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2023 Best Geography & Cartography Schools

282 Colleges
$38,604 Avg Salary
$22,522 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Geography & Cartography School for You

Geography & Cartography is the #103 most popular major in the country with 8,526 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Geography & Cartography Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 282 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Geography & Cartography Schools in the United States

Check out the geography programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 25 Top Schools in Geography & Cartography

#1

Dartmouth College

Hanover, NH

Our 2023 rankings named Dartmouth College the best school in the United States for geography and cartography students. Located in the remote town of Hanover, Dartmouth is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Dartmouth College

#2

Park University

Parkville, MO

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Park University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Geography & Cartography Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Parkville, Park University is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

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#3

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

The excellent programs at Northwestern University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best geography and cartography schools in the United States. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Full Geography & Cartography at Northwestern University Report

#4

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

The excellent programs at University of Chicago helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best geography and cartography schools in the United States. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Full Geography & Cartography at University of Chicago Report

#5

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Johns Hopkins University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Geography & Cartography Schools list. Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Baltimore.

Full Geography & Cartography at Johns Hopkins University Report

#6

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

University of Pennsylvania landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best geography and cartography programs. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Full Geography & Cartography at University of Pennsylvania Report

#7

Colgate University

Hamilton, NY

Colgate University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for geography and cartography students. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the distant town of Hamilton, Colgate is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Geography & Cartography at Colgate University Report

#8

Bucknell University

Lewisburg, PA

Bucknell University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for geography and cartography students. It came in at #8 on the list. Bucknell is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Lewisburg.

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With a ranking of #9, Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well on this year’s best schools for geography and cartography students. Texas A&M College Station is a fairly large public school located in the city of College Station.

On average, geography graduates from Texas A&M College Station take out $21,843 in student loans while working on their degree.

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Illinois State University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Normal.

The average amount in student loans that geography majors at Illinois State take out is $19,017.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Illinois State University

#11

Front Range Community College

Westminster, CO

Front Range Community College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Westminster, FRCC is a public college with a large student population.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Front Range Community College

North Carolina State University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Geography & Cartography at North Carolina State University Report

#13

Tufts University

Medford, MA

Tufts University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best geography and cartography programs. Tufts is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Medford.

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University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. UW Seattle is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Seattle.

After completing their degree, geography graduates from UW Seattle carry an average student debtload of $14,864.

Full Geography & Cartography at University of Washington - Seattle Campus Report

#15

George Washington University

Washington, DC

George Washington University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Geography & Cartography Schools list. GWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington.

Geography majors at GWU take out an average of $22,000 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at George Washington University

#16

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA

James Madison University came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. Located in the city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Geography majors at JMU take out an average of $19,500 in student loans while working on their egree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $283.

Full Geography & Cartography at James Madison University Report

With a ranking of #17, University of Maryland - College Park did quite well on this year’s best schools for geography and cartography students. UMCP is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of College Park.

After completing their degree, geography graduates from UMCP carry an average student debtload of $22,500.

Full Geography & Cartography at University of Maryland - College Park Report

#18

Gustavus Adolphus College

Saint Peter, MN

Gustavus Adolphus College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. Gustavus Adolphus is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Saint Peter.

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University of California - Los Angeles came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average amount in student loans that geography majors at UCLA take out is $13,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $167.

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#20

Middlebury College

Middlebury, VT

Middlebury College ranked #20 on this year’s Best Geography & Cartography Schools list. Middlebury is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Middlebury.

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#21

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

George Mason University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for geography and cartography students. It came in at #21 on the list. GMU is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Fairfax.

On average, geography graduates from GMU take out $25,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at George Mason University

#22

Villanova University

Villanova, PA

Villanova University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Geography & Cartography Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of Villanova, Villanova is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at Villanova University

#23

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA

University of Northern Iowa did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for geography and cartography students. It came in at #23 on the list. UNI is a moderately-sized public school located in the small city of Cedar Falls.

Read full report on Geography & Cartography at University of Northern Iowa

With a ranking of #24, The University of Texas at Austin did quite well on this year’s best schools for geography and cartography students. Located in the large city of Austin, UT Austin is a public school with a very large student population.

While working on their degree, geography majors at UT Austin accumulate an average of around $21,171 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $249, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Geography & Cartography at The University of Texas at Austin Report

University of Wisconsin - River Falls did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for geography and cartography students. It came in at #25 on the list. Located in the distant town of River Falls, UW - River Falls is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Geography & Cartography at University of Wisconsin - River Falls Report

Rest of the Top Best Geography & Cartography Schools

#26

Binghamton University

Vestal, NY
#27

Vassar College

Poughkeepsie, NY
#28

William & Mary

Williamsburg, VA
#31

Texas Christian University

Fort Worth, TX
#34

University of Richmond

University of Richmond, VA
#35

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA
#37

University of Florida-Online

Gainesville, FL
#38

University of North Dakota

Grand Forks, ND
#41

University of Kentucky

Lexington, KY
#42

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Geography & Cartography students that almost earned our Best Geography & Cartography Schools award.

Rank College Location
43 Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus Atlanta, GA
44 Elmhurst University Elmhurst, IL
45 University of Missouri - Columbia Columbia, MO
46 University of California - Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA
47 Ohio State University - Main Campus Columbus, OH
48 University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI
49 University of Delaware Newark, DE
50 Iowa State University Ames, IA
51 Grand Valley State University Allendale, MI
52 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
53 Brandman University Irvine, CA
54 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC
55 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA
56 Sonoma State University Rohnert Park, CA

Geography & Cartography by Region

View the Best Geography & Cartography Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 12 majors within the area of study, geography and cartography has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Geography

Related Major Annual Graduates
Political Science & Government 49,282
Economics 49,055
Sociology 38,475
General Social Sciences 18,997
International Relations & National Security 14,306

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 Couleur.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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