by our College Data Analytics Team
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual has developed its “Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
In 2021-2022, 374 people earned their degree in marine sciences, making the major the 679th most popular in the United States.
This year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major” ranking analyzed 28 colleges that offered a degree in marine sciences. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their marine sciences program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.
The colleges and universities below are the best for marine sciences students.
Out of the 28 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major that were part of this year’s ranking, College of Micronesia-FSM landed the #1 spot on the list. COM-FSM is a small public school situated in Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. It awarded 13 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Monterey Bay. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. CSUMB is a public institution located in Seaside, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 85 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Maine. The school came in at #3 for the Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major. Orono, Maine is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s marine sciences degrees to 83 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend American Samoa Community College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. ASCC is located in Pago Pago, American Samoa and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 2 ’s marine sciences degrees to qualified students.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at American Samoa Community College
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Hawaii Pacific University. The school came in at #5 for the Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major. Hawaii Pacific University is a small school located in Honolulu, Hawaii that handed out 9 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Marine Sciences at Hawaii Pacific University
Cape Fear Community College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #6. Cape Fear Community College is a fairly large public school situated in Wilmington, North Carolina. It awarded 11 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at Cape Fear Community College
California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking. California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo is located in San Luis Obispo, California and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 12 ’s marine sciences degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Stony Brook University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #8. Stony Brook University is located in Stony Brook, New York and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 16 ’s marine sciences degrees to qualified students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #9. Texas A&M Corpus Christi is a public institution located in Corpus Christi, Texas. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 8 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi
With a ranking of #10, University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth is a public institution located in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 10 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth
University of Florida landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking. Located in Gainesville, Florida, this large public school handed out 18 degrees to qualified ’s marine sciences students in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Florida Atlantic University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking. FAU is a large public school situated in Boca Raton, Florida. It awarded 9 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Massachusetts - Boston did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #13. UMass Boston is a fairly large school located in Boston, Massachusetts that handed out 3 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Marine Sciences at University of Massachusetts - Boston
University of California - Davis did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #14. UC Davis is a large public school situated in Davis, California. It awarded 20 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at University of California - Davis
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking. The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is a public institution located in Edinburg, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
The University of Texas at Austin ranked #16 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. This large school is located in Austin, Texas, and it awarded 15 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.
Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #17. Texas A&M University - College Station is located in College Station, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 13 ’s marine sciences degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at Texas A&M University - College Station
Nova Southeastern University landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking. NUS Florida is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It awarded 1 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
With a ranking of #19, San Francisco State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. SFSU is a large public school situated in San Francisco, California. It awarded 11 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read more about Marine Sciences at San Francisco State University
With a ranking of #20, San Jose State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. This large school is located in San Jose, California, and it awarded 3 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Marine Sciences at San Jose State University
With a ranking of #21, University of Alaska Fairbanks did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. University of Alaska Fairbanks is a medium-sized school located in Fairbanks, Alaska that handed out 0 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #21, Maine Maritime Academy did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. Maine Maritime is a small public school situated in Castine, Maine. It awarded 2 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
With a ranking of #21, The College of the Florida Keys did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. The College of the Florida Keys is a public institution located in Key West, Florida. The school has a small population, and it awarded 6 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
California State University - Stanislaus ranked #21 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. California State University - Stanislaus is a public institution located in Turlock, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 0 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full California State University - Stanislaus Marine Sciences Report
Eckerd College ranked #21 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. Saint Petersburg, Florida is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s marine sciences degrees to 0 students in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Massachusetts Amherst ranked #21 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major list. Located in Amherst, Massachusetts, this large public school awarded 1 degrees to qualified ’s marine sciences students in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Lake Superior State University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking. Lake Superior State University is a small school located in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan that handed out 0 ’s marine sciences degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read more about Marine Sciences at Lake Superior State University
Western Washington University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Marine Sciences Major ranking, coming in at #21. Bellingham, Washington is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s marine sciences degrees to 1 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
