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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences in the Far Western US Region

38 Ranked Colleges
956 Degrees Awarded
$12,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor's in the Far Western US Region

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. 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 Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.

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

Across the Far Western US region, there were 1,335 geology and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 956 geology and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,083 and $22,209 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region” ranking looked at 38 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in geology and earth sciences. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent geology and earth sciences programs, but they also cost less that 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 picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region” 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 Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Geology & Earth Sciences in the Far Western US Region

#9 in overall quality

Out of the 38 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #1 spot on the list. California State University - Long Beach is a public institution located in Long Beach, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students list, CSULB has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend CSULB is $9,622 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at California State University - Long Beach

#11 in overall quality

Out of the 38 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, California State Polytechnic University - Pomona landed the #2 spot on the list. Cal Poly Pomona is a public institution located in Pomona, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 22 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cal Poly Pomona, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $12,734 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students per year to attend California State Polytechnic University - Pomona.

The low student loan default rate of 1.7% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Cal Poly Pomona

#24 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Bakersfield. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region. This fairly large school is located in Bakersfield, California, and it awarded 25 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

CSUB not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #24 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for CSUB is $5,318 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Full CSUB Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#13 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fullerton. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Fullerton, California, this large public school handed out 20 degrees to qualified bachelors’s geology students in 2019-2020.

Cal State Fullerton also took the #13 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Cal State Fullerton is $7,991 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.

Full Cal State Fullerton Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#15 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Nevada - Las Vegas. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region. UNLV is a large school located in Las Vegas, Nevada that handed out 41 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNLV, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Nevada - Las Vegas is $11,424 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Full UNLV Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#20 in overall quality

California State University - Sacramento did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #6. California State University - Sacramento is a public institution located in Sacramento, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 18 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students list, Sac State has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Sacramento is $9,979 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Sac State Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#7

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California
#22 in overall quality

San Francisco State University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. San Francisco State University is a large school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 1 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

SFSU also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #22. The yearly cost to attend San Francisco State University is $15,113 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Full SFSU Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#14 in overall quality

University of Nevada - Reno came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. UNR is a large school located in Reno, Nevada that handed out 9 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

UNR did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Nevada - Reno is $15,081 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at UNR

California State University - Chico ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. Chico State is a public institution located in Chico, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $15,017 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students per year to attend California State University - Chico.

The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at California State University - Chico

#10

Western Washington University

Bellingham, Washington
#17 in overall quality

With a ranking of #10, Western Washington University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. Western Washington University is a public institution located in Bellingham, Washington. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 40 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

WWU also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #17. The estimated yearly cost for Western Washington University is $16,529 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Western Washington University

#11

San Diego State University

San Diego, California
#21 in overall quality

San Diego State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #11. San Diego State University is a large school located in San Diego, California that handed out 28 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

SDSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #21 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Diego State University is $14,788 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

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 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at San Diego State University

#12

California State University - San Bernardino

San Bernardino, California

California State University - San Bernardino came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. California State University - San Bernardino is a public institution located in San Bernardino, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 15 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend California State University - San Bernardino is $7,342 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at California State University - San Bernardino

#13

Washington State University

Pullman, Washington
#18 in overall quality

Washington State University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. Wazzu is a large school located in Pullman, Washington that handed out 102 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students list, Wazzu has also earned the #18 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Washington State University is $16,358 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Wazzu Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#14

Humboldt State University

Arcata, California

Humboldt State University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. Humboldt State University is a medium-sized public school situated in Arcata, California. It awarded 22 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $14,692 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students per year to attend Humboldt State University.

Full Humboldt State University Geology & Earth Sciences Report

California State University - Los Angeles ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large public school awarded 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s geology students in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Cal State LA is $2,768 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

The low student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 California State University - Los Angeles

California State University - Fresno did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #16. Fresno, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geology degrees to 5 students in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Fresno is $5,464 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Fresno State Geology & Earth Sciences Report

California State University - East Bay ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. California State University - East Bay is located in Hayward, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 4 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

The yearly cost to attend California State University - East Bay is $11,116 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Cal State East Bay

#18

Central Washington University

Ellensburg, Washington
#25 in overall quality

Central Washington University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. Ellensburg, Washington is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geology degrees to 10 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students list, CWU has also earned the #25 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Central Washington University is $15,397 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at CWU

California State University - Stanislaus came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. Stan State is a fairly large school located in Turlock, California that handed out 9 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend California State University - Stanislaus is $6,019 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

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 school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full California State University - Stanislaus Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#20

Eastern Washington University

Cheney, Washington

Eastern Washington University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. This fairly large school is located in Cheney, Washington, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Eastern Washington University is $12,607 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Eastern Washington University

#21

Portland State University

Portland, Oregon

Portland State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #21. Portland State University is a large public school situated in Portland, Oregon. It awarded 30 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $13,040 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students per year to attend Portland State University.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Portland State University

#22

Western Oregon University

Monmouth, Oregon

Western Oregon University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region list. This small school is located in Monmouth, Oregon, and it awarded 7 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $19,315 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students per year to attend Western Oregon State College.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Western Oregon State College

#6 in overall quality

University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. This large school is located in Seattle, Washington, and it awarded 42 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students list, UW Seattle has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UW Seattle is $13,297 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 2.2% 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 UW Seattle

#24

University of Hawaii at Manoa

Honolulu, Hawaii

University of Hawaii at Manoa did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #24. This fairly large school is located in Honolulu, Hawaii, and it awarded 15 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $15,030 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students per year to attend UH Manoa.

The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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 full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at University of Hawaii at Manoa

#25

University of Oregon

Eugene, Oregon

University of Oregon came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. UO is a large school located in Eugene, Oregon that handed out 17 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend University of Oregon is $16,461 for far western us region bachelor’s degree geology students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at UO

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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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