Best Natural Resources Conservation and Research Degrees in the US by ROI

Top colleges ranked by estimated 20-year net return on investment across all active states. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Programs Analyzed

218

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

-$193,929

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$38,674

Cost of attendance

#	College	State	20-Yr Net ROI	Median Salary	Annual Cost	Avg Debt
1	San Jose State University Grad rate: 66.2%	CA	+$391,820	$66,730	$25,695	N/A	Full ROI →
2	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Grad rate: 85.3%	CA	+$349,268	$65,447	$29,918	N/A	Full ROI →
3	University of Maryland Global Campus Grad rate: 23.6%	MD	+$275,544	$60,431	$19,790	$10,308	Full ROI →
4	Southern New Hampshire University Grad rate: 43.2%	NH	+$256,038	$64,484	$37,524	$32,256	Full ROI →
5	Columbia Southern University Grad rate: 35.0%	AL	+$245,386	$59,697	$18,002	$27,071	Full ROI →
6	Colgate University Grad rate: 90.9%	NY	+$212,930	$70,524	$83,650	$17,000	Full ROI →
7	University of California-Berkeley Grad rate: 93.5%	CA	+$197,094	$61,273	$42,708	$12,988	Full ROI →
8	Rutgers University-Newark Grad rate: 66.9%	NJ	+$145,160	$57,743	$33,749	$25,706	Full ROI →
9	Rutgers University-New Brunswick Grad rate: 84.7%	NJ	+$139,228	$57,743	$35,232	$25,706	Full ROI →
10	California State University-East Bay Grad rate: 45.5%	CA	+$124,988	$52,810	$22,803	N/A	Full ROI →
11	University of Houston Grad rate: 64.0%	TX	+$117,496	$52,886	$25,056	N/A	Full ROI →
12	Massachusetts Maritime Academy Grad rate: 79.2%	MA	+$92,076	$55,903	$37,721	$26,000	Full ROI →
13	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Grad rate: 70.4%	LA	+$79,008	$52,816	$34,328	N/A	Full ROI →
14	University of North Georgia Grad rate: 37.7%	GA	+$77,172	$49,471	$18,062	N/A	Full ROI →
15	Bucknell University Grad rate: 86.4%	PA	+$67,538	$63,177	$79,956	$26,798	Full ROI →
16	California State University-Sacramento Grad rate: 55.1%	CA	+$63,569	$51,213	$22,714	$22,100	Full ROI →
17	University of California-Los Angeles Grad rate: 92.6%	CA	+$60,788	$53,583	$36,643	$18,000	Full ROI →
18	Northeastern University Oakland	CA	+$40,289	$45,596	N/A	$23,430	Full ROI →
19	Minnesota State University-Mankato Grad rate: 53.3%	MN	+$36,560	$48,341	$22,565	N/A	Full ROI →
20	University of California-Davis Grad rate: 85.7%	CA	+$36,212	$52,450	$38,067	$15,200	Full ROI →
21	Texas A&M University-College Station Grad rate: 83.7%	TX	+$29,561	$51,321	$32,085	$21,125	Full ROI →
22	American Public University System Grad rate: 54.3%	WV	+$26,856	$48,226	$16,358	$23,875	Full ROI →
23	George Washington University Grad rate: 85.0%	DC	+$24,567	$60,690	$80,727	$19,500	Full ROI →
24	University of California-San Diego Grad rate: 87.7%	CA	+$10,940	$51,027	$36,325	$18,000	Full ROI →
25	University of Rhode Island Grad rate: 71.4%	RI	-$3,501	$49,658	$32,584	$19,500	Full ROI →
26	California State University-Long Beach Grad rate: 71.3%	CA	-$12,886	$46,334	$20,310	$13,575	Full ROI →
27	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Grad rate: 86.3%	VA	-$22,710	$49,055	$32,040	$26,408	Full ROI →
28	Rowan University Grad rate: 68.2%	NJ	-$26,615	$49,104	$34,116	$23,875	Full ROI →
29	University of Michigan-Dearborn Grad rate: 56.3%	MI	-$31,700	$44,902	$22,435	N/A	Full ROI →
30	George Mason University Grad rate: 69.9%	VA	-$33,306	$47,283	$26,972	$23,021	Full ROI →
31	University of Michigan-Flint Grad rate: 45.5%	MI	-$34,996	$44,916	$23,329	N/A	Full ROI →
32	CUNY Queens College Grad rate: 58.4%	NY	-$35,932	$42,932	$13,643	N/A	Full ROI →
33	Denison University Grad rate: 82.3%	OH	-$38,700	$55,445	$76,900	N/A	Full ROI →
34	Stephen F Austin State University Grad rate: 52.4%	TX	-$50,036	$46,006	$24,231	$24,617	Full ROI →
35	Washington State University Grad rate: 62.0%	WA	-$53,664	$44,752	$27,176	N/A	Full ROI →
36	SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry Grad rate: 70.7%	NY	-$57,512	$44,716	$27,958	N/A	Full ROI →
37	Michigan State University Grad rate: 81.9%	MI	-$58,234	$46,797	$30,528	$23,750	Full ROI →
38	University of Maryland-College Park Grad rate: 88.9%	MD	-$60,605	$45,914	$28,073	$19,699	Full ROI →
39	Towson University Grad rate: 68.7%	MD	-$63,116	$45,704	$26,621	$22,750	Full ROI →
40	Iowa State University Grad rate: 75.0%	IA	-$65,702	$44,877	$23,309	$22,227	Full ROI →
41	Metropolitan State University of Denver Grad rate: 29.5%	CO	-$70,729	$44,741	$22,825	$25,370	Full ROI →
42	Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Grad rate: 50.8%	PA	-$71,308	$45,959	$29,480	$24,125	Full ROI →
43	Arizona State University Digital Immersion Grad rate: 27.4%	AZ	-$71,770	$39,829	N/A	$21,000	Full ROI →
44	University of California-Santa Barbara Grad rate: 85.5%	CA	-$72,963	$46,823	$36,776	$16,533	Full ROI →
45	State University of New York at Plattsburgh Grad rate: 61.7%	NY	-$78,565	$44,871	$27,415	$19,500	Full ROI →
46	Ohio State University-Main Campus Grad rate: 87.9%	OH	-$85,481	$45,037	$29,320	$21,438	Full ROI →
47	Oakland University Grad rate: 57.3%	MI	-$87,784	$44,313	$25,016	$25,171	Full ROI →
48	Kutztown University of Pennsylvania Grad rate: 55.3%	PA	-$90,561	$45,019	$28,876	$26,250	Full ROI →
49	Sonoma State University Grad rate: 60.1%	CA	-$95,421	$43,247	$24,739	$15,856	Full ROI →
50	University of Minnesota-Duluth Grad rate: 63.4%	MN	-$96,814	$44,356	$26,907	$26,894	Full ROI →

How ROI is calculated

20-Year Net ROI = Gross Earnings (salary × 20) − Total Degree Cost − Debt Payoff (×1.35) − Baseline Opportunity Cost ($42,000 × 20). Data from the U.S. College Scorecard.

Find Best Natural Resources Conservation and Research Degrees by State

Browse Natural Resources Conservation and Research programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.