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

52 Ranked Colleges
984 Degrees Awarded
$13,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor's in the Southeast Region

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 7,036 people earned their degree in geology and earth sciences, making the major the 101st most popular in the United States.

Across the Southeast region, there were 1,351 geology and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 984 geology and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $36,277 and $25,415 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region” ranking looked at 52 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in geology and earth sciences. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great geology and earth sciences programs and 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. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Geology & Earth Sciences Schools

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 Southeast Region” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region

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

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

#1

University of Southern Mississippi

Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Out of the 52 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Southern Mississippi landed the #1 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Southern Miss is $14,923 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Full University of Southern Mississippi Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#2

Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, North Carolina

Out of the 52 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Carolina University landed the #2 spot on the list. WCU is a fairly large school located in Cullowhee, North Carolina that handed out 12 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $13,722 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students per year to attend WCU.

Full WCU Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#3

Georgia Southern University

Statesboro, Georgia
#23 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Georgia Southern University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region. Located in Statesboro, Georgia, this large public school handed out 10 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s geology students in 2019-2020.

GaSou also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list, coming in at #23. The estimated yearly cost for GaSou is $15,536 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Full GaSou Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#4

Appalachian State University

Boone, North Carolina
#11 in overall quality

Out of the 52 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Appalachian State University landed the #4 spot on the list. This large school is located in Boone, North Carolina, and it awarded 33 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

Appalachian State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Appalachian State University is $13,920 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Appalachian State University

#5

University of West Georgia

Carrollton, Georgia

Out of the 52 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of West Georgia landed the #5 spot on the list. University of West Georgia is a public institution located in Carrollton, Georgia. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 15 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for University of West Georgia is $16,124 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Full University of West Georgia Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#22 in overall quality

University of South Florida - Main Campus ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. University of South Florida - Main Campus is a large public school situated in Tampa, Florida. It awarded 28 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

USF Tampa not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #22 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of South Florida - Main Campus is $8,355 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at University of South Florida - Main Campus

#7

Florida State University

Tallahassee, Florida
#15 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, Florida State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. Florida State University is a large public school situated in Tallahassee, Florida. It awarded 7 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

Florida State also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list, coming in at #15. The estimated yearly cost for Florida State is $9,789 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Florida State University Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#8

Tennessee Technological University

Cookeville, Tennessee

With a ranking of #8, Tennessee Technological University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. Tennessee Technological University is a public institution located in Cookeville, Tennessee. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 13 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Tennessee Technological University is $15,929 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

The low student loan default rate of 4.8% 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%.

Full Tennessee Technological University Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#9

University of New Orleans

New Orleans, Louisiana

University of New Orleans came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. University of New Orleans is a medium-sized public school situated in New Orleans, Louisiana. It awarded 18 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend UNO is $11,193 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Full University of New Orleans Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#10

University of North Carolina at Wilmington

Wilmington, North Carolina
#25 in overall quality

University of North Carolina at Wilmington came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. University of North Carolina at Wilmington is a fairly large public school situated in Wilmington, North Carolina. It awarded 18 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

UNCW did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #25 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for UNCW is $19,055 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The low student loan default rate of 3.9% 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 Geology & Earth Sciences at University of North Carolina at Wilmington

With a ranking of #11, Florida International University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. Florida International University is a large school located in Miami, Florida that handed out 15 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Florida International University is $7,296 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Florida International University

#12

University of Florida

Gainesville, Florida
#3 in overall quality

University of Florida did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking, coming in at #12. University of Florida is a large school located in Gainesville, Florida that handed out 36 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UF, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Florida is $6,302 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, 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 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at University of Florida

#13

University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Charlotte, North Carolina
#19 in overall quality

University of North Carolina at Charlotte landed the #13 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. UNC Charlotte is located in Charlotte, North Carolina and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 57 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNC Charlotte, the school also landed the #19 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of North Carolina at Charlotte is $16,529 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

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

Full UNC Charlotte Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#14

West Virginia University

Morgantown, West Virginia
#10 in overall quality

With a ranking of #14, West Virginia University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. WVU is a large school located in Morgantown, West Virginia that handed out 56 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

WVU also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list, coming in at #10. It costs about $12,983 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students per year to attend West Virginia University.

Full WVU Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#15

Northern Kentucky University

Highland Heights, Kentucky

Northern Kentucky University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. Highland Heights, Kentucky is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geology degrees to 5 students in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Northern Kentucky University is $9,049 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Northern Kentucky University

#16

Valdosta State University

Valdosta, Georgia

Valdosta State University ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. Valdosta State University is a fairly large public school situated in Valdosta, Georgia. It awarded 12 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend VSU is $13,969 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at VSU

#17

East Carolina University

Greenville, North Carolina
#21 in overall quality

East Carolina University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. East Carolina University is a public institution located in Greenville, North Carolina. The school has a large population, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at ECU, the school also landed the #21 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for ECU is $15,844 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at East Carolina University

#18

Morehead State University

Morehead, Kentucky

Morehead State University landed the #18 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. Morehead State University is located in Morehead, Kentucky and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 4 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

The yearly cost to attend Morehead State University is $12,421 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Morehead State University

#19

University of Georgia

Athens, Georgia
#1 in overall quality

University of Georgia ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. This large school is located in Athens, Georgia, and it awarded 15 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

UGA not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list. It costs about $13,649 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students per year to attend University of Georgia.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 2.5% 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%.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at University of Georgia

#20

Mississippi State University

Mississippi State, Mississippi
#20 in overall quality

Mississippi State University landed the #20 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. Mississippi State, Mississippi is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geology degrees to 63 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students list, Mississippi State has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Mississippi State is $16,173 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

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

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Mississippi State University

#2 in overall quality

Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College landed the #21 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College is a public institution located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Louisiana State University also made our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list, coming in at #2. The estimated yearly cost for Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College is $15,465 for Southeast Region Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Geology & Earth Sciences at Louisiana State University

#22

Radford University

Radford, Virginia

With a ranking of #22, Radford University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. Radford University is located in Radford, Virginia and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 8 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

The estimated yearly cost for Radford University is $16,447 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at Radford University

#23

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, Virginia
#7 in overall quality

James Madison University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking, coming in at #23. This large school is located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and it awarded 25 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

JMU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” list. The yearly cost to attend James Madison University is $22,169 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

The low student loan default rate of 2.3% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full James Madison University Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#24

University of Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee

University of Memphis landed the #24 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region ranking. University of Memphis is a large school located in Memphis, Tennessee that handed out 21 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend University of Memphis is $13,248 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

Full University of Memphis Geology & Earth Sciences Report

#25

North Carolina State University

Raleigh, North Carolina
#8 in overall quality

With a ranking of #25, North Carolina State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Southeast Region list. This large school is located in Raleigh, North Carolina, and it awarded 13 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at NC State, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Geology & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend North Carolina State University is $16,458 for southeast region bachelor’s degree geology students.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Geology & Earth Sciences at NC State

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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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