College Scorecard · field of study · all U.S. colleges

Is a Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology degree worth the debt?

The figures below lead with the Bachelor's, aggregated across 125 colleges (125 of 125 programs report earnings). Other credential levels are in the table further down.

Median pay · 1 yr after

$30,368

Graduates only, early career.$32,424 two years out.

Median federal debt

$20,672

Federal loans only — not private or Parent PLUS.

Debt vs a year's pay

0.64×

64% of a first year's earnings.

Typical debt is under a year's early-career pay.

The college you pick moves this a lot

The middle 50% of Bachelor's programs in Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology report early-career pay between $27,151 and $35,592 — a spread of $8,441 that depends on the program and who attends it, not the major alone.

25th pct $27,151 median $30,368 75th pct $35,592

By degree level

Each level is a separate decision — more schooling usually means more pay and more debt.

LevelPay · 1yrDebtDebt/pay

Bachelor's 125 colleges $30,368 $20,672 0.64×

Master's 8 colleges $41,780 $38,250 0.81×

Doctoral 3 colleges $55,621 — —

Where a Bachelor's in this field reports the highest early-career pay

The 15 programs with the highest reported pay one year after completion. This reflects who enrolls and where they live as much as the program itself — it is not a causal quality ranking.

Northeastern University MA $48,487 $23,250 debt

California State University-San Marcos CA $46,580 $20,983 debt

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute NY $46,292 —

California State University-Sacramento CA $45,587 $16,500 debt

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire WI $45,498 —

University of Delaware DE $45,447 $25,334 debt

University of Kansas KS $44,752 $18,250 debt

Purdue University-Main Campus IN $44,361 $17,713 debt

Worcester Polytechnic Institute MA $43,408 $27,000 debt

University of New Hampshire-Main Campus NH $43,279 $27,000 debt

University of Missouri-St Louis MO $42,918 $23,850 debt

California State University-East Bay CA $41,513 —

Brandeis University MA $40,712 $27,000 debt

University of Massachusetts-Amherst MA $39,509 $23,250 debt

Bowdoin College ME $39,454 —

What these numbers are — and are not

Every figure here is a median across college programs in Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology, from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. It is not a prediction of what you would earn (your college, effort, and local job market vary enormously — see the spread above), not lifetime earnings (it is measured 1–2 years after completion, early career), not proof the major caused the outcome (who enters a field differs by field — selection, not causation), and not a "best majors" ranking: earnings are one dimension of worth, not the whole of it. Teaching and social work pay far less than the fields at the top of this list and matter enormously. Earnings cover federally-aided completers at programs large enough to report.

Also available: structured data (JSON-LD) · plain text · JSON. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard — Field of Study (2026-06-10 release). · explore this field on the official Scorecard