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geography and environmental studies

Instructional content is defined in code 30.4401.

Types of Degrees geography and environmental studies Majors Are Earning

Those studying geography and environmental studies have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	2
Bachelor’s Degree	687
Master’s Degree	252
Doctor’s Degree	67

What geography and environmental studies Majors Need to Know

Coursework for geography and environmental studies develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that geography and environmental studies graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in geography and environmental studies emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Mathematics — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Biology — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set developed in a geography and environmental studies program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to geography and environmental studies careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, geography and environmental studies graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Working with Computers	4.4 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.2 / 7
Analyzing Data or Information	4.1 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.1 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.0 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.0 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.0 / 7
Processing Information	4.0 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by geography and environmental studies professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
ESRI ArcGIS software	Geographic information system	✓
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	✓
The MathWorks MATLAB	Analytical or scientific software	—
Geographic information system GIS systems	Geographic information system	✓
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
IBM SPSS Statistics	Analytical or scientific software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for geography and environmental studies graduates include:

• Lecturer
• College Professor
• Instructor
• Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Associate Professor
• College Faculty Member
• Assistant Professor
• Clinical Trials Manager
• Clinical Project Manager
• Research Coordinator
• Postdoctoral Associate
• Postdoctoral Fellow
• Clinical Study Manager
• Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to geography and environmental studies graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	37.9%
Doctoral degree	22.6%
Master’s degree	18.9%
Post-doctoral training	5.3%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	4.2%
Postsecondary certificate	2.9%
High school diploma or equivalent	2.4%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	2.0%
Some college courses	1.9%
Post-master’s certificate	1.7%
First professional degree	0.3%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in geography and environmental studies?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 48.6% women and 51.4% men among geography and environmental studies graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	490	48.6%
Men	518	51.4%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of geography and environmental studies graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	657	65.2%
Asian	47	4.7%
Hispanic or Latino	100	9.9%
Black or African American	33	3.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native	7	0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	2	0.2%
Two or More Races	47	4.7%
Race Unknown	18	1.8%
International Students	97	9.6%

^{See minority definition below.}

Online geography and environmental studies Programs

Distance learning are documented by IPEDS for geography and environmental studies. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Bachelor’s	2	4
Doctoral (Research)	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Multi Interdisciplinary Studies	134,694
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other	30,141
Biological and Physical Sciences	28,033
Data Analytics	12,891
Data Science	7,716
International/Globalization Studies	5,740
Nutrition Sciences	5,456
Behavioral Sciences	5,391
Sustainability Studies	4,374
Cognitive Science	3,121
Natural Sciences	2,648
Computational Science	2,395

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.