by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 8,526 people earned their degree in geography and cartography, making the major the 110th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, geography and cartography graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $38,604 and had an average of $22,522 in loans still to pay off.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 4,409 geography and cartography graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,682 and $26,217 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major” ranking, we looked at 291 colleges that offer a degree in geography and cartography. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in geography and cartography.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most 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.
The colleges and universities below are the best for bachelor’s degree geography students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend United States Air Force Academy. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major. USAFA is located in USAF Academy, Colorado and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 56 bachelors’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at United States Air Force Academy
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend United States Military Academy. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major. United States Military Academy is located in West Point, New York and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 55 bachelors’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Out of the 291 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Pittsburgh - Johnstown landed the #3 spot on the list. University of Pittsburgh - Johnstown is a small school located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania that handed out 15 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Pitt Johnstown
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Colorado Springs, Colorado is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geography degrees to 72 students 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%.
Full University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Geography & Cartography Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Macalester College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Macalester College is a small school located in Saint Paul, Minnesota that handed out 15 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at Macalester College
With a ranking of #6, Middlebury College did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Middlebury College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Middlebury, Vermont. It awarded 20 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #7, Gustavus Adolphus College did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Located in Saint Peter, Minnesota, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s geography students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Gustavus Adolphus College Geography & Cartography Report
With a ranking of #8, Clark University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Clark is a small school located in Worcester, Massachusetts that handed out 30 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Sonoma State University ranked #9 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Sonoma State University is a medium-sized public school situated in Rohnert Park, California. It awarded 45 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Emory and Henry College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Emory & Henry College is located in Emory, Virginia and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 bachelors’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Emory & Henry College
University of Mary Washington landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Fredericksburg, Virginia is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geography degrees to 23 students 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%.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at University of Mary Washington
Dartmouth College came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Dartmouth College is a medium-sized school located in Hanover, New Hampshire that handed out 39 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate 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%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at Dartmouth College
With a ranking of #13, Concord University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Concord University is located in Athens, West Virginia and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 8 bachelors’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Concord University
University of Hawaii at Hilo did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #14. University of Hawaii at Hilo is a small public school situated in Hilo, Hawaii. It awarded 13 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
Full University of Hawaii at Hilo Geography & Cartography Report
SUNY Oneonta came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Oneonta, New York is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geography degrees to 27 students in 2020-2021.
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 for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Carthage College is located in Kenosha, Wisconsin and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 10 bachelors’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #17, University of North Alabama did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. UNA is a medium-sized school located in Florence, Alabama that handed out 28 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
University of Florida-Online landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Gainesville, Florida is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geography degrees to 12 students in 2020-2021.
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%.
Vassar College ranked #19 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. This small school is located in Poughkeepsie, New York, and it awarded 9 bachelors’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Park University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Located in Parkville, Missouri, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 35 degrees to qualified bachelors’s geography students in 2020-2021.
University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #21. Located in Santa Barbara, California, this large public school awarded 97 degrees to qualified bachelors’s geography students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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%.
Humboldt State University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Humboldt State University is located in Arcata, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 23 bachelors’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at Humboldt State University
Salem State University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking. Salem State is located in Salem, Massachusetts and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 23 bachelors’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Keene State College did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major ranking, coming in at #24. This small school is located in Keene, New Hampshire, and it awarded 10 bachelors’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 #25, SUNY Geneseo did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Geography Major list. Geneseo, New York is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s geography degrees to 14 students 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 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%.
Not only did these schools make the top 44 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
