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Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

22 Colleges
$24,768 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$48,625 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master's Degree School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, natural resources and conservation was ranked #25 in the country. In fact 30,503 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 22 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which master's degree programs offered the best value experiences for natural resources and conservation students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for natural resources and conservation majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 10 Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master's Degree Schools

#1

Youngstown State University

Youngstown, OH

Our analysis found Youngstown State University to be the best value school for natural resources and conservation students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the Great Lakes Region . Youngstown State University is a large public school located in the small city of Youngstown.

Youngstown State University graduate students pay an average of $6,931 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at Youngstown State University

#2

Purdue University Global

Indianapolis, IN

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Purdue University Global is a great value for natural resources and conservation students working on their master’s degree. Located in the small city of Indianapolis, Purdue University Global is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Purdue University Global are $10,582 a year.

Read More…

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of Wisconsin - Green Bay is a great value for natural resources and conservation students working on their master’s degree. Located in the medium-sized city of Green Bay, UW - Green Bay is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UW - Green Bay are $19,126 per year.

Full Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Wisconsin - Green Bay Report

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Illinois at Springfield is a great value for natural resources and conservation students working on their master’s degree. Located in the medium-sized city of Springfield, UIS is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UIS are $16,757 a year.

Full Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Illinois at Springfield Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Michigan Technological University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the remote town of Houghton, Michigan Tech is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Michigan Tech are $22,981 a year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Michigan Tech also did well on our Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Full Natural Resources & Conservation at Michigan Technological University Report

Loyola University Chicago did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for natural resources and conservation students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Loyola Chicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Loyola Chicago are $19,894 per year.

Full Natural Resources & Conservation at Loyola University Chicago Report

With a ranking of #7, University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well on this year’s best value schools for natural resources and conservation students working on their master’s degree. UW - Madison is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Madison.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UW - Madison are $25,501 per year.

UW - Madison also claimed a spot on our Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Wisconsin - Madison

With a ranking of #8, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee did quite well on this year’s best value schools for natural resources and conservation students working on their master’s degree. UWM is a very large public school located in the city of Milwaukee.

UWM graduate students pay an average of $25,651 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Natural Resources & Conservation at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Report

University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for natural resources and conservation students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the distant town of Stevens Point, UW - Stevens Point is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UW - Stevens Point are $19,209 per year.

Read More…

#10

Ball State University

Muncie, IN

Ball State University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Ball State is a very large public school located in the small city of Muncie.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Ball State are $26,600 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Ball State also is in the top 20% of our Best Natural Resources & Conservation Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

Full Natural Resources & Conservation at Ball State University Report

Best Natural Resources & Conservation Colleges by State

Explore the best natural resources and conservation colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Indiana 447
Michigan 964
Ohio 878
Illinois 596
Wisconsin 936

Natural Resources & Conservation Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Natural Resources Conservation 22,254
Natural Resource Management 2,933
Wildlife Management 2,449
Forestry 2,233
Fisheries Sciences 483
Natural Resources Conservation (Other) 151

Related Major Annual Graduates
Computer & Information Sciences 254,454
Engineering 198,468
Biological & Biomedical Sciences 177,778
Engineering Technologies 85,188
Mathematics & Statistics 52,396

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 22 schools only.

  • 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.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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