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Earth & Atmospheric Sciences

Colleges offering this major Rankings Trends

What you'll do in college

This category focuses on the physical processes of our planet and its atmosphere. Coursework leans heavily into physics, chemistry, geology, and advanced math. You will study everything from plate tectonics and deep-ocean currents to severe weather patterns and planetary history. Field work is often central: mapping geological formations, analyzing ice cores, or deploying weather balloons.

What you'll do after college

Grads work for government agencies (USGS, NOAA, NASA), energy and mining companies, meteorological stations, and environmental consulting firms. Day-to-day work often involves fieldwork, operating specialized lab equipment, or running complex predictive computer models. Many pursue graduate degrees for advanced research or specialized industry roles.

Famous graduates

  • Harrison Schmitt — Apollo 17 astronaut and geologist; B.S. in Geology from Caltech
  • Kathryn Sullivan — First American woman to walk in space and former NOAA Administrator; B.S. in Earth Sciences from UC Santa Cruz
  • Stephen Jay Gould — Paleontologist and evolutionary biologist; B.A. in Geology from Antioch College

Selectivity vs. earnings

By acceptance rate

$57,396
891
100–85%
$60,553
2,101
85–72%
$61,873
2,080
71–30%
$62,929
895
30–0%
Acceptance rate · bar = degree-weighted earnings

By SAT median

$56,180
680
400–1120
$60,462
1,580
1120–1260
$61,448
1,569
1260–1410
$62,871
685
1410–1600
Combined SAT composite median (submitters + non-submitters) · bar = degree-weighted earnings

