MAJORS · 4 OF 19 BY ROI
Is a life sciences and biology degree worth it?
On average, yes — the mean lifetime ROI is +$106,017. But the spread is the real story.
MEAN LIFETIME ROI · FREOPP 2021 · COHORT-WEIGHTED
+$106,017
across 1,558 bachelor’s programs · 130,420 graduates
MEDIAN GRADUATE
+$104K
MIDDLE 50% LAND BETWEEN
−$38K ⟷ +$243K
NEVER BREAK EVEN
31.5%
MEDIAN BREAK-EVEN AGE
39
ADJUSTED FOR REAL COMPLETION RATES
+$29K
IF YOU DROP OUT
−$114K
The biggest fields inside Life Sciences and Biology
- Biology, General. 92,250 grads +$104K
- Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology. 8,947 grads +$252K
- Neurobiology and Neurosciences. 5,891 grads +$146K
- Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences. 5,570 grads −$50K
- Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology. 4,625 grads −$30K
Mean lifetime ROI per field, cohort-weighted. A category average hides this spread — and the per-school spread inside each field is wider still.
Subfield deep-dives inside Life Sciences and Biology
- Is a biology degree worth it? 92,250 grads +$115K
- Is a biochemistry & molecular biology degree worth it? 8,947 grads +$262K
- Is a neuroscience degree worth it? 5,891 grads +$168K
- Is a physiology & pathology degree worth it? 5,570 grads −$42K
- Is an ecology & evolutionary biology degree worth it? 4,625 grads −$24K
- Is a microbiology & immunology degree worth it? 3,060 grads +$225K
Median lifetime ROI per subfield, cohort-weighted. Each page carries the full statistics — spread, break-even age, the share who never break even.
How much of this work is AI already reaching for?
We read what the AI labs measured about their own machines. Microsoft and Anthropic scored how much of real occupations their AI is already used for — then warned it is not a measure of jobs being replaced. Here is where that lands Life Sciences and Biology, judged on where its graduates actually work — not where the degree theoretically leads.
Where Life Sciences and Biology graduates actually work — and how much of each job today’s AI is reaching for (0–1 applicability):
- 6% Managers, All Other 0.19
- 6% Physical Scientists, All Other 0.22
- 5% Registered Nurses 0.17
- 4% Pharmacists 0.40
- 3% Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians 0.18
And what people in this field actually bring to AI — the job tasks most taken to Claude, from Anthropic’s usage data:
- Analyze organic or inorganic compounds to determine chemical or physical properties, composition, structure, relationships, or reactions, using chromatography, spectroscopy, or spectrophotometry techniques.
- Counsel individuals and groups on basic rules of good nutrition, healthy eating habits, and nutrition monitoring to improve their quality of life.
- Review class material with students by discussing text, working solutions to problems, or reviewing worksheets or other assignments.
- Interpret and analyze policies, public issues, legislation, or the operations of governments, businesses, and organizations.
Exposure isn’t replacement. The score is how much of the task AI touches — not whether the job survives, which turns on judgment, licensure, physical presence, and trust. Sources: Microsoft Research “Working with AI” (CC BY 4.0), the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY), and U.S. Census ACS field-of-degree. Applicability scores are le-teen-derived, not original Microsoft figures; the task list is Anthropic’s observed Claude usage.
Questions
- Is a life sciences and biology degree worth it?
- On average yes — across 1,558 U.S. bachelor’s programs (FREOPP 2021, cohort-weighted), the mean lifetime ROI for Life Sciences and Biology is +$106,017 and the median is +$104,063. 31.5% of graduates in this field never break even on the degree. The honest answer depends heavily on the specific program and school: the middle half of graduates land between −$38,440 and +$242,910.
- How long until a life sciences and biology degree pays off?
- Among Life Sciences and Biology programs that do break even, the median graduate crosses into positive ROI at age 39 (FREOPP 2021). 31.5% of graduates in the field are in programs that never break even at all.
- Does the school matter for a life sciences and biology major?
- Enormously. The middle 50% of Life Sciences and Biology graduates span −$38,440 to +$242,910 — a +$281K spread within one major. The same field can be a strong trade at one school and a losing one at another, which is why the per-school number matters more than the field average.
- Will AI replace life sciences and biology jobs?
- Careful with that word. Two AI labs — Microsoft and Anthropic — measured how much of real occupations their own AI is *already being used for*, then explicitly warned it is NOT a measure of jobs being eliminated. On that measure, Life Sciences and Biology lands in the lower-exposure tier: the largest place these grads actually work is managers, all other (6% of them), where AI applicability sits at 0.19 on a 0–1 scale. Exposure means how much of the *task* AI touches — not whether the job survives, which also depends on judgment, licensure, physical presence, and trust. Near the bottom of AI's reach — this is work of bodies, care, and physical presence a model can't stand in for.
↓ Download the data (CSV) · All 19 categories with full statistics. Free to cite with attribution. · Methodology
Cite this:
LE TEEN (2026). “Life Sciences and Biology: lifetime ROI statistics.” Data: FREOPP 2021. https://le-teen.com/majors/life-sciences-and-biology