Online Sports Management Degrees: Arizona
The Grand Canyon State hosts some of the nation’s oldest historic cities and national landmarks. As one of the most renowned states in the Southwest for higher education and business, Arizona is home to four major league sports franchises, including the Arizona Cardinals, Phoenix Suns, and Arizona Diamondbacks. The state plays host to the collegiate sports teams of some of the United States’ largest universities, such as those found in Phoenix, Tucson, and Tempe. The State of Arizona also houses over 50 institutions of higher education, which include 3 public universities that, taken together with its private universities, comprise one of the largest university systems in the Southwest, with an average enrollment of over 400,000 students per year. One of the best parts of living in the twenty-first century is that residents from almost anywhere can choose to attend college almost anywhere, so that someone in Tuscon can attend a university in Phoenix and vice versa, all from the privacy of their own home. To be sure, there are a growing number of reasons why an increasing number of U.S. citizens want to move to Arizona—the same reasons why Arizona residents might want to stay right where they are—and get everything they need from their online degree in sports management.
Planning Your Education
There are currently 6 universities in the State of Arizona offering online programs of study in sports management. While this level of choice and convenience is great, potential students should be counseled to know that there are many potential ways to enter into sports management fields. Many degree types can give students a variety of unique edges on the competition, but it’s for students to choose which degree type is the best for entering into a sports management field or role of their choice. For an in-depth treatment of this subject, check out our degrees page. Or if you already know what degree types you’re interested in, check out our directory of sports management degrees in Arizona.
Types of Degrees Surveyed:
- Sports Management
- Coaching Education
- Nutrition
- Recreation Management
- Kinesiology
- Communications and Public Relations
- Physical Education
- Health and Wellness
- Sports Psychology
- Business Administration: Sports Management
Degree Levels Surveyed:
- Associates
- Bachelors
- Masters
- Doctoral Degrees
- Graduate and Undergraduate Certifications
Career Opportunities
Number of Jobs
Arizona is one of the smaller markets for sports management jobs in the nation, acting as homebase for approximately 1% of all sports management professionals in the United States. Because available positions are often filled by people who are already climbing the ladder of sports management career paths, job opportunities have rarified over the last decade, having reached 5,850 in 2008 before dropping to 4,580 in 2010. According to Indeed.com, there are over 600 job openings related to the search terms “sports management” in Arizona. These jobs tend to congregate around the Phoenix metro area, although some are also located in Tucson, Tempe, and Mesa. The vast majority of these job openings are listed under the classification of Full-Time, affording sports professionals a wealth of opportunity to further their careers in the State of Arizona, where conversations and careers that revolve around professional sports powerhouses like the Patriots, Celtics, and Red Sox are common cultural currency.
Earning Percentiles for Sports Management Professionals in Arizona
Across all segments of the working population, Arizona yields the thirtieth highest average wages in the nation by state. Sports management jobs in Arizona tend to offer salaries that are above average, with 90 percent of sports management professionals earning above the Arizona average income of $46,709. For leadership positions in spectator sports, the mean salary for management positions is $117,000 nationwide, a figure that the top 10% of sports management professionals in Arizona easily supersedes. This means that at least one in every ten sports management professionals in Arizona is in a leadership position and taking home more than most sports management professionals in similar positions and other states.
Need more inspiration to pursue sports management-related opportunities in Arizona today? Check out the range of job opportunities below!
Top Sports Management Degree Programs: AZ
While there are a variety of top schools offering a range of sports management-related degrees online in Arizona, students will first and foremost want to consider the exact degree type they're interested in pursuing. We've chosen out our three "recommended" schools for Arizona below, but aspiring students should keep in mind that not each of these universities will necessarily have a program of study that can lead directly to the particular sports management career of your choice. If you're already set on pursuing sports management-related schooling in the state of Arizona, we advise you to not only consult out ranking of top schools below, but also peruse our database of all sports management-related programs in Arizona below. While there are additional benefits of pursuing an online degree in your own state (in-state tuition, and the ability to take classes or intensives in person), future students should also note that there are many online programs available nationwide, and consult our wide-ranging rankings for the top online sports management schools in the nation.
