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2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Natural Resources & Conservation in the Rocky Mountains Region

10 Ranked Colleges
514 Degrees Awarded
$26,800 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master's in the Rocky Mountains Region

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Natural Resources & Conservation is the 26th most popular major in the country with 30,341 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, natural resources and conservation graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,196 and had an average of $25,077 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Rocky Mountains region, there were 2,082 natural resources and conservation graduates with average earnings and debt of $32,144 and $25,086 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 514 natural resources and conservation graduates with average earnings and debt of $53,560 and $37,817 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region” ranking analyzed 10 colleges that offered a degree in natural resources and conservation. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great natural resources and conservation programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the natural resources and conservation program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Natural Resources & Conservation Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. 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.

Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for rocky mountains region master’s degree natural resources & conservation students.

Top 10 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Natural Resources & Conservation in the Rocky Mountains Region

#1

University of Wyoming

Laramie, Wyoming
#6 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Wyoming. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region. University of Wyoming is a fairly large public school situated in Laramie, Wyoming. It awarded 13 masters’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

UW not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UW are $16,615.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Wyoming

#5 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Utah State University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region. Logan, Utah is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s natural resources and conservation degrees to 17 students in 2019-2020.

USU also made our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list, coming in at #5. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at USU are $22,598.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at Utah State University

#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Colorado State University - Fort Collins. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region. Fort Collins, Colorado is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s natural resources and conservation degrees to 119 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our rocky mountains region master’s degree natural resources & conservation students list, Colorado State has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Colorado State are $28,055.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at Colorado State

#4

Montana State University

Bozeman, Montana
#7 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Montana State University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region. Located in Bozeman, Montana, this fairly large public school awarded 30 degrees to qualified masters’s natural resources and conservation students in 2019-2020.

MSU Bozeman not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at MSU Bozeman are $21,446, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full MSU Bozeman Natural Resources & Conservation Report

#5

Western Colorado University

Gunnison, Colorado
#9 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Western Colorado University. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Western is a small school located in Gunnison, Colorado that handed out 43 masters’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

Western did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Western are $17,371, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at Western

#6

University of Idaho

Moscow, Idaho
#4 in overall quality

University of Idaho ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region list. University of Idaho is a public institution located in Moscow, Idaho. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 69 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our rocky mountains region master’s degree natural resources & conservation students list, U of I has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at U of I are $29,112.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Idaho

#7

The University of Montana

Missoula, Montana
#8 in overall quality

The University of Montana did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking, coming in at #7. This medium-sized school is located in Missoula, Montana, and it awarded 25 masters’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

UM also made our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list, coming in at #8. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at The University of Montana are $23,242.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at The University of Montana

#3 in overall quality

University of Colorado Boulder ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region list. CU - Boulder is a public institution located in Boulder, Colorado. The school has a large population, and it awarded 71 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

CU - Boulder not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at CU - Boulder are $32,980, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at CU - Boulder

#10 in overall quality

University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region list. CU Anschutz is a large public school situated in Denver, Colorado. It awarded 20 masters’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

CU Anschutz not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at CU Anschutz are $23,915, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus

#10

University of Denver

Denver, Colorado
#1 in overall quality

University of Denver landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Master’s in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. University of Denver is a private not-for-profit institution located in Denver, Colorado. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 93 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

DU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Rocky Mountains Region” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at DU are $52,899, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full DU Natural Resources & Conservation Report

Switch to a Different Ranking Method

Notes and References

References

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Lynn Betts.

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