by our College Data Analytics Team
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2021-2022, 8,124 people earned their degree in geological & earth sciences, making the major the 95th most popular in the United States. In , geological & earth sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $38,869 and had an average of $22,278 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Rocky Mountains region, there were 576 geological & earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,791 and $21,709 respectively.
This year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region” ranking looked at 37 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in geological & earth sciences. That schools that top this list have a program in geological & earth sciences in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest 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.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region”.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Blackfeet Community College. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Located in Browning, Montana, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 7 degrees to qualified ’s geology students in 2021-2022.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Colorado School of Mines. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. This medium-sized school is located in Golden, Colorado, and it awarded 53 ’s geology degrees 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at Colorado School of Mines
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Colorado College. The school came in at #3 for the Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region. Colorado College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It awarded 5 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Montana Technological University. The school came in at #4 for the Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region. This small school is located in Butte, Montana, and it awarded 9 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Salish Kootenai College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Salish Kootenai College is a small school located in Pablo, Montana that handed out 2 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Fort Lewis College landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. This small school is located in Durango, Colorado, and it awarded 12 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at Fort Lewis College
University of Wyoming came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. This fairly large school is located in Laramie, Wyoming, and it awarded 48 ’s geology 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%.
Montana State University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. This fairly large school is located in Bozeman, Montana, and it awarded 60 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #9, Western Colorado University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Gunnison, Colorado is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s geology degrees to 7 students 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%.
With a ranking of #10, Rocky Mountain College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Rocky is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Billings, Montana. It awarded 4 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at Rocky Mountain College
Westminster College Utah did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking, coming in at #11. Westminster College Utah is a small school located in Salt Lake City, Utah that handed out 2 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.1% 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 Geological & Earth Sciences at Westminster College Salt Lake
University of Northern Colorado landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. University of Northern Colorado is a medium-sized school located in Greeley, Colorado that handed out 17 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
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%.
Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at University of Northern Colorado
University of Idaho did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking, coming in at #13. This fairly large school is located in Moscow, Idaho, and it awarded 14 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Colorado Boulder landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. This large school is located in Boulder, Colorado, and it awarded 53 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
The University of Montana came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. The University of Montana is a medium-sized public school situated in Missoula, Montana. It awarded 15 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Adams State University landed the #16 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Adams State University is located in Alamosa, Colorado and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 2 ’s geology degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at Adams State University
Boise State University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Boise State University is a large school located in Boise, Idaho that handed out 34 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #18, University of Utah did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. University of Utah is a large school located in Salt Lake City, Utah that handed out 51 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Southern Utah University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking, coming in at #19. This fairly large school is located in Cedar City, Utah, and it awarded 8 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Southern Utah University Geological & Earth Sciences Report
Lewis - Clark State College came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. Lewis - Clark State College is a small public school situated in Lewiston, Idaho. It awarded 0 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at Lewis - Clark State College
With a ranking of #21, Brigham Young University - Provo did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. This large school is located in Provo, Utah, and it awarded 19 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #22, Metropolitan State University of Denver did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Located in Denver, Colorado, this fairly large public school handed out 6 diplomas to qualified ’s geology students in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at Metropolitan State University of Denver
Utah State University landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region ranking. USU is a public institution located in Logan, Utah. The school has a large population, and it awarded 22 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Idaho State University ranked #24 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. Idaho State University is a fairly large school located in Pocatello, Idaho that handed out 17 ’s geology degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.9% 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%.
Full Idaho State University Geological & Earth Sciences Report
With a ranking of #25, Colorado State University - Fort Collins did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geology Major in the Rocky Mountains Region list. This large school is located in Fort Collins, Colorado, and it awarded 47 ’s geology 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at Colorado State
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
