Science
What you can do with Microbiology
Bacteria, viruses and the unseen living world. Leads to labs, medicine, food and biotech.
- Careers
- 3
- Early career
- $46,000
- Mid-career
- $80,000
- Growing fast
- 1 of 3
How these numbers work: A major does not have its own salary. Early and mid-career pay is what people who hold this degree earn at the start of their careers and midway through them. Career pay comes from the 3 careers a Microbiology degree commonly leads to, and counts everyone in those jobs, including people who have been doing them for thirty years. The two answer different questions, which is why they do not match.
The New York Fed does not report Microbiology on its own. Its early and mid-career figures here are for Miscellaneous Biological Science, the broader group it places this major in.
60% of people with this degree go on to a graduate degree, so the higher-paying careers below usually mean more school after the bachelor's.
1 of 3 careers this degree leads to is projected to grow faster than average from 2024 to 2034. Of those, Food Scientist has the most openings, about 1,200 a year.
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3 careers this degree leads to
Food Scientist
$88,720Apply chemistry and microbiology to make food safer, healthier, and longer lasting.
- Middle half of workers
- $68,810 to $116,650
- Growth
- Much faster than average
- Openings a year
- 1,200
Work-life53Remote1- Food Chemistry
- Product Development
- Quality Assurance
- Science
Microbiologist
$87,990Study bacteria, viruses, and fungi to advance medicine, food safety, and biotechnology.
- Middle half of workers
- $67,100 to $122,350
- Growth
- About average
- Openings a year
- 1,700
Work-life57Remote8- Culturing Techniques
- Microscopy
- Science
- Critical Thinking
Biological Technician
$57,510Run the experiments, samples and equipment that keep biology and medical research labs going.
- Middle half of workers
- $48,130 to $71,520
- Growth
- About average
- Openings a year
- 9,100
- Lab Techniques
- Record Keeping
- Equipment Operation
- Attention to Detail
Related majors
Set on Microbiology?
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Where these pay figures come from
Early and mid-career pay is the median annual wage of full-time workers who hold a bachelor's degree in that major, ages 22 to 27 and ages 35 to 45, from 2024 data. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (IPUMS). Published as Outcomes by Major by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Career pay is the annual wage of everyone working in that occupation, not only recent graduates, so it includes people who have done the job for decades. The middle half is the 25th to the 75th percentile. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and O*NET OnLine (median and percentile annual wages May 2025; employment projections 2024-2034).
All figures are national. What you earn depends on where you work, who you work for, and how far you take the degree.