2023 Best Value Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2020-2021, 325 people earned their degree in geoscience engineering, making the major the 304th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, geoscience engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $68,772 and had an average of $25,238 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 177 geoscience engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $60,548 and $26,625 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking, we looked at 3 colleges that offer a degree in geoscience engineering. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality geoscience engineering programs that also have a lower cost than 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 geoscience engineering program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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 Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k

The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region geoscience engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

Top 3 Best Value Colleges for Geoscience Engineering (Income $48-$75k) in the Plains States Region

1

Missouri University of Science and Technology
Rolla, Missouri

#1 in overall quality

$11,656 Average Net Price

$63,979 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Missouri University of Science and Technology. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k. Missouri University of Science and Technology is a public institution located in Rolla, Missouri. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 140 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our plains states region geoscience engineering students whose families make $48-$75k list, Missouri University of Science and Technology has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Missouri University of Science and Technology is $11,656 for plains states region geoscience engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Missouri University of Science and Technology Geoscience Engineering Report

2

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, Minnesota

#3 in overall quality

$12,911 Average Net Price

$50,445 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k list. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is a large public school situated in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It awarded 7 ’s geoscience engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

UMN Twin Cities not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region” list. It costs about $12,911 for plains states region geoscience engineering students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UMN Twin Cities.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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%.

Read full report on Geoscience Engineering at UMN Twin Cities

3

South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Rapid City, South Dakota

#2 in overall quality

$19,754 Average Net Price

$64,929 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology landed the #3 spot on the list. South Dakota School of Mines and Technology is a public institution located in Rapid City, South Dakota. The school has a small population, and it awarded 25 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our plains states region geoscience engineering students whose families make $48-$75k list, SD Mines has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Geoscience Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. It costs about $19,754 for Plains States Region Geoscience Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend SD Mines.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Geoscience Engineering at SD Mines

• Best Value Colleges for Geoscience Engineering (Income $48-$75k)

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.