With that said, there are many top Arizona-based programs available entirely online. We've selected our top three through equally weighting two metrics: the number of sports-management related degrees available online through the institution, and the academic prestige of the given institution.
- 1.) Arizona State University
CHARACTERISTICS
DEGREES
Bachelor of Arts in Business (Communication) Bachelor of Science in Communications
Bachelor of Education in Health Education and Health Promotion
Bachelor of Science in Healthly Lifestyle Coaching
Bachelor of Science in Integrated Health
Bachelor of Science in Marketing
Bachelor of Science in Nutrition
Master of Science in Nutrition
Master of Legal Studies Sports Law and Business
Master of Science in Technical Communication
Arizona State University is a public research university with stations at five campuses across the Arizona state capital of Phoenix. Maintaining an additional four regional learning centers throughout its home state, ASU is the largest public university in the U.S. by enrollment, housing greater than 67,000 undergraduates and nearly 16,000 postgraduates, of which 13,750 (i.e., 16%) are online students. As a leading member of the Pac-12 Conference, ASU’s Division I athletics teams have won 23 NCAA championships. Among its wide-ranging online programs, ASU offers six online bachelor’s degrees related to sports management, which include the unique Bachelor of Science in Healthy Lifestyle Coaching, as well as three online master’s degrees related to sports management, which include the unique Master of Legal Studies in Sports Law. Graduates from Arizona State University’s sports-intensive online programs enter into a national network of sports management alumni who have worked for many states’ collegiate and professional teams.
- 2.) University of Arizona
CHARACTERISTICS
DEGREES
GENERAL STUDIES: SPORTS & SOCIETY (BGS)
COMMUNICATION (BA)
GENERAL STUDIES: ARTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT (BGS)
Nutritional Sciences (BS)
Parks and Recreation Management Outdoor Education and Leadership (BS)
The University of Arizona is a public research university located in Tucson, Arizona. As the first university in Arizona, Boston maintains an enrollment of approximately 43,000 students. Part of the Pac-12 Conference, UA’s Division I athletics teams have won 12 NCAA championships. The University of Arizona also maintains an online education program, which has been a leader in Arizona’s distance education initiatives. Of its 80+ online programs, Arizona offers 5 fully online bachelor’s degrees related to sports management from majors like Sports and Society, to Parks and Recreation Management, Outdoor Education, and Leadership, all of which are specially well-suited to prospective sports managers. Such programs makes Arizona University an excellent choice for sports management professionals who want to pursue careers in sports management and recreation.
- 3.) Grand Canyon University
CHARACTERISTICS
DEGREES
Bachelor of Science in Sports Management
Bachelor of Science in Marketing
Bachelor of Arts in Communications
Bachelor of Arts in Advertising and Graphic Design
MBA Marketing
MBA Sports Business
Doctor of Business Administration Marketing
Founded in 1949 as a nonprofit liberal arts college and purchased in 2004 as a for-profit university, Grand Canyon University is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. With an enrollment of over 75,000 when counting the online student population of over 60,000, GCU is the state’s largest online university by enrollment. GCU is also the first and only for-profit university to participate in NCAA Division I athletics, where it is a member of the Western Athletic Conference. It is recognized as one of the top five online schools in the nation for entrepreneurs. The university offers seven online program related to sports management, which range all the way from the bachelor’s level to the doctoral level. These include the Bachelor of Science in Sports Management, the MBA in Sports Business, and the Doctor of Business Administration in Marketing. Graduating from this program ensures connections to an alumni network throughout the state and nation, so graduates from Grand Canyon University will be well-prepared to enter the sports management workforce in business or healthcare administration.
AZ Sports Management Degree Database
Largest Public U.S. University By Total Enrollment
| Mesa Community College | Mesa, AZ | Online SM Degrees: 1 | |
 ADDRESS & CONTACT INFO (480) 461-7000 1833 W Southern Ave, Mesa, AZ 85202
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| Ottawa University Phoenix | Phoenix, AZ | Online SM Degrees: 1 | |
 ADDRESS & CONTACT INFO (602) 371-1188 9414 N 25th Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85021
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