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Columbia, Missouri has 4 accredited schools offering environmental science programs. Columbia has a population of about 127,200. Median household income is $64,488 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 56.5% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In Missouri, the top-earning environmental science-related role is Environmental Engineer at a median $98,170 annually (BLS, May 2025).
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer environmental science programs near Columbia, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Columbia city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
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:
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Columbia. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Missouri schools on the Missouri environmental science page.
| Occupation | Median Annual Wage (Missouri, statewide) |
|---|---|
| Environmental Scientist and Specialist | $61,050 |
| Conservation Scientist | $63,130 |
| Environmental Engineer | $98,170 |
| Zoologist and Wildlife Biologist | $76,400 |
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.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 127,200 | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income | $64,488 | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ | 56.5% | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) | 89.4 (below U.S. average) | BEA RPP 2024 |
Our directory has 4 accredited schools offering environmental science programs near Columbia. The closest is University of Missouri-Columbia in Columbia, MO (0.2 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Lindenwood University (98.8 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
Based on BLS May 2025 state wage data, the top-paying environmental science-related roles in Missouri are: Environmental Engineer ($98,170), Zoologist and Wildlife Biologist ($76,400), Conservation Scientist ($63,130). Wages for Columbia workers will track these statewide medians, adjusted for local cost of living.
Jefferson City, MO is 27.5 miles from Columbia and has its own set of local environmental science programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Columbia’s median household income of $64,488 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Columbia while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Missouri public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
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.
Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Columbia:
Data verified: September 1, 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.
Back to Best Environmental Science Schools in Missouri (2026)
