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2025 Best Natural Resources Conservation Master's Degree Schools in California

9 Colleges in California
445 Master's Degrees
$61,096 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your master's degree in natural resources conservation, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #56 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual looked at 9 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Natural Resources Conservation Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 445 master's degrees in natural resources conservation during the 2022-2023 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Natural Resources Conservation School for Your Master's Degree

Best Natural Resources Conservation Master's Degree Schools in California The conservation master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for natural resources conservation students working on their master's degree.

More Ways to Rank Natural Resources Conservation Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Conservation Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Natural Resources Conservation Master's Degree Schools in California list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Natural Resources Conservation in California

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in natural resources conservation.

Top California Schools for a Master's in Conservation

1
48 Annual Graduates

University of California - Berkeley is a wonderful option for individuals pursuing a master's degree in natural resources conservation. UC Berkeley is a very large public university located in the city of Berkeley.More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from University of California - Berkeley

2
29 Annual Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in a master's degree in natural resources conservation needs to take a look at University of California - Davis. Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from University of California - Davis

3
25 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a master's degree in natural resources conservation needs to look into University of Southern California. USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Los Angeles.More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from University of Southern California

4

Any student pursuing a degree in a master's degree in natural resources conservation has to take a look at University of California - Santa Barbara. Located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public university with a very large student population.

Master's students who receive their degree from the conservation program make an average of $55,039 in their early career salary.

More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from University of California - Santa Barbara

5
19 Annual Graduates

UC Irvine is a very large public university located in the large city of Irvine.More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from University of California - Irvine

6
USFCA crest
University of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA

USFCA is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of San Francisco.

Natural Resources Conservation master's degree recipients from University of San Francisco earn a boost of around $8,399 over the average earnings of natural resources conservation graduates.

More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from University of San Francisco

7
17 Annual Graduates

Located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

8

Humboldt State University is a moderately-sized public university located in the town of Arcata.

Master's recipients from the natural resources conservation program at Humboldt State University make $2,672 more than the standard college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from Humboldt State University

9
20 Annual Graduates

CSUMB is a moderately-sized public university located in the suburb of Seaside.More information about a master’s in natural resources conservation from California State University - Monterey Bay

Best Natural Resources Conservation Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 183 91
Oregon 158 49
Nevada 105 5
Hawaii 85 17
Alaska 52 2

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Natural Resources Conservation is one of 5 different types of Natural Resources & Conservation programs to choose from.

Conservation Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Environmental Science 202
Environmental Studies 163
Natural Resources/Conservation, General 47
Natural Resources Conservation & Research, Other 33

Majors Similar to Conservation

Related Major Annual Graduates
Natural Resource Management 9
Forestry 4

Notes and References

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