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 Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region” 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.
Across the Great Lakes region, there were 1,187 geography and cartography graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,196 and $24,578 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 175 geography and cartography graduates with average earnings and debt of $58,892 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking analyzed 27 colleges that offered a degree in geography and cartography. That schools that top this list have a program in geography and cartography in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to 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 following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region”.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Chicago State University. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region. Chicago State University is a small school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 3 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Eastern Illinois University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region. Eastern Illinois University is a medium-sized school located in Charleston, Illinois that handed out 9 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Eastern Illinois University
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Michigan Technological University. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region. Located in Houghton, Michigan, this medium-sized public school awarded 8 diplomas to qualified masters’s geography students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.
Full Michigan Technological University Geography & Cartography Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Wisconsin - Madison. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, this large public school handed out 58 degrees to qualified masters’s geography students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% 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 27 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Kent State University at Kent landed the #5 spot on the list. Kent State is a large public school situated in Kent, Ohio. It awarded 23 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
Full Kent State University at Kent Geography & Cartography Report
Western Illinois University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Western Illinois University is a medium-sized public school situated in Macomb, Illinois. It awarded 4 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #7, Western Michigan University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, this fairly large public school handed out 7 diplomas to qualified masters’s geography students in 2020-2021.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at Western Michigan University
Miami University - Oxford landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Miami University - Oxford is a public institution located in Oxford, Ohio. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 7 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.0% 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 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at Miami University - Oxford
With a ranking of #9, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a fairly large public school situated in Edwardsville, Illinois. It awarded 3 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
Full Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Geography & Cartography Report
Eastern Michigan University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #10. This fairly large school is located in Ypsilanti, Michigan, and it awarded 4 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Eastern Michigan
University of Toledo ranked #11 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Toledo is located in Toledo, Ohio and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 4 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at University of Toledo
With a ranking of #12, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a large school located in Champaign, Illinois that handed out 11 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, 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 94%.
With a ranking of #13, Central Michigan University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Mount Pleasant, Michigan is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s geography degrees to 4 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.8% 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%.
Full Central Michigan University Geography & Cartography Report
University of Akron Main Campus ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Akron Main Campus is located in Akron, Ohio and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at University of Akron Main Campus
Ohio University - Athens Campus landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. OHIO Athens is located in Athens, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Northern Illinois University landed the #16 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. NIU is located in Dekalb, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 2 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
Indiana State University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in Terre Haute, Indiana, this medium-sized public school handed out 1 diplomas to qualified masters’s geography students in 2020-2021.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at Indiana State University
Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #18. IUPUI is located in Indianapolis, Indiana and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Indiana University - Bloomington landed the #19 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. IU Bloomington is located in Bloomington, Indiana and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 4 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Indiana University - Bloomington
Michigan State University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Michigan State University is located in East Lansing, Michigan and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 4 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Michigan State University Geography & Cartography Report
Ball State University landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Ball State University is located in Muncie, Indiana and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 2 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Ball State University
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This large school is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and it awarded 1 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Geography & Cartography at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #23. Located in Columbus, Ohio, this large public school awarded 2 diplomas to qualified masters’s geography students 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full Ohio State University - Main Campus Geography & Cartography Report
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #24. UC is located in Cincinnati, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1 masters’s geography degrees to qualified students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. SIUC is a fairly large public school situated in Carbondale, Illinois. It awarded 0 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #25, Calvin University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Calvin University is a small school located in Grand Rapids, Michigan that handed out 8 masters’s geography degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Geography Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #25. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s geography degrees to 0 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% 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%.
Read full report on Geography & Cartography at University of Illinois at Chicago
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