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Program ranking · CIP 40.06 bachelor's · College Scorecard · Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

Best Colleges for Geology

Using U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study data retrieved March-July 2026, these colleges rank highest on median earnings for Geology (CIP 40.06) bachelor's completers. Rankings use earnings only - not prestige, selectivity, or editorial judgment - and require at least 25 completers so tiny suppressed cohorts do not dominate the list.

$83,481
Highest geology earnings
42
Colleges ranked
$45,002
#42 cutoff

The list in one line

Every college on this list reports at least $45,002 median earnings for Geology bachelor's (CIP 40.06) completers. The University of Texas at Austin leads at $83,481.

According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.

$83,481
#1 - The University of
$45,002
#42 - the cutoff to make this list
25+
completers required per school
456
US schools offering this CIP

Earnings are field-of-study medians for federally aided completers who were working and not enrolled; see methodology for horizon and lag details.

Top 15 geology programs by median completer earnings

Geology bachelor's (CIP 40.06) · higher is higher early-career pay

median earnings

What this shows Geoscience medians mix energy, environmental consulting, and government roles - debt still matters when commodity cycles swing hiring.

Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard Field of Study As of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

The full top 42

# School Name StateMedian EarningsMedian DebtCompleters
1 The University of Texas at Austin TX $83,481 $16,993 46
2 Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus PA $81,092 $25,648 57
3 University of California-Los Angeles CA $79,143 - 30
4 Texas A&M University-College Station TX $74,594 $18,686 46
5 California State University-Sacramento CA $73,418 $15,000 26
6 Colorado State University-Fort Collins CO $71,631 $22,250 34
7 University of California-Irvine CA $70,820 $14,916 40
8 University of Florida FL $69,943 $19,737 27
9 University of Wyoming WY $68,883 $18,960 30
10 University of Houston TX $68,127 $24,875 27
11 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College LA $67,493 $19,500 35
12 Western Washington University WA $67,208 $22,969 52
13 Ohio University-Main Campus OH $66,922 $18,500 29
14 University of Washington-Seattle Campus WA $66,845 $19,000 97
15 University of California-Santa Barbara CA $66,788 $16,298 50
16 University of California-Santa Cruz CA $64,499 $20,833 42
17 University of Arizona AZ $63,387 $24,250 58
18 University of Utah UT $62,867 - 27
19 Southern New Hampshire University NH $62,360 $20,875 97
20 Mississippi State University MS $62,082 $21,500 87
21 North Carolina State University at Raleigh NC $61,023 $20,029 39
22 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor MI $60,949 $17,875 64
23 University of South Florida FL $60,472 $24,405 32
24 University of Colorado Boulder CO $60,453 $19,500 35
25 Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania PA $60,075 $27,000 43
26 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University VA $59,969 - 25
27 University at Buffalo NY $59,841 $19,750 48
28 Miami University-Oxford OH $59,558 $19,500 50
29 California State University-Fullerton CA $58,891 $16,625 40
30 University of Wisconsin-Madison WI $58,771 $24,250 26
31 University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus PA $57,456 $25,000 87
32 University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire WI $56,739 $21,000 26
33 Binghamton University NY $53,761 - 54
34 Ohio State University-Main Campus OH $53,381 $25,000 28
35 California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt CA $53,371 $19,940 26
36 Appalachian State University NC $53,269 $22,291 27
37 University of North Carolina at Charlotte NC $53,247 $22,980 70
38 University of Nevada-Las Vegas NV $52,278 $15,000 29
39 Wright State University-Main Campus OH $50,824 $26,000 26
40 The University of Tennessee-Knoxville TN $50,202 $25,000 28
41 Montana State University MT $49,241 $20,064 49
42 Washington State University WA $45,002 $20,433 104

About This Ranking

Schools are ranked by College Scorecard field-of-study median earnings for Geology (CIP 40.06) bachelor's completers. Only operating schools with at least 25 completers and a published median are included. Ties break toward larger completer cohorts. For the full program profile - including every reporting school and national distribution - see Geology (bachelor's). Methodology lives on our methodology page.

Caveats and limitations

"Best" here means highest reported median earnings for the stated CIP scope - not teaching quality, licensure pass rates, clinical placement strength, or fit for any one student. This list covers Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences (CIP 40.06) bachelor's programs - environmental science (CIP 03 family) is ranked separately.

Figures cover federally aided completers only, use Treasury-linked earnings, and describe a lagged cohort. Regional pay scales and graduate-school paths both move the median without proving a causal school effect.

This ranking is for informational purposes only and does not constitute academic or career advice. Earnings do not predict any individual graduate's outcome.

Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Rankings are computed directly from College Scorecard field-of-study data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals.