BestOnlineCollege.org is an advertising-supported website. Many of the school and program listings that appear on this site are from partners who compensate us, and this compensation may affect how, where, and in what order listings appear (such as featured placements). This compensation does not influence our editorial content, evaluations, or rankings, which are determined independently using publicly available data. We do not review or feature every school or program available in the marketplace. Our goal is to provide accurate, unbiased information so you can make informed decisions. Read our full Advertiser Disclosure.
Best Environmental Policy Schools Near Athens, AL (2026)
Updated September 7, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Athens, Alabama is home to about 32,587 residents. In the Huntsville, AL metro area, the top-earning environmental policy-related role is Natural Sciences Managers at a median $130,780 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Environmental Policy Schools to Athens
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer environmental policy programs near Athens, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Athens city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Athens.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
Athens is part of the Huntsville, AL metro area (BLS area code 26620). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Alabama statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health
$78,110
Huntsville, AL
$83,899
Compliance Officers
$84,990
Huntsville, AL
$91,289
Management Analysts
$121,970
Huntsville, AL
$131,010
Economists
$129,960
AL statewide
$139,592
Political Scientists
N/A
AL statewide
–
Conservation Scientists
$77,000
AL statewide
$82,707
Natural Sciences Managers
$130,780
Huntsville, AL
$140,473
Environmental Engineers
$111,270
Huntsville, AL
$119,517
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Athens at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
93.1 (below U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Athens-Area Cities With Environmental Policy Programs
What are the highest-paying environmental policy roles near Athens?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying environmental policy-related roles near Athens are: Natural Sciences Managers ($130,780), Economists ($129,960), Management Analysts ($121,970). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Alabama statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Madison instead of Athens?
Madison, AL is 11.8 miles from Athens and has its own set of local environmental policy programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Data verified: September 7, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