Earnings vs. selectivity rank

$51,240p10 $68,380p90 Arts Military STEM Non-Research Female-only Liberal Arts Public University Religious University Private University Liberal Arts 1–20 Public University 1–25 Private University 21–40 Private University 1–20 Bennington College · $46,761 United States Naval Academy · $58,757 United States Air Force Academy · $57,867 Maine Maritime Academy · $68,524 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Daytona Beach · $74,893 SUNY Maritime College · $101,578 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott · $74,893 Cal State Maritime Academy · $67,345 South Dakota School of Mines and Technology · $48,582 Wellesley College · $60,157 Smith College · $57,249 Scripps College · $59,873 Bryn Mawr College · $55,932 Mount Holyoke College · $57,507 Denison University · $60,829 Bates College · $61,873 Colorado College · $59,422 Trinity University · $65,715 Pitzer College · $60,204 Skidmore College · $59,123 Bucknell University · $68,380 Lafayette College · $68,917 Dickinson College · $69,226 Union College · $75,195 Whitman College · $59,137 St. Lawrence University · $62,229 Centenary College of Louisiana · $57,136 DePauw University · $64,909 Earlham College · $57,996 Occidental College · $63,902 University of the South · $58,311 Furman University · $61,140 Allegheny College · $60,927 Beloit College · $51,356 Adrian College · $56,292 Albion College · $56,056 Cornell College · $56,553 Hope College · $61,258 Augustana College (IL) · $61,316 Eckerd College · $47,757 Wittenberg University · $56,608 Gustavus Adolphus College · $63,472 Hanover College · $52,996 Juniata College · $57,859 Calvin University · $59,510 Lawrence University · $50,876 St. Mary's College of Maryland · $56,809 Susquehanna University · $60,071 Rocky Mountain College · $56,099 Keene State College · $55,803 Pacific Lutheran University · $63,740 Hartwick College · $60,428 Cal State Long Beach · $65,613 University of California, Irvine · $71,246 Cal Poly - San Luis Obispo · $55,307 University of South Florida · $61,397 Binghamton University · $52,686 San Diego State University · $72,174 Cal State Los Angeles · $57,349 University of California, Santa Barbara · $71,720 University of Washington · $61,669 CUNY City College · $63,932 Cal Poly - Pomona · $71,839 Clemson University · $60,427 Florida International University · $57,238 North Carolina A&T State University · $56,077 University of North Carolina Wilmington · $51,481 University of California, Davis · $66,558 State University of New York at New Paltz · $56,558 Salisbury University · $60,601 Stony Brook University · $63,502 San Jose State University · $67,913 CUNY Brooklyn College · $62,828 CUNY Queens College · $61,529 Cal State Fullerton · $79,103 Florida Atlantic University · $55,333 Northern Illinois University · $65,051 West Chester University of Pennsylvania · $61,088 University of Connecticut · $68,218 Pennsylvania State University · $76,154 University of South Carolina · $51,804 New Mexico State University · $51,202 Tarleton State University · $50,021 CUNY York College · $56,983 Central Connecticut State University · $59,595 Georgia State University · $58,338 University of Arkansas at Little Rock · $52,127 University of Pittsburgh · $59,465 Illinois State University · $62,844 Mississippi State University · $54,013 University of Massachusetts - Amherst · $65,688 University of New Mexico · $58,369 State University of New York at Cortland · $58,826 Frostburg State University · $59,925 Minnesota State University, Mankato · $60,038 Wayne State University · $51,696 Appalachian State University · $52,194 Fresno State · $57,808 University of Alaska - Fairbanks · $54,774 University of Hawaii at Hilo · $54,975 University of Minnesota - Twin Cities · $60,625 University of Texas Permian Basin · $55,699 University of Houston · $71,224 Austin Peay State University · $48,050 Ball State University · $55,411 Central Michigan University · $59,390 Eastern Michigan University · $57,343 Kean University · $56,295 Oklahoma State University · $58,609 University at Albany · $61,181 Texas Tech University · $57,013 University of Alaska - Anchorage · $58,360 University of Michigan - Dearborn · $64,802 SUNY Oneonta · $56,823 University at Buffalo · $64,138 University of Louisiana at Monroe · $54,989 University of West Georgia · $59,148 Louisiana State University · $64,709 Northern Michigan University · $54,719 University of Colorado Boulder · $62,740 University of South Alabama · $55,593 Cal State Sacramento · $81,480 Concord University · $49,690 East Carolina University · $61,618 Eastern Illinois University · $56,149 George Mason University · $54,372 Georgia Southern University · $62,838 Indiana University - Northwest · $53,607 Marshall University · $54,975 Millersville University of Pennsylvania · $57,015 Missouri State University - Springfield · $55,371 Missouri University of Science and Technology · $58,067 Montclair State University · $64,509 Morehead State University · $53,789 Murray State University · $54,592 Northwest Missouri State University · $54,474 Ohio University · $65,584 Radford