Office of Student Life

Recreational Sports

Membership/Access

It's a good time to be a Buckeye! 

Ohio State has some of the best recreation facilities in the country, the Recreation and Physical Activity Center (RPAC) its West Campus satellite facility, the Adventure Recreation Center and the North Recreation Center on north campus have all opened in the past 10 years. That's in addition to the Jesse Owens Recreation Centers on south and north campus. All five buildings are designed to fit your needs and schedule.

A membership is your ticket to take advantage of all five indoor facilities, outdoor facilities and programs.

Member Privileges

There are many benefits to having a Rec Sports membership. Please contact member services if you have any questions about the benefits of membership.

Group Fitness

Attend unlimited free group fitness classes as part of your membership. Click here for the current schedule. 

Guests and Family Participation

Members may sponsor up to two guests during a visit.

There are a number of guest pass options. A daily guest pass is valid at all facilities for unlimited re-entries in a one-day period. For more information on guest passes and rates, visit the guest passes page. Members must be present at the time of purchase for guest pass transactions.

Rec Sports strives to be a family-friendly environment. Members are able to enjoy quality time with their families in the campus recreation facilities. The facilities offer a variety of family-friendly accommodations, including:

  • Family changing rooms
  • Leisure pool
  • Courtside Café and Juice 2 restaurants
  • The Lounge game room
  • Fully accessible facilities

Anyone holding a current membership can bring their spouse/partner and dependent children (under 18), who have been declared on their membership application, for no additional charge during family hours held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the RPAC and ARC. Family members must stay with their designated Rec Sports member at all times. For current family hours, visit the family hours page.

Locker and Towel Rental

Lockers are available at the RPAC, ARC and Jesse Owens Centers. The RPAC offers full service men's and women's locker rooms featuring large and medium size lockers which can be rented on a semester or annual basis. RPAC towel service is available in addition to day lockers at various locations throughout the facility. Visit the Sport Shop page for more details.

The ARC offers a full locker room for patrons where lockers are available on a first-come, first-served, basis. Towel service is not available at the ARC. The Jesse Owens Centers offer several day lockers in each facility.

Member Rates for Programs

Rec Sports offers special rates for several programs and services that are exclusive to members and students paying the dedicated fee. Many community programs offer discounted rates to our members and fee paying students. Group fitness, intramural sports, sport clubs and outdoor adventure programs are only available to current Rec Sports members and fee paying students.

Open Recreation

Open Recreation is a formal program scheduled in activity spaces that is to be used by our members on a drop-in basis. Use will be on a first come first serve basis that is also inclusive of other drop-in participants. A single person or group of people cannot monopolize the designated open recreation space that would prohibit other drop-in users from participating. In addition, no formal coaching/instruction or structured competition is permitted during designated open recreation times.  Use of any facility for personal gain, including but not limited to formal coaching, instruction, or training is strictly prohibited.  Providing a service that is currently offered by the Department of Recreational Sports is strictly prohibited.  Utilizing spaces for activities not approved by the Department of Recreational Sports is strictly prohibited.  Violations of this policy could result in loss of access privileges, up to and including termination of membership.

Parking

Learn about where to park during your visit.