
Geography is one of the most popular degree programs in the USA. It is ranked #107 in the nationwide list of the best degree programs.
This means there are enough schools offering geography programs for every student who is curious enough to ask: "what do geographers do."
According to a 2022 study, there are 268 schools that offer degree programs to students in geography, resulting in approximately 6,681 degrees.
Now, every student must explore the opportunities available to them and which program is closest to the one they are looking for. You need to make a conscious choice of the degree program and school you want to study in.
To assist you in making this decision, we have collected information about the best USA schools for Geography and listed the highest-ranking ones.
Meanwhile, we have used degree-level as one of the criteria to rank these universities. And the four degree levels that you have in the option are as follows:
- Associate Degrees in Geography
- Bachelor's Degree in Geography
- Master's Degree in Geography
- Doctor's Degree in Geography
If you need tutoring for any level of geography lessons, you can run a search query for geography tutors in your area through Superprof. It will help you get in touch with an expert in no time.
You need to be armed with all the facts about "What do geographers study" and the schools in the option to choose the right school for you.
Furthermore, our list of geography schools includes information that will help make your decision easier.
In addition, the locations of every school are also mentioned in this list, so you can also pick a school whether it's close to you or not.
The 15 Best Schools For Geography In The United States
It is best to first start filtering out schools that offer your degree levels given in the following list.
Secondly, you can see if the school falls in the range of areas you plan to settle in, while providing the educational experience you're looking for.
Here are the top 15 schools that offer degree programs in geography for students who want to choose geography as a career:
1. University of Pennsylvania
The first university in which every student is interested in getting a geography degree is the University of Pennsylvania. It offers a Master's degree as the highest degree type.
This can be the ideal option for you if you are settled or wish to settle in the city of Philadelphia. This is because it has a considerable student population.
However, the University of Pennsylvania is a private not-for-profit university ranking #13 in the list of the best schools nationwide.
It is ranked out of 2,576 colleges which ultimately tells UPenn's place among the rest of the schools. This university is also the 4th most popular school in Pennsylvania.
2. Johns Hopkins University

This university is located in Maryland and is the 3rd most popular school in this region. The highest degree program at Johns Hopkins University is a Master's.
So if you're looking forward to pursuing a Master's degree in geography and cartography, this university can be a good choice.
However, Johns Hopkins is also a very large private, not-for-profit university. It ranks #19 among the best schools, accounting for 2,576 schools nationwide.
This ultimately means that Johns Hopkins is an option you certainly won't want to skip.
3. Dartmouth College

Dartmouth College is located in New Hampshire, offering Bachelor's as the highest degree level. In addition, it is the 1st most popular school in the region of New Hampshire.
So if this university falls in your area and you're considering pursuing a geography degree, there's no reason not to look into it.
Moreover, in the list of the best college and national universities, Dartmouth College is ranked #13.
This college is specifically located in the town of Hanover. Moreover, it is a moderately-sized private, not-for-profit college.
Hence, Dartmouth is one of the colleges that you will want to get into as a student of geography.
According to the data available in recent years, around 26 geography and cartography students have graduated with this degree from Dartmouth.
4. University of Chicago
If you live anywhere in Illinois, the University of Chicago will fall in your region. It is also considered the 12th most popular school here.
It is one of the USA's finest schools to get a degree in geography and cartography. It is a private, not-for-profit university that has a large student population.
Even though it is located in Chicago, it enjoys a rank of #7 among the Best Schools nationwide, including 2,576 other schools.
5. Middlebury College
Middlebury College offers Bachelor's degree as the highest degree level. It is the 2nd most popular school in the USA state of Vermont.
Moreover, it is a private, not-for-profit college located in Middlebury town. The student population here is small and ranks #50 among the best schools in the country.
The data tells us that approximately 18 geography and cartography students have graduated from Middlebury College in the recent past years.
6. Colgate University
Colgate University is the 8th most popular school in the state of New York. It is situated in the town of Hamilton, offering Bachelor's degree as the highest degree type.
Additionally, Colgate University ranks at #30 among the other schools in the country. This college is a small private, not-for-profit university where around 12 geography and cartography students have graduated with the said degree.
7. University of California - Los Angeles
UCLA is a public university situated in the city of Los Angeles. It has a fairly large student population, ranking #46 among the best schools in the country.
According to the data available, this university has recently awarded around 168 to students in the field of geography and cartography. In addition, UCLA geography graduates make around $33,000 working in the first couple of years.
8. University of Southern California
The University of Southern California, situated in California, has recently awarded 52 geography degrees to students.
The highest level of degree that USC offers is Masters. It is a Los Angeles private, not-for-profit university that is fairly large.
It is ranked #33 among the best schools in the country. In addition, the students who graduate from USC in geography make $23,224 more than any other standard geography graduate.
9. Northwestern University
Northwestern University is located in North Evanston, a small city in the USA state of Illinois. This university is relatively large and not-for-profit.
It is the 7th most popular university in the state of Illinois. Moreover, Northwestern University secures #14 rank in the nationwide ranking of the best schools in the nation.
10. University of Maryland - College Park
The University of Maryland has awarded 115 geography degrees to students in the field of geography and cartography, according to the data available from recent years.
This university is situated in the suburbs of College Park, which is in Maryland. Moreover, it is a fairly large public university that ranks 2nd among 39 other colleges in the state.
The graduates who receive their degree from the University of Maryland in the field of geography and cartography have $2,074 higher geography salaries than the typical income of any other standard geography graduate.
11. Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus
This institute is located in the city of Atlanta, Georgia. This public school has a very large student population.
As a result, Georgia Tech is ranked at #35 among the best schools in the country. Moreover, it is the 4th most popular in Georgia.
In the recent past, 12 students have graduated from Georgia Tech in the field of geography and cartography, according to the available data.
12. George Washington University
This university is the most popular in the state of Washington, DC. It is a private institute located in the city of Washington.
Moreover, this private, not-for-profit university has a fairly large population of students, and it ranks 2nd in the District of Columbia.
According to the available data from the recent past, around 35 geography and cartography students have graduated from George Washington University in the most recent year.
13. University of California - Santa Barbara
The University of California is situated in the suburbs of Santa Barbara, California. It is a public university that ranks 16th in overall quality in the state of California among 203 colleges.
This university has a relatively large student population. For example, 115 geography and cartography students recently graduated from UCSB.
In addition, the graduates of the University of California get approximately $33,200 in geography salaries early in their careers.
14. The University of Texas at Austin
This public university is situated in the city of Austin, with a fairly large student population. It ranks #52 among the best schools in the country.
The data of the most recent years tells that almost 70 geography and cartography students graduated from the University of Texas at Austin. It is the 2nd most popular university in Texas.
15. Villanova University
This university is a private, not-for-profit university situated in the suburbs of Villanova in the USA state of Pennsylvania.
With a large student population, it is the 9th most popular university in this state. In addition, Villanova University enjoys the #62 rank among the other schools nationwide.
Approximately 10 students from the field of geography and cartography have graduated from Villanova University, according to the data available from the most recent year.
Get Into The Best Universities With The Help Of An Expert
You might have done your research on "What can you do with a geography degree" and made up your mind about studying it. So you probably know the countless benefits of studying the discipline.
But you have yet to make one of the most significant decisions – which school should you choose to get your geography degree from?
This is going to be a tough one. However, with our list, you can get the basic idea of which universities you would want to shortlist, considering the aspects of location, popularity, and ranking.
You can also hire a tutor from your area through Superprof and start learning geography as soon as today!









