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2024 Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in California

21 Colleges in California
981 Geology Degrees Awarded
$39,206 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in geological & earth sciences is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #95 out of 395 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual looked at 21 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 981 degrees in geological & earth sciences during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Geological & Earth Sciences School

Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in California The geology program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Geological & Earth Sciences rankings. For our Best Overall Geological & Earth Sciences School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Geological & Earth Sciences Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Geology
Master's Degrees in Geology
Doctor's Degrees in Geology

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in California list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Geological & Earth Sciences in California

The schools below may not offer all types of geology degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top California Schools in Geology

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
98 Geology Degrees Awarded
$57,418 Median Starting Salary

Any student pursuing a degree in geological & earth sciences needs to look into Stanford University. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Stanford. A Best Colleges rank of #3 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Stanford is a great university overall.

There were approximately 98 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at Stanford in the most recent data year. Those geological & earth sciences students who get their degree from Stanford University receive $18,212 more than the average geology grad.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from Stanford University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
59 Geology Degrees Awarded
10.2% Growth in Graduates

University of California - Santa Barbara is a good choice for students interested in a degree in geological & earth sciences. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #45 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCSB is a great university overall.

There were approximately 59 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at UCSB in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the geology program report average early career wages of $36,796.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from University of California - Santa Barbara

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In CA

California Institute of Technology is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in geological & earth sciences. Caltech is a small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Pasadena. A Best Colleges rank of #31 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Caltech is a great school overall.

There were approximately 26 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at Caltech in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from California Institute of Technology

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In CA
32 Geology Degrees Awarded

It is hard to beat University of California - Berkeley if you wish to pursue a degree in geological & earth sciences. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.

There were about 32 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from University of California - Berkeley

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
47 Geology Degrees Awarded
34.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #26 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.

There were about 47 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, geology degree recipients usually earn around $25,210 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from University of California - Los Angeles

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
87 Geology Degrees Awarded
13.8% Growth in Graduates

UCSD is a very large public university located in the city of La Jolla. A Best Colleges rank of #38 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UCSD is a great university overall.

There were about 87 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the geological & earth sciences degree program at University of California - San Diego get $3,747 above the typical graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from University of California - San Diego

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
62 Geology Degrees Awarded
$27,905 Median Starting Salary

UC Irvine is a very large public university located in the city of Irvine. A Best Colleges rank of #61 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Irvine is a great university overall.

There were approximately 62 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent data year. After graduating, geology degree recipients usually earn an average of $27,905 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from University of California - Irvine

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
53 Geology Degrees Awarded
$36,107 Median Starting Salary

UC Santa Cruz is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Santa Cruz. A Best Colleges rank of #102 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UC Santa Cruz is a great university overall.

There were about 53 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at UC Santa Cruz in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, geology degree recipients typically earn an average of $36,107 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from University of California - Santa Cruz

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
31 Geology Degrees Awarded
$35,137 Median Starting Salary

Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #52 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Davis is a great university overall.

There were approximately 31 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the geology program state that they receive average early career wages of $35,137.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from University of California - Davis

10

CSULB is a fairly large public university located in the city of Long Beach. This university ranks 28th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 23 geological & earth sciences students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the geological & earth sciences major at California State University - Long Beach get $10,709 more than the standard college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in geological & earth sciences from California State University - Long Beach

Best Geological & Earth Sciences Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Geological & Earth Sciences Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
Washington300339
Oregon266135
Nevada19269
Hawaii16442
Alaska11937

View All Rankings >

Geological & Earth Sciences is one of 8 different types of Physical Sciences programs to choose from.

Geology Focus Areas

MajorAnnual Graduates
Geology & Earth Sciences724
Other Geological & Earth Sciences/Geosciences103
Chemical & Physical Oceanography76
Geophysics & Seismology49
Hydrology & Water Resources Science22
Geochemistry7

View All Geology Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Geology

Related MajorAnnual Graduates
Chemistry3,379
Physics2,939
General Physical Sciences289
Astronomy & Astrophysics212
Materials Sciences181
Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology78
Other Physical Science11

View All Geology Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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