University · $54,995 Salem State University · $58,236 Southern Illinois University - Carbondale · $55,103 Temple University · $61,968 Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi · $55,594 Texas A&M University - Kingsville · $54,163 University of Delaware · $69,907 University of Houston - Downtown · $56,734 University of Maine at Farmington · $48,383 University of Memphis · $54,728 University of Northern Colorado · $56,829 University of Northern Iowa · $47,197 University of Oklahoma - Norman · $62,356 University of Southern Indiana · $56,211 University of Tennessee, Chattanooga · $53,790 University of Texas at Arlington · $53,275 University of Texas at Dallas · $57,663 Western Illinois University · $58,647 Wright State University · $53,092 College of Charleston · $59,354 Eastern Connecticut State University · $61,928 Texas A&M University - San Antonio · $52,590 University of California, Santa Cruz · $72,711 University of Pittsburgh - Bradford · $59,465 University of Vermont · $57,393 Miami University - Ohio · $53,128 SUNY College at Geneseo · $53,918 University of Alabama in Huntsville · $57,942 Michigan Technological University · $59,951 Old Dominion University · $55,130 Oregon State University · $66,596 University of Alabama · $43,987 University of Arkansas · $48,735 University of Idaho · $50,021 University of Mississippi · $56,510 University of Tennessee, Martin · $32,241 Washington State University · $65,534 Boise State University · $58,595 Indiana University · $63,783 SUNY Brockport · $55,238 University of Rhode Island · $40,041 Valdosta State University · $51,410 Rutgers University - Newark · $68,704 University of Missouri · $56,989 University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire · $53,031 Winona State University · $66,073 Angelo State University · $54,122 Chico State · $63,258 East Tennessee State University · $53,650 Eastern Kentucky University · $58,300 Fitchburg State University · $56,568 Middle Tennessee State University · $56,280 Northern Arizona University · $51,211 University of Louisiana at Lafayette · $54,198 University of New Hampshire · $56,884 University of North Carolina at Charlotte · $55,513 University of Oregon · $50,967 Youngstown State University · $56,541 Columbus State University · $49,847 Tennessee Technological University · $52,409 University of Illinois Chicago · $52,138 Western Carolina University · $52,785 Cal State Bakersfield · $68,589 Grand Valley State University · $60,631 Metropolitan State University of Denver · $55,769 Portland State University · $58,152 Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania · $60,323 State University of New York at Oswego · $61,810 University of Minnesota - Duluth · $62,615 University of Nebraska, Lincoln · $59,642 University of Toledo · $60,398 Western Washington University · $56,814 SUNY College at Potsdam · $60,764 University of New Orleans · $42,590 Bowling Green State University · $57,378 Cal Poly - Humboldt · $48,634 California State University, Monterey Bay · $45,771 Colorado State University - Fort Collins · $75,612 Eastern Washington University · $61,402 Indiana University of Pennsylvania · $55,252 Kent State University at Kent · $47,238 Kutztown University of Pennsylvania · $71,514 Sonoma State University · $64,981 University of Mary Washington · $48,166 University of Nevada, Las Vegas · $44,011 University of North Carolina Asheville · $49,482 University of North Dakota · $59,732 University of Utah · $61,814 Michigan State University · $61,145 Savannah State University · $50,158 Southern Connecticut State University · $60,944 Stephen F. Austin State University · $53,814 University of Iowa · $59,306 Western Michigan University · $57,001 Framingham State University · $59,369 Indiana University - Indianapolis · $58,246 Rowan University · $61,859 University of South Carolina - Aiken · $53,270 Arkansas Tech University · $50,311 Cal State Dominguez Hills · $61,975 Cal State San Bernardino · $59,849 Cal State Stanislaus · $64,500 Central Washington University · $55,728 Colorado Mesa University · $54,122 Emporia State University · $51,240 Fort Hays State University · $62,960 Fort Lewis College · $49,889 Indiana State University · $57,573 Iowa State University · $52,513 Lamar University · $55,133 Northern Kentucky University · $56,246 SUNY Buffalo State University · $46,453 Saint Cloud State University · $55,860 Southern Utah University · $53,605 Stockton University · $41,815 University of Akron · $60,028 University of Arizona · $66,461 University of Cincinnati · $58,467 University of Maine · $55,776 University of Massachusetts - Lowell · $68,528 University of Nevada, Reno · $57,554 West Virginia University · $47,923 Western Colorado University · $45,525 Western Connecticut State University · $55,222 Western Kentucky University · $53,339 Western Oregon University · $55,609 Wichita State University · $48,647 Bridgewater State University · $41,129 James Madison University · $56,834 University of California, Riverside · $58,483 University of Wisconsin - River Falls · $56,583 University of Washington - Bothell · $61,331 University