2024 Best Geological & Earth Sciences Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

If you plan on getting your master's degree in geological & earth sciences, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #82 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 7 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Geological & Earth Sciences Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 106 master's degrees in geological & earth sciences to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Master’s Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Geological & Earth Sciences School for Your Master's Degree

The geology 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:

• Major Focus - How much a school focuses on geological & earth sciences students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - How many other geological & earth sciences students want to attend this school to pursue a master's degree.
• Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
• Student Debt - How much debt geological & earth sciences students go into to obtain their master's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized geological & earth sciences related body.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for geological & earth sciences students working on their master's degree.

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 Geological & Earth Sciences Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Geological & Earth Sciences in the Plains States Region

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in geological & earth sciences.

Top Plains States Region Schools for a Master's in Geology

1

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, MN

15 Annual Graduates

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a master's degree in geological & earth sciences. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

2

University of Iowa
Iowa City, IA

9 Annual Graduates

University of Iowa is a great choice for students pursuing a master's degree in geological & earth sciences. Iowa is a fairly large public university located in the city of Iowa City.More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from University of Iowa

3

Missouri State University - Springfield
Springfield, MO

13 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in a master's degree in geological & earth sciences has to check out Missouri State University - Springfield. Located in the medium-sized city of Springfield, Missouri State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from Missouri State University - Springfield

4

Iowa State University
Ames, IA

6 Annual Graduates

Iowa State University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a master's degree in geological & earth sciences. Located in the city of Ames, Iowa State is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from Iowa State University

5

University of Missouri - Columbia
Columbia, MO

4 Annual Graduates

Mizzou is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Columbia.More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from University of Missouri - Columbia

6

University of Kansas
Lawrence, KS

14 Annual Graduates

$50,763 Median Starting Salary

KU is a very large public university located in the small city of Lawrence.

Soon after graduation, geology master's recipients usually earn about $50,763 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from University of Kansas

7

University of Minnesota - Duluth
Duluth, MN

7 Annual Graduates

UMN Duluth is a medium-sized public university located in the city of Duluth.More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from University of Minnesota - Duluth

8

University of Missouri - Kansas City
Kansas City, MO

4 Annual Graduates

UMKC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Kansas City.More information about a master’s in geological & earth sciences from University of Missouri - Kansas City

Best Geological & Earth Sciences Colleges by State

Explore the best geological & earth sciences colleges for a specific state in the Plains States Region .

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Missouri	193	34
Minnesota	174	22
Iowa	154	15
Kansas	149	28
Nebraska	123	5
North Dakota	115	0
South Dakota	89	2

View All Rankings >

Geological & Earth Sciences Related Rankings by Major

One of 8 majors within the Physical Sciences area of study, Geological & Earth Sciences has other similar majors worth exploring.

Geology Focus Areas

Major	Annual Graduates
Geology & Earth Sciences	68
Other Geological & Earth Sciences/Geosciences	23
Hydrology & Water Resources Science	11
Geophysics & Seismology	2
Paleontology	2

Majors Similar to Geology

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Chemistry	153
Physics	74
Atmospheric Sciences & Meteorology	18
Materials Sciences	18
Astronomy & Astrophysics	3
General Physical Sciences	2

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• 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 the rest 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).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Kelvinsong. More about our data sources and methodologies.