Abstract
In addition to the pursuit of academic excellence, top students may seek universities that offer nonacademic activities, including lavish recreational facilities. Many students are selective when narrowing the list of universities to which they apply. Realizing that attracting top students requires more than simply meeting academic needs, universities invest considerable resources in constructing nonacademic facilities to entice these students to their schools. Within university intramural and recreational programs, the aquatic facility (AF) is a primary activity area that nearly every recreation program participant uses. Collegiate AFs provide a substantial contribution in meeting the overall needs of students. The rapid growth and expanding use of collegiate AFs creates a need to research and better understand these vital facilities. The purpose of this study was to examine the programming, equipment, certifications, and safety of the AFs at universities in the Big Ten athletic conference. A modified version of the Salant and Dillman survey was sent to the aquatic directors at 11 Big Ten universities to collect data. The results of this preliminary study provide data regarding common practices that may help collegiate aquatic directors assess the effectiveness of AF programming and provide ideas to improve to meet the needs of all students.