by our College Data Analytics Team
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major” ranking.
In 2020-2021, 4,954 people earned their degree in geography, making the major the 159th most popular in the United States.
For this year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major” ranking, we looked at 365 colleges that offer a degree in geography. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their geography program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
The geography 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 “Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major”.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
The colleges and universities below are the best for geography students.
Out of the 365 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major that were part of this year’s ranking, United States Air Force Academy landed the #1 spot on the list. USAFA is a public institution located in USAF Academy, Colorado. The school has a small population, and it awarded 56 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Geography at United States Air Force Academy
Out of the 365 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Clark University landed the #2 spot on the list. Worcester, Massachusetts is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s geography degrees to 47 students in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 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.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Pittsburgh - Johnstown. The school came in at #3 for the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major. Pitt Johnstown is a public institution located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The school has a small population, and it awarded 21 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad 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%.
Out of the 365 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs landed the #4 spot on the list. UCCS is a public institution located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 72 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Geography at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
Out of the 365 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Macalester College landed the #5 spot on the list. Macalester College is a small school located in Saint Paul, Minnesota that handed out 15 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #6, Middlebury College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Middlebury is located in Middlebury, Vermont and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 20 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.
Gustavus Adolphus College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #7. Gustavus Adolphus College is located in Saint Peter, Minnesota and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 10 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
United States Military Academy did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #8. This small school is located in West Point, New York, and it awarded 23 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Geography at United States Military Academy
With a ranking of #9, Sonoma State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. This medium-sized school is located in Rohnert Park, California, and it awarded 45 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad 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%.
Emory and Henry College ranked #10 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Emory and Henry College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Emory, Virginia. The school has a small population, and it awarded 7 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
University of Mary Washington came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. UMW is a small public school situated in Fredericksburg, Virginia. It awarded 23 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Dartmouth College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #12. Dartmouth is located in Hanover, New Hampshire and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 39 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% 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 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Concord University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #13. Athens, West Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s geography degrees to 8 students in 2020-2021.
University of Hawaii at Hilo came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. University of Hawaii at Hilo is a small school located in Hilo, Hawaii that handed out 13 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
SUNY Oneonta came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. SUNY Oneonta is located in Oneonta, New York and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 27 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Carthage College ranked #16 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Carthage is a small school located in Kenosha, Wisconsin that handed out 10 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.6% 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%.
University of Florida-Online did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #17. UF Online is located in Gainesville, Florida and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 12 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Vassar College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Vassar is a private not-for-profit institution located in Poughkeepsie, New York. The school has a small population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Park University ranked #19 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Parkville, Missouri is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s geography degrees to 35 students in 2020-2021.
Salisbury University ranked #20 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. This medium-sized school is located in Salisbury, Maryland, and it awarded 28 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Humboldt State University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #21. Humboldt State University is located in Arcata, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 23 ’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Keene State College landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. This small school is located in Keene, New Hampshire, and it awarded 10 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.3% 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 ranking of #23, SUNY Geneseo did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. SUNY Geneseo is a public institution located in Geneseo, New York. The school has a small population, and it awarded 14 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.
Augustana College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #24. This small school is located in Rock Island, Illinois, and it awarded 10 ’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%.
James Madison University ranked #25 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Geography Major list. JMU is a public institution located in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 63 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
While not in the ‘top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | South Dakota State University | Brookings, SD |
| 52 | Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania | Slippery Rock, PA |
| 53 | University of Wisconsin - Whitewater | Whitewater, WI |
| 54 | Chicago State University | Chicago, IL |
| 55 | University of Wisconsin - Parkside | Kenosha, WI |
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
