Biology Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Biology maps to BLS occupations averaging about $121,350, with roughly 796,440 workers nationwide in those roles. About 76,552 bachelor's completions in IPEDS 2023; median program completion runs near 55%.
Key Statistics
Biology: what the data shows
Common questions about biology degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a biology degree?
A Biology program is classified under NCES CIP 26.0101 in the Biology, General field family (26.01).
A general program of biology at the introductory, basic level or a program in biology or the biological sciences that is undifferentiated as to title or content. Includes instruction in general biology and programs covering a variety of biological specializations.
IPEDS counted 76,552 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
How long does it take to get a biology degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 26.0101 in our file:
- 7,885 Associate (8.9% of IPEDS total)—about two years of full-time study
- 76,552 Bachelor's (86.8% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
- 3,727 Master's (4.2% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 22 Doctorate (0.0% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What do you learn in biology?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Social Perceptiveness, Speaking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Monitoring, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For Medical Assistants (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%). Bachelor's awards account for a majority of IPEDS completions for CIP 26.0101, but occupation data show multiple pathways.
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a biology degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Biology to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Medical Assistants | 793,460 | $44,200 |
| Physician Assistants | 155,540 | $133,260 |
| Nurse Practitioners | 307,390 | $129,210 |
| Pharmacy Technicians | 487,920 | $43,460 |
| Registered Nurses | 3,282,010 | $93,600 |
| Dental Hygienists | 200,000 | — |
| Licensed Practical Nurses | 632,430 | $62,340 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a biology degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Biology, General bachelor's program family: median debt $28,324, median earnings $57,214 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.87.
About 5.8% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $11,790 and median net price is $16,866.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Biology and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$11,790 Median In-State Public
$30,242 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Biology majors are, on average, $11,790 for in-state public colleges, and $30,242 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Biology programs.
Institutions awarding the most Biology degrees
| # | Institution | State | Completions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida International University | FL | 983 |
| 2 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 893 |
| 3 | University of California-Irvine | CA | 784 |
| 4 | The University of Texas at Austin | TX | 744 |
| 5 | Houston Community College | TX | 626 |
| 6 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | NC | 619 |
| 7 | Arizona State University Digital Immersion | AZ | 603 |
| 8 | Michigan State University | MI | 597 |
| 9 | University of Florida | FL | 593 |
| 10 | University of California-Riverside | CA | 583 |
IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), all award levels for this CIP in our extract.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
76,552 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Biology from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Biology.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,398 |
| 2 | Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | 59,099 |
| 3 | Ivy Tech Community College | IN | 54,926 |
| 4 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | OH | 44,617 |
| 5 | Brigham Young University-Idaho | ID | 42,090 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Biology programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 2 | Imperial Valley College | CA | $1,126 |
| 3 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
| 4 | Lassen Community College | CA | $1,144 |
| 5 | College of the Redwoods | CA | $1,147 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Biology programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $29 |
| 2 | Central Carolina Community College | NC | $616 |
| 3 | Fort Scott Community College | KS | $665 |
| 4 | Wiregrass Georgia Technical College | GA | $1,228 |
| 5 | West Shore Community College | MI | $1,335 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Biology programs.
Graduation Rates
55.38% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
55.26% Average Graduation Rate
1,472 Institutions Reporting
42.27% - 68.26% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for Biology programs across institutions.
Where students complete this major (IPEDS)
Bachelor's-level completions (IPEDS Completions, award level 5) summed by institution state. State is taken from IPEDS Directory (HD2023) for each reporting institution.
Geographic concentration
The largest number of reported bachelor's completions for Biology is in CA (8,400 completions). That state represents about 11.0% of U.S. bachelor's completions reported for this CIP in the IPEDS file we use.
Among states, the highest concentration relative to all bachelor's degrees awarded in-state is VI (6.71% of that state's bachelor's completions).
Top states by count of bachelor's completions for this CIP (IPEDS).
| State | Bachelor's completions (this CIP) | % of U.S. total (this CIP) | % of state's all bachelor's |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA | 8,400 | 11.0% | 1.87% |
| TX | 6,101 | 8.0% | 2.08% |
| NY | 5,294 | 6.9% | 1.92% |
| FL | 4,426 | 5.8% | 1.93% |
| PA | 3,760 | 4.9% | 2.20% |
| NC | 3,527 | 4.6% | 2.85% |
| GA | 3,045 | 4.0% | 2.66% |
| VA | 2,574 | 3.4% | 2.10% |
| MA | 2,473 | 3.2% | 1.94% |
| OH | 2,343 | 3.1% | 1.69% |
| IL | 2,204 | 2.9% | 1.59% |
| NJ | 2,194 | 2.9% | 2.54% |
| AZ | 2,058 | 2.7% | 1.48% |
| MI | 2,049 | 2.7% | 1.79% |
| SC | 1,660 | 2.2% | 2.99% |
| MO | 1,540 | 2.0% | 2.16% |
| WI | 1,496 | 1.9% | 1.97% |
| MD | 1,428 | 1.9% | 1.94% |
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 26.0101 in the survey year used in our extract (88,186 total across levels below).
- 7,885 Associate (8.9% of IPEDS total)
- 76,552 Bachelor's (86.8% of IPEDS total)
- 3,727 Master's (4.2% of IPEDS total)
- 22 Doctorate (0.0% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $121,350. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Biology graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Medical Assistants | $54,270 | 793,460 |
| Physician Assistants | $166,382 | 155,540 |
| Nurse Practitioners | $177,897 | 307,390 |
| Pharmacy Technicians | $57,799 | 487,920 |
| Registered Nurses | $152,361 | 3,282,010 |
| Dental Hygienists | $38,539 | 200,000 |
| Licensed Practical Nurses | $81,239 | 632,430 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Biology, General CIP family (364 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Biology graduate.
- $28,324 median federal loan debt among completers
- $57,214 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.87 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 5.8% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$98,622 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Biology majors is $98,622.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Biology majors.
Occupations by Share
796,440 2023 Workforce
The number of Biology graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Biology by share of the total number of graduates.
Return on Investment & Value
Debt and earnings fields below come from College Scorecard where present in our degree extract.
Financial value (extract)
$13,532 Median Student Debt
$40,568 Median Annual Earnings (10 years after enrollment)
33.36% Debt-to-Earnings Ratio
3.3 years Estimated Payback Period (assuming 10% of income)
501.30% Return on Investment (10-year earnings vs 4-year cost)
Ten-year earnings in this extract exceed four years of median net price.
$67,466 Estimated Total Cost (4 years at median net price)
Financial value comparison for Biology degree.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Biology in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Biology.
Age distribution for Biology degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
76,552 Total Degrees Awarded
24,089 Male (31.47%)
52,463 Female (68.53%)
Gender distribution of Biology degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
36,442 White (47.60%)
14,150 Hispanic or Latino (18.48%)
10,706 Asian (13.99%)
7,663 Black or African American (10.01%)
3,515 Two or More Races (4.59%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Biology degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Biology are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Biology.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Biology field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Biology majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Biology majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Biology majors.
About
A general program of biology at the introductory, basic level or a program in biology or the biological sciences that is undifferentiated as to title or content. Includes instruction in general biology and programs covering a variety of biological specializations.
In 2023, 76,552 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Biology.
CIP Code
26.0101 - Biology
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $28,324 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $57,214, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.87. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Biology graduate.
Women earned 68.4% of 89,827 Biology completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $121,350. The largest mapped role by headcount is Medical Assistants (793,460 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $11,790 in-state at public colleges and $30,242 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.