Eckerd College Ecology and Evolution (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology
- Private nonprofit college
- Saint Petersburg, FL
- About 84 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Eckerd College ecology and evolution graduates earn less than graduates of most ecology and evolution programs nationally, $21,980 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, more than at 83% of ecology and evolution programs in the country. Several Florida programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Florida and national columns are the medians across all ecology and evolution bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Eckerd College graduates earn less than the national figure and about the same as the Florida median.
Debt and first-year pay at every Florida ecology and evolution program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Florida medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
What graduates earn over time
Pay rises about 79% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Does family income change the outcome?
Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned $5,176 less in their first year than other graduates. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $286 a month, or 15.6% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual. Separately, 22 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $59,901.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
48% of graduates (30 of 63) were working in Florida one year after graduating. Prices in the Tampa area are about 1% above the national average, so a $21,980 salary here buys what about $21,786 buys in a typical US city.
Careers this field leads to
These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to ecology and evolution, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists
$94,940Median pay in Florida. 6,490 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 13% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: doctoral or professional degree.
Natural Sciences Managers
$112,220Median pay in Florida. 4,370 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 9,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.
Biological Technicians
$48,700Median pay in Florida. 3,170 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 9,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Statisticians
$108,040Median pay in Florida. 550 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 11% from 2025 to 2035, with about 1,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.
About Eckerd College
Ecology and Evolution ranks 9th of 10 bachelor's programs at Eckerd College by first-year earnings. The top three are Political Science ($34,621), Communications ($33,544), and Business Administration ($33,153).
Other ecology and evolution bachelor's programs near Saint Petersburg
Common questions
The median graduate earns $21,980 one year after graduating and $39,386 five years after. The median across ecology and evolution bachelor's programs in Florida is $26,616.
The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 6th lowest of 6 ecology and evolution bachelor's programs in Florida. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 123% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 75%. Compare the cost with other Florida programs before deciding.
Many leave. 48% (30 of 63) were working in Florida one year after graduating.
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
- Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Florida comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
- Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
- School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the ecology and evolution program.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024