2022 Best Value Colleges for Geological & Earth Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in the Southwest Region
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. 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 in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.
In 2019-2020, 8,918 people earned their degree in geological and earth sciences, making the major the 84th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, geological and earth sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $35,533 and had an average of $23,531 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Southwest region, there were 1,136 geological and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $42,627 and $21,949 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 24 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in geological and earth sciences. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent geological and earth sciences programs, but they also cost less that 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 geological and earth sciences program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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The geology school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k”.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k.
Top 24 Best Value Colleges for Geological & Earth Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in the Southwest Region
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Arizona. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Tucson, Arizona, and it awarded 100 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at University of Arizona, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $10,562 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Arizona.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at University of Arizona
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Texas A&M University - College Station. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in College Station, Texas, this large public school awarded 149 diplomas to qualified ’s geology students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Texas A&M College Station, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $11,454 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Texas A&M College Station.
The low student loan default rate of 2.9% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full Texas A&M College Station Geological & Earth Sciences Report
Out of the 24 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Texas Tech University landed the #3 spot on the list. Texas Tech University is located in Lubbock, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 48 ’s geology degrees to qualified students.
Texas Tech not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Texas Tech University is $12,317 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend The University of Texas of the Permian Basin. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in Odessa, Texas, this medium-sized public school awarded 28 diplomas to qualified ’s geology students in 2019-2020.
UT Permian Basin also made our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend The University of Texas of the Permian Basin is $7,889 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at UT Permian Basin
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Houston. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k. Houston, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s geology degrees to 98 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, UH has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Houston is $10,203 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.
The University of Texas at San Antonio came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UTSA is a large public school situated in San Antonio, Texas. It awarded 39 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
UTSA also took the #16 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $10,516 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UTSA.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at The University of Texas at San Antonio
The University of Texas at Austin came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UT Austin is a large school located in Austin, Texas that handed out 78 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
UT Austin also made our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #1. The estimated yearly cost for UT Austin is $12,203 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
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 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #8, Arizona State University - Tempe did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. ASU - Tempe is a public institution located in Tempe, Arizona. The school has a large population, and it awarded 24 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.
ASU - Tempe did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #12 on our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $7,044 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Arizona State University - Tempe.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
MSU Texas came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. MSU Texas is a public institution located in Wichita Falls, Texas. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 23 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.
MSU Texas also took the #15 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $7,703 for Southwest Region Geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend MSU Texas.
Oklahoma State University - Main Campus came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This large school is located in Stillwater, Oklahoma, and it awarded 36 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
OSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $8,669 for Southwest Region Geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Oklahoma State University - Main Campus.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
The University of Texas at Dallas did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #11. The University of Texas at Dallas is a public institution located in Richardson, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 39 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, UT Dallas has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $10,857 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend The University of Texas at Dallas.
The low student loan default rate of 4.9% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full The University of Texas at Dallas Geological & Earth Sciences Report
New Mexico State University - Main Campus landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This fairly large school is located in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and it awarded 23 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
NMSU Main Campus also made our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #18. The yearly cost to attend New Mexico State University - Main Campus is $6,896 for Southwest Region Geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at New Mexico State University - Main Campus
With a ranking of #13, The University of Texas at El Paso did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in El Paso, Texas, this large public school handed out 36 degrees to qualified ’s geology students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, UTEP has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $7,092 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend The University of Texas at El Paso.
Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at The University of Texas at El Paso
University of Houston - Downtown ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. UH Downtown is located in Houston, Texas and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 19 ’s geology degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UH Downtown, the school also landed the #17 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $5,065 for Southwest Region Geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UH Downtown.
With a ranking of #15, The University of Texas at Arlington did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. The University of Texas at Arlington is located in Arlington, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 39 ’s geology degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UT Arlington, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. It costs about $11,811 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UT Arlington.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at UT Arlington
With a ranking of #16, University of Oklahoma Norman Campus did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. University of Oklahoma Norman Campus is a large school located in Norman, Oklahoma that handed out 40 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, University of Oklahoma has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Oklahoma is $16,675 for Southwest Region Geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The low student loan default rate of 4.7% 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%.
Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at University of Oklahoma Norman Campus
Northern Arizona University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Northern Arizona University is located in Flagstaff, Arizona and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 41 ’s geology degrees to qualified students.
NAU also took the #21 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Northern Arizona University is $9,251 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Full Northern Arizona University Geological & Earth Sciences Report
Stephen F Austin State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #18. SFASU is a public institution located in Nacogdoches, Texas. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 21 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.
SFASU also made our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #24. The estimated yearly cost for Stephen F Austin State University is $8,650 for Southwest Region Geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Sam Houston State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #19. This large school is located in Huntsville, Texas, and it awarded 8 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
SHSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #22 on our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for SHSU is $10,561 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at Sam Houston State University
Tarleton State University landed the #20 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Tarleton State University is a fairly large school located in Stephenville, Texas that handed out 10 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
Tarleton did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #13 on our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $15,604 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Tarleton.
University of New Mexico - Main Campus came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of New Mexico - Main Campus is a large public school situated in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It awarded 28 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, UNM has also earned the #23 rank in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of New Mexico - Main Campus is $13,242 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #22. This fairly large school is located in Corpus Christi, Texas, and it awarded 9 ’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.
Texas A&M Corpus Christi not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #19 on our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi is $15,501 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi
Texas Christian University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #23. Fort Worth, Texas is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s geology degrees to 21 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k list, TCU has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend TCU is $21,286 for Southwest Region Geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 3.4% 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%.
Baylor University landed the #24 spot on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Waco, Texas, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 21 degrees to qualified ’s geology students in 2019-2020.
Baylor also took the #7 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Baylor is $26,726 for southwest region geology students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
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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.
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- Credit for the banner image above goes to Kelvinsong.
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