What are the Different Types of Campus Recreation?

The specific types of campus recreation will vary according to the school at which the recreation programs have been developed. Most campus recreation programs include athletic activities and facilities, such as fitness centers, basketball courts, and so on; other campus recreation activities may branch beyond athletics into clubs and volunteer organizations. Intramural sports, in which both men and women can compete with other intramural clubs in the area, are popular among students for their fun and competitive atmospheres. Campus entertainment will also often fall under the recreation category and may include clubs that sponsor dances, film viewing, carnivals and other on-campus or off-campus events.

The sports available as campus recreation will often depend on the school's available facilities. Many larger schools will have complete athletic facilities that can cater to all major sports as well as rarer sports, though smaller colleges and universities may be limited to fewer activities. Tennis courts, racquetball courts, basketball courts, swimming pools, hockey rinks, volleyball courts, and many other facilities are often available to students for campus recreation. Less common facilities include rock climbing walls, roller hockey courts, high ropes courses, and other types of less popular or common sports.

Fitness centers are quite common on college campuses, and many will charge a campus recreation fee for use of the facility. The fitness center may vary in size, though most include a wide array of exercise machines, free weights, treadmills, and other exercise equipment. A physical therapy program may or may not be associated with the fitness center, depending on the size and budget of the school. These fitness centers are usually separate entities from the training centers college athletes use during varsity competition; this is done to avoid crowding and overuse of the equipment within the fitness center.

Recreational clubs often fall under the campus recreation category as well, and the types of clubs available will vary by institution. These clubs are student-run, and the topic of the club can be dictated by the students who start the club. Photography clubs are common, as are fencing clubs, reading clubs, writing clubs, hiking clubs, conservation clubs, and volunteer clubs in which participants will focus on volunteering time and services to various charitable causes. Funding for such clubs may be limited or non-existent, depending on the size of the school and available budget money set aside for such activities.