of Nebraska at Omaha · $53,467 Arizona State University · $63,719 Cal State Northridge · $65,574 Minot State University · $54,937 Towson University · $62,121 University of Hawaii at Manoa · $56,461 University of Kansas · $60,421 Florida Gulf Coast University · $59,013 University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee · $66,165 University of Kentucky · $56,905 University of Montana · $48,954 University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh · $58,520 SUNY at Fredonia · $54,185 University of Texas at San Antonio · $56,304 University of Wisconsin - Green Bay · $54,384 North Dakota State University · $58,889 Plymouth State University · $55,904 University of Pittsburgh - Johnstown · $59,465 University of Southern Mississippi · $64,819 San Francisco State University · $70,046 Utah State University · $64,060 Adams State University · $54,656 College of Staten Island CUNY · $61,564 Idaho State University · $54,944 Kansas State University · $58,910 Lewis-Clark State College · $53,531 Midwestern State University · $59,783 Sul Ross State University · $48,524 University of Texas at El Paso · $51,056 University of Wyoming · $71,082 New Mexico Institute of Mining & Technology · $58,412 Sam Houston State University · $56,612 University of California, Merced · $63,454 Montana State University · $50,960 Lake Superior State University · $55,767 New Mexico Highlands University · $51,868 Utah Valley University · $58,410 Weber State University · $69,597 Boston College · $71,263 Brigham Young University · $65,491 College of Wooster · $54,182 Saint Louis University · $64,629 Southern Methodist University · $67,575 Baylor University · $60,053 California Lutheran University · $59,125 University of Dayton · $63,551 Cedarville University · $59,387 The Master's University and Seminary · $53,886 University of Tulsa · $61,444 University of Indianapolis · $57,736 Saint Norbert College · $59,269 Valparaiso University · $67,942 University of the Incarnate Word · $55,620 Brigham Young University - Idaho · $60,999 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute · $75,541 Florida Institute of Technology · $68,332 Syracuse University · $67,629 Marist University · $70,113 Hofstra University · $62,381 Hawaii Pacific University · $56,346 Hobart William Smith Colleges · $63,073 Wilkes University · $59,249 Rider University · $61,836 Drexel University · $72,146 Marietta College · $60,185 Harrisburg University of Science and Technology · $56,948 Utica University · $60,344 Williams College · $61,485 Pomona College · $62,117 Carleton College · $58,538 Amherst College · $62,864 Claremont McKenna College · $64,093 Bowdoin College · $62,952 Haverford College · $62,542 Middlebury College · $60,835 Vassar College · $60,496 Colby College · $61,879 Hamilton College · $64,153 Colgate University · $62,861 Macalester College · $62,086 Oberlin College · $54,229 Georgia Tech · $62,993 University of California, Berkeley · $78,337 University of Michigan - Ann Arbor · $56,917 University of Florida · $54,340 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · $60,602 William & Mary · $63,671 University of Georgia · $64,864 Purdue University · $57,960 University of Maryland, College Park · $67,471 UCLA · $76,515 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign · $71,816 University of Texas at Austin · $61,340 Rutgers University - New Brunswick · $68,022 University of Wisconsin - Madison · $64,557 Texas A&M University - College Station · $67,224 Florida State University · $63,546 Auburn University · $62,032 University of Tennessee, Knoxville · $47,395 Virginia Tech · $64,075 University of California, San Diego · $69,962 Ohio State University · $54,441 North Carolina State University · $60,447 Washington University in St Louis · $62,485 Case Western Reserve University · $61,689 Washington & Lee University · $65,060 University of Southern California · $66,158 University of Miami · $67,238 Lehigh University · $80,740 Northeastern University · $71,530 Tulane University · $63,996 University of Rochester · $69,854 George Washington University · $72,974 Franklin and Marshall College · $65,221 MIT · $72,131 Harvard University · $64,127 Caltech · $68,514 Johns Hopkins University · $63,883 Stanford University · $63,799 Brown University · $62,632 Duke University · $58,320 Princeton University · $61,602 University of Chicago · $65,867 University of Pennsylvania · $68,002 Rice University · $60,990 Yale University · $61,621 Northwestern University · $70,929 Cornell University · $63,802 Dartmouth · $62,155 Vanderbilt University · $62,170 Columbia University · $50,254 Tufts University · $64,120 Arts: mean $46,761 Military: mean $71,980 STEM Non-Research: mean $48,582 Female-only: mean $58,144 Liberal Arts: mean $59,985 Public University: mean $57,724 Religious University: mean $61,385 Private University: mean $64,163 Liberal Arts 1–20: mean $61,509 Public University 1–25: mean $63,569 Private University 21–40: mean $67,904 Private University 1–20: mean $63,607 All colleges: p10 $51,240 All colleges: p90 $68,380
Each dot = a college · y = degree-weighted earnings

