Biology

Contains Stem Majors

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2021

177,746

growing 4.64%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$8,883

growing 2.06%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$40,140

growing 0.804%

Average Wage

$109,248

growing 0.86%

People in Workforce

2.73M

growing 4.39%

Average Employee Age

41.3

declining 0.363%

About

In 2021, the locations with the highest concentration of Biology degree recipients are New York, NY, Los Angeles, CA, and San Diego, CA. The most common degree awarded to students studying Biology is a bachelors degree.

Photo by e-Magine Art

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Biology and the types of students that study this field. University of California-San Diego (110680) awards the most degrees in Biology in the US, but Rockefeller University and Ponce Health Sciences University-Centro Universitario de San Juan have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Biology.

Tuition costs for Biology majors are, on average, $8,883 for in-state public colleges, and $40,140 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Biology programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (903 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 4-year or above (116,327 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Biology

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Biology, is Public, 4-year or above (116,327 completions in 2021).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Biology programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$8,883

Median In-State Public

$40,140

Median Out of State Private

University of California-San Diego (110680) has the most Biology degree recipients, with 1,849 degrees awarded in 2021.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Biology.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Biology programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Rockefeller University has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Biology, with 100%.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Biology

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Biology by year.

Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Biology.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Biology graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Biology majors is $109,248 and the most common occupations are Physicians, Postsecondary teachers, and Other managers.

The industry that employs the most Biology majors is General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Offices of physicians.

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

$109,248

Average Wage in Workforce

± $1,797

0.86%

1 Year Growth

± 2.34%

The average salary for Biology majors is $109,248 and the most common occupations are Physicians, Postsecondary teachers, and Other managers.

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Biology majors.

Highest Paying Locations

Highest Paying Pumas

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Biology majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Biology majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

Most Common

The most common occupations Biology majors, by number of employees, are Physicians, Postsecondary teachers, and Other managers.

Most Specialized

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Biology majors working as Biological scientists, Optometrists, and Dentists.

Highest Paid

The highest paid occupations by median income for Biology majors are Surgeons, Physicians, and Chief executives & legislators.

Occupations by Share

2.73M

2020 Workforce

± 40,196

4.39%

1 Year Growth

± 2.02%

The number of Biology graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.39%, from 2.62M in 2019 to 2.73M in 2020.

The largest single share of Biology graduates go on to work as Physicians (14.8%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Biology by share of the total number of graduates.

Most Common

The most common industries that employ Biology majors, by number of employees, are General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, and Offices of physicians.

Highest Paid

The highest paying industries of Biology majors, by average wage, are Offices of physicians, Furniture & home furnishing merchant wholesalers, and Tobacco manufacturing.

Industries by Share

2.73M

2020 Workforce

± 40,196

4.39%

1 Year Growth

± 2.02%

The number of Biology graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.39%, from 2.62M in 2019 to 2.73M in 2020.

The industry which employs the most Biology graduates by share is General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, followed by Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Biology.

Specialty Locations

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Biology majors

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Biology majors.

Diversity

Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Biology in the United States.

The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Biology is 41.3.

The most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold Biology degrees, and White students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in Biology (86,533 students).

Workforce Age

41.3

Average Age in 2020

± 0.196 Years

0.363%

1 Year Change

± 0.681%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Biology. The most common ages of employees with this major are 29 and 30 years old, which represent 3.38% and 3.36% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Biology are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.

Workforce Degrees

The most common degree types held by the working population in Biology are Bachelors Degree, Professional degree, and Masters Degree.

Sex Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (65.3%)

Most Common Sex with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by sex at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Biology.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
86,533 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino
28,784 degrees awarded
Asian
24,909 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Biology for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

Race & Ethnicity by Sex

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Sex Combination

White Female
45,218 degrees awarded
White Male
24,085 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino Female
14,731 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by sex for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Biology.

White Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and sex.

Global Diversity

Most Common Countries of Origin

India
84,916 degree recipients
China
50,518 degree recipients
Philippines
24,771 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

United Arab Emirates
4.77 times more than expected
Zambia
3.66 times more than expected
Saudi Arabia
3.22 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in United Arab Emirates that hold Biology degrees (4.77 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is India (84,916 degree recipients).

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Biology field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Biology majors need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Biology majors need more than the average amount of Programming, Science, Quality Control Analysis, Technology Design, Operation Monitoring, Operations Analysis, Systems Analysis, Operation and Control, Systems Evaluation, Mathematics, Troubleshooting, Management of Material Resources, Management of Financial Resources, Time Management, Complex Problem Solving, Writing, Judgment and Decision Making, Learning Strategies, Persuasion, Critical Thinking, Speaking, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Negotiation, Management of Personnel Resources, Instructing, Active Learning, Monitoring, Service Orientation, Coordination, Social Perceptiveness, Equipment Selection, Installation, Equipment Maintenance, and Repairing.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Biology majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Programming is very distinctive for majors, but the Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Writing, Speaking, Complex Problem Solving, Judgment and Decision Making, Systems Analysis, Time Management, Systems Evaluation, Active Learning, Monitoring, Mathematics, Social Perceptiveness, Coordination, Persuasion, Science, Learning Strategies, Instructing, Service Orientation, Negotiation, Management of Personnel Resources, Operation Monitoring, Quality Control Analysis, Operations Analysis, Management of Material Resources, Management of Financial Resources, Operation and Control, Troubleshooting, Technology Design, Programming, Equipment Selection, Equipment Maintenance, Repairing, and Installation are the three most important skills for people in the field.