.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
- Self-employed
- 0.4%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 4 of 5Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
- Experience
- A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations.
- Education
- Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
- Job training
- Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- English Languageimportance 4.1/5
- Public Safety and Securityimportance 3.8/5
- Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.6/5
- Education and Trainingimportance 3.5/5
- Law and Governmentimportance 3.4/5
- Psychologyimportance 3.2/5
- Administrativeimportance 3.1/5
- Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.0/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- Contact With Others4.8/5
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.6/5
- Telephone Conversations4.5/5
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.5/5
- Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.3/5
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.3/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Residential Advisors98% skill match
- Gambling Managers98% skill match
- Entertainment and Recreation Managers, Except Gambling98% skill match
- Pharmacists97% skill match
- First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers97% skill match
- Directors, Religious Activities and Education97% skill match
- Recreational Therapists97% skill match
- Education and Childcare Administrators, Preschool and Daycare97% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 4.0/5
- Coordinationimportance 4.0/5
- Service Orientationimportance 4.0/5
- Instructingimportance 3.8/5
- Time Managementimportance 3.3/5
- Persuasionimportance 3.1/5
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.1/5
- Management of Personnel Resourcesimportance 3.1/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Hot Technologies
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Cooperation
- Dependability
- Social Orientation
- Leadership Orientation
- Optimism
- Sincerity
- Self-Control
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- SocialMedium
- EnterprisingMedium
- RealisticMedium
- ConventionalMedium
- ArtisticMedium
- InvestigativeLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where recreation workers make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Ann Arbor, MI6.80× national avg
- 2College Station-Bryan, TX4.09× national avg
- 3Gadsden, AL2.79× national avg
- 4Chico, CA2.58× national avg
- 5Flagstaff, AZ2.57× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Social and Community Service ManagersCareer Change
- Entertainment and Recreation Managers, Except GamblingCareer Change
- Recreational TherapistsCareer Change
- Residential AdvisorsLateral Move
Related Education Programs
Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.