Best Forestry Programs in the West (2026)
Updated
Regional list from Best Forestry Programs in the United States
This page ranks the 7 Forestry programs in the West by median earnings of Forestry graduates four years after completing. California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt leads with median earnings of $79,849 for its graduates after completing.
Across the listed programs, the figure ranges from $79,849 to $39,927, with a median of $62,919. For 1 of the 7 programs the figure is the two-year completion median rather than the four-year one.
All 7 schools are 7 public institutions. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo ranks 58th on Azimuth's composite ranking among the 1,467 public and private nonprofit four-year institutions Azimuth ranks nationally, the strongest showing on the list.
California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt posts the lowest average net price at $13,171.
The ranked list
| Rank | School | Program Earnings | Average net price | Net price, families under $30K | Admission rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt · Arcata, CA | $79,849 | $13,171 | $8,483 | 98.2% |
| California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt ranks 1st on this list, reporting $79,849 in median earnings for its Forestry graduates four years after completing. | |||||
| 2 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo · San Luis Obispo, CA | $77,419 | $16,665 | $7,529 | 31.3% |
| An admission rate of 31% and a median of $77,419 for its Forestry graduates four years after completing mark California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo. | |||||
| 3 | University of Idaho · Moscow, ID | $64,392 | $14,831 | $11,270 | 75.5% |
| Graduates across all fields who borrowed left with a median of $21,982 in federal loans at University of Idaho, where Forestry graduates earn a median of $64,392 four years after completing. | |||||
| 4 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins · Fort Collins, CO | $62,919 | $21,279 | $13,259 | 88.5% |
| Colorado State University-Fort Collins reports an average net price of $21,279 alongside median earnings of $62,919 for its Forestry graduates four years after completing. | |||||
| 5 | The University of Montana · Missoula, MT | $60,526 | $16,784 | $13,960 | 95.9% |
| The University of Montana ranks 829th on Azimuth's composite ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions, and its Forestry graduates earn a median of $60,526 four years after completing. | |||||
| 6 | Northern Arizona University · Flagstaff, AZ | $52,191 | $14,158 | $9,709 | 89.6% |
| With 41 graduates in the earnings cohort, Northern Arizona University reports median earnings of $52,191 for its Forestry graduates four years after completing. | |||||
| 7 | University of Nevada-Reno · Reno, NV | $39,927 | $15,927 | $12,674 | 73.7% |
| University of Nevada-Reno admits 74% of applicants and reports an average net price of $12,674 for families earning under $30,000. | |||||
How this list is ordered
Programs are ordered by the median earnings of their Forestry graduates four years after completing, or two years for programs that report only a two-year figure, highest first. The median is drawn from federally aided completers of the Forestry program who were working and not enrolled, measured after completing. For 1 of the 7 listed programs the figure is the two-year completion median rather than the four-year one. The metric does not adjust for graduate school enrollment, cost, or who enrolls, and it is not a measure of teaching quality. California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt leads the list at $79,849, while California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo follows at $77,419, a gap of $2,430.
Job market context in the West
Forestry graduates in the West enter a labor market that includes occupations such as First-Line Supervisors of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers, Forest and Conservation Technicians, and Conservation Scientists. The median annual wage across those occupations is $60,291, and a quarter of workers in those occupations earn less than $49,043. Projections for 2024 to 2034 put employment in those occupations about 3.9% higher, with 7,190 projected openings a year, or about 2,734 openings a year for every hundred graduates, suggesting more projected openings than graduates. Wages and top occupations exclude management occupations; openings include them. The ranking above uses the median earnings of graduates four years after completing, which reflects the outcomes of specific programs rather than the broader occupational wage distribution.
Related rankings
- Best Forestry Programs in the United States
- Best Colleges in the West
- Best Forestry Programs in the Midwest
- Best Forestry Programs in the South
- Natural Resources Colleges in the West