Natural Resources Conservation and Research at University of Denver

University of Denver's Natural Resources Conservation program delivers better starting salaries than 80% of similar Colorado programs, but there's an important caveat: these figures are based on fewer than 30 graduates, making them less reliable than data from larger cohorts. That said, the $39,017 median starting salary significantly outpaces Colorado's state median of $30,747 and edges above the national median too. Among Colorado schools, only Metro State's program shows notably higher earnings at $44,236.

The debt picture looks reasonable—at $25,899, graduates carry slightly more than state and national averages, but the 0.66 debt-to-earnings ratio means you're borrowing roughly eight months of salary. For a conservation field degree, that's manageable, especially given Denver's competitive positioning. The school serves primarily affluent students (only 15% receive Pell grants), which may explain why graduates can accept positions that lead to these above-average outcomes.

The small sample size matters here. With under 30 graduates reporting, one or two high earners could skew the median upward. If your child is passionate about conservation work and Denver's location offers networking advantages, this could work well. But given the data uncertainty, compare carefully with Colorado State-Fort Collins, which has a larger, more established program with proven mid-$30K outcomes.