2023 Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools
Finding the Best Natural Resources Conservation School for You
In 2020-2021, 22,254 people earned a degree or certificate in natural resources conservation, making the major the #49 most popular in the United States.
It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools ranking. This report analyzed 287 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools in the United States
The following schools top our list of the Best Natural Resources Conservation Colleges.
Top 25 Top Schools in Natural Resources Conservation
Our 2023 rankings named University of Denver the best school in the United States for natural resources conservation students. Located in the city of Denver, DU is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
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Out of the 287 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Columbia Southern University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the fringe town of Orange Beach, Columbia Southern University is a private for-profit school with a large student population.
The average amount in student loans that conservation majors at Columbia Southern University take out is $29,045.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Duke University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. Duke is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Durham.
On average, conservation graduates from Duke take out $11,140 in student loans while working on their degree.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Massachusetts Maritime Academy. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. Located in the midsize suburb of Buzzards Bay, Maritime is a public school with a small student population.
Conservation majors at Maritime take out an average of $25,575 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Out of the 287 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Webster University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Webster is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.
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Yale University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best natural resources conservation programs. Yale is a large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of New Haven.
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Harvard University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best natural resources conservation programs. Harvard is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Cambridge.
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American Public University System did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for natural resources conservation students. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the fringe town of Charles Town, American Military University is a private for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that conservation majors at American Military University take out is $25,250.
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University of California - Berkeley ranked #9 on this year’s Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public school located in the city of Berkeley.
Conservation majors at UC Berkeley take out an average of $12,500 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $275, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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University of Houston - Clear Lake did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for natural resources conservation students. It came in at #10 on the list. UH Clear Lake is a moderately-sized public school located in the large suburb of Houston.
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University of Maryland Global Campus landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best natural resources conservation programs. Located in the suburb of Adelphi, UMGC is a public college with a very large student population.
While working on their degree, conservation majors at UMGC accumulate an average of around $14,031 in student debt.
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Purdue University Global did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for natural resources conservation students. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the small city of Indianapolis, Purdue University Global is a public college with a very large student population.
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Dartmouth College landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best natural resources conservation programs. Dartmouth is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the town of Hanover.
After completing their degree, conservation graduates from Dartmouth carry an average student debtload of $13,260.
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South Dakota State University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. South Dakota State is a fairly large public school located in the remote town of Brookings.
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California State University - Fullerton came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools ranking. Cal State Fullerton is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Fullerton.
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Virginia Tech landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best natural resources conservation programs. Located in the city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public school with a very large student population.
On average, conservation graduates from Virginia Tech take out $26,811 in student loans while working on their degree.
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With a ranking of #18, Seton Hall University did quite well on this year’s best schools for natural resources conservation students. Located in the suburb of South Orange, Seton Hall is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
The average amount in student loans that conservation majors at Seton Hall take out is $27,000.
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Emory University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools ranking. Emory is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Atlanta.
Conservation majors at Emory take out an average of $19,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
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University of California - Los Angeles ranked #20 on this year’s Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. UCLA is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Los Angeles.
On average, conservation graduates from UCLA take out $17,806 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Brown University landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best natural resources conservation programs. Located in the midsize city of Providence, Brown is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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University of North Georgia ranked #22 on this year’s Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. UNG is a large public school located in the town of Dahlonega.
On average, conservation graduates from UNG take out $18,500 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #23 on this year’s Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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Saint Cloud State University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools list. St. Cloud State University is a large public school located in the city of Saint Cloud.
After completing their degree, conservation graduates from St. Cloud State University carry an average student debtload of $31,000.
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Texas A&M University - College Station landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best natural resources conservation programs. Located in the midsize city of College Station, Texas A&M College Station is a public college with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, conservation majors at Texas A&M College Station accumulate an average of around $20,654 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $265, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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Honorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 44 | Dickinson College | Carlisle, PA |
| 45 | University of Houston | Houston, TX |
| 46 | Brandeis University | Waltham, MA |
| 47 | San Jose State University | San Jose, CA |
| 48 | University of California - Irvine | Irvine, CA |
| 49 | Auburn University | Auburn, AL |
| 50 | University of Minnesota - Duluth | Duluth, MN |
| 51 | American University | Washington, DC |
| 52 | University of Virginia - Main Campus | Charlottesville, VA |
| 53 | Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania | Shippensburg, PA |
| 54 | Santa Clara University | Santa Clara, CA |
| 55 | University of Wisconsin - Green Bay | Green Bay, WI |
| 56 | Northeastern University | Boston, MA |
| 57 | Occidental College | Los Angeles, CA |
Natural Resources Conservation by Region
View the Best Natural Resources Conservation Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Natural Resources Conservation Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to Conservation
Natural Resources Conservation is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Natural Resource Management | 2,933 |
| Wildlife Management | 2,449 |
| Forestry | 2,233 |
| Fisheries Sciences | 483 |
| Natural Resources Conservation (Other) | 151 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Lynn Betts.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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