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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Geological & Earth Sciences in North Carolina

8 Ranked Colleges
206 Degrees Awarded
$16,400 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor's in North Carolina

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Geological & Earth Sciences is the 84th most popular major in the country with 8,918 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. 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 North Carolina, there were 280 geological and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $28,600 and $23,212 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 206 geological and earth sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,192 and $24,368 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina” ranking looked at 8 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in geological and earth sciences. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality geological and earth sciences programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the geological and earth sciences program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Geological & Earth Sciences Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. 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 North Carolina

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina.

Top 8 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Geological & Earth Sciences in North Carolina

#1

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, North Carolina
#1 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina. UNC Chapel Hill is a large public school situated in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It awarded 23 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

UNC Chapel Hill not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” list. The yearly cost to attend UNC Chapel Hill is $12,352 for North Carolina Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The low student loan default rate of 1.9% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.

Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

#2

Appalachian State University

Boone, North Carolina

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Appalachian State University. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina list. Located in Boone, North Carolina, this large public school awarded 33 degrees to qualified bachelors’s geology students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Appalachian State, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Appalachian State is $13,920 for North Carolina Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, 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 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Geological & Earth Sciences at Appalachian State University

#3

North Carolina State University

Raleigh, North Carolina

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina that were part of this year’s ranking, North Carolina State University landed the #3 spot on the list. NC State is a large school located in Raleigh, North Carolina that handed out 28 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at NC State, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend NC State is $16,458 for North Carolina Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Full North Carolina State University Geological & Earth Sciences Report

#4

East Carolina University

Greenville, North Carolina

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend East Carolina University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina. East Carolina University is a large school located in Greenville, North Carolina that handed out 16 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

ECU also took the #5 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend ECU is $15,844 for north carolina bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at East Carolina University

#5

University of North Carolina at Wilmington

Wilmington, North Carolina

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of North Carolina at Wilmington. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina. UNCW is a public institution located in Wilmington, North Carolina. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 27 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UNCW also made our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” list, coming in at #6. The estimated yearly cost for UNCW is $19,055 for north carolina bachelor’s degree geology students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at UNCW

#6

University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Charlotte, North Carolina

With a ranking of #6, University of North Carolina at Charlotte did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina list. UNC Charlotte is a public institution located in Charlotte, North Carolina. The school has a large population, and it awarded 57 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UNC Charlotte also took the #4 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UNC Charlotte is $16,529 for north carolina 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 Geological & Earth Sciences at UNC Charlotte

#7

Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, North Carolina
#7 in overall quality

Western Carolina University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina list. This fairly large school is located in Cullowhee, North Carolina, and it awarded 12 bachelors’s geology degrees in 2019-2020.

WCU also took the #7 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for WCU is $13,722 for North Carolina Bachelor’s Degree Geology students.

Full WCU Geological & Earth Sciences Report

#8

Guilford College

Greensboro, North Carolina

Guilford College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Geology Schools for a Bachelor’s in North Carolina ranking. Guilford is located in Greensboro, North Carolina and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 4 bachelors’s geology degrees to qualified students.

Guilford also took the #8 spot in our “Best Geological & Earth Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in North Carolina” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Guilford College is $22,996 for north carolina bachelor’s degree geology students.

Read more about Geological & Earth Sciences at Guilford College

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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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