2022 Best Value Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences in Iowa (With Aid)

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Geology Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Geology & Earth Sciences is the 101st most popular major in the country with 7,036 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across Iowa, there were 69 geology and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Geology Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 2 colleges that offer a degree in geology and earth sciences. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality geology and earth sciences programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the geology and earth sciences program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Geology Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Geology Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Geology Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid.

Top 2 Best Value Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences in Iowa (With Aid)

#1

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, Iowa

#1 in overall quality

$15,620 Average Net Price

$39,900 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 2 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Northern Iowa landed the #1 spot on the list. Cedar Falls, Iowa is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s geology degrees to 10 students in 2019-2020.

UNI also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #1. The estimated yearly cost for UNI is $15,620 for Iowa Geology students with aid.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 3.6% 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%.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at University of Northern Iowa

#2

Iowa State University

Ames, Iowa

#2 in overall quality

$15,496 Average Net Price

$46,410 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Iowa State University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Geology Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid. Iowa State is located in Ames, Iowa and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 22 ’s geology degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa State, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $15,496 for Iowa Geology students with aid per year to attend Iowa State.

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 student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Iowa State University Geology & Earth Sciences Report

• Best Value Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences in the Plains States Region (With Aid)
• Best Value Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences (With Aid)

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 Kelvinsong.

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