Majors in this category

Major Colleges Degrees ▼ Male/Female Intl Earnings Employment
Earth & Atmospheric Sciences 424 5,967 50% / 50% 3% $59,869 96%
Geosciences 256 2,559 52% / 48% 3% $58,970 96%
Geology 53 457 47% / 53% 2% $58,923 96%
Meteorology 24 318 61% / 39% 1% $59,778 98%
Marine Sciences 13 318 35% / 65% 2% $57,403 98%
Earth Sciences 19 263 52% / 48% 2% $62,339 93%
Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology 30 258 57% / 43% 0% $59,354 97%
Marine Science 4 215 69% / 31% 2% $53,524 98%
Oceanography 15 186 46% / 54% 3% $63,973 95%
Natural and Applied Sciences 1 144 32% / 68% 1% $57,087
Earth and Environmental Sciences 8 119 41% / 59% 3% $56,230 96%
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences 16 113 42% / 58% 2% $61,248 92%
Atmospheric Sciences 9 93 51% / 49% 3% $65,756 82%
Earth Science 11 84 57% / 43% 2% $63,529 96%
Earth System Science 4 80 52% / 48% 1% $63,613 91%
Geological and Earth Sciences 10 77 49% / 51% 6% $61,904 97%
Geological Sciences 4 64 45% / 55% 3% $64,730 94%
Geology and Geophysics 3 64 45% / 55% 5% $62,395 88%
Atmospheric Science 5 51 53% / 47% 0% $68,854
Earth and Space Exploration 1 49 43% / 57% 4% $64,606 96%
Earth and Planetary Sciences 6 35 34% / 66% 3% $63,588 100%
Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences 4 35 46% / 54% 3% $64,254 100%
Hydrology and Water Resources Science 11 31 65% / 35% 0% $60,855 97%
Geophysics 9 31 55% / 45% 3% $64,857 92%
Earth Systems 1 30 17% / 83% 23% $63,684
Earth and Environmental Sciences (Geological) 1 28 39% / 61% 0% $59,982 97%
Geology/Earth Science 4 26 46% / 54% 4% $57,250 95%
Earth Systems Science 2 23 43% / 57% 0% $62,144
Earth & Climate Sciences 1 20 50% / 50% 0% $63,482
Geophysics and Seismology 9 18 78% / 22% 22% $63,811 98%
Atmospheric and Oceanic Science 1 18 61% / 39% 0% $67,491
Engineering Geology 1 17 12% / 88% 6% $77,560 90%
Climate Science 2 16 56% / 44% 12% $59,008
Earth and Atmospheric Sciences 1 16 25% / 75% 0% $62,727
Renewable Energy 1 15 100% / 0% 7% $72,771 100%
Earth and Environmental Science 1 14 29% / 71% 0% $68,002
Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Space Sciences 1 13 31% / 69% 0% $61,496
Earth and Space Sciences 1 12 67% / 33% 33% $61,331 86%
Earth and Environmental Studies 1 10 20% / 80% 0% $59,373
Geochemistry 6 9 33% / 67% 0% $60,497 95%
Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences 1 9 78% / 22% 0% $62,577
Geophysical Sciences 1 6 67% / 33% 0% $65,867
Planetary Science 3 5 60% / 40% 0% $72,712 80%
Meteorology and Climate Science 1 5 60% / 40% 0% $67,657
Earth and Planetary Science 1 4 25% / 75% 0% $74,453 100%
Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (Course 12) 1 4 0% / 100% 0% $71,791
Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences 1 2 0% / 100% 0% $60,990
Geological and Planetary Sciences 1 2 50% / 50% 0% $68,476
Climate System Science and Engineering (Course 1-12) 1 1 100% / 0% 0% $73,491