How much debt do Northwest Nazarene University biology graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $24,406, which ranks 6th lowest of 6 biology bachelor's programs in Idaho. That works out to about $259 a month over 10 years.

Is a biology degree from Northwest Nazarene University worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 72% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 75%.

Northwest Nazarene University Biology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Biology, General
Private nonprofit university
Nampa, ID
About 6 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Northwest Nazarene University biology graduates earn about what biology graduates earn nationally, $33,875 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,406 in federal loans, close to the national median of $25,000. Two other Idaho programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$33,87561st percentile of 795 programs nationally

Median federal debt$24,4066th lowest of 6 Idaho programs

Debt-to-earnings72%Idaho median 68%, national 75%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Idaho and national columns are the medians across all biology bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Northwest Nazarene University	Idaho	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$33,875	$31,668	$32,212
Median federal debt at graduation	$24,406	$22,994	$25,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	72%	68%	75%
Programs compared		6	795

Debt and first-year pay at every Idaho biology program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Idaho medians.

Northwest Nazarene UniversityOther Idaho programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $259 a month, or 9.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

Prices in the Boise City area are about 2% below the national average, so a $33,875 salary here buys what about $34,429 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 biology, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$61,690

Median pay in Idaho. 6,570 people work in this job in Idaho. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 63,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $47,950Top 10%: $91,620

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

$83,010

Median pay in Idaho. 380 people work in this job in Idaho. 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.

Bottom 10%: $59,680Top 10%: $288,280

Natural Sciences Managers

$124,800

Median pay in Idaho. 610 people work in this job in Idaho. 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.

Bottom 10%: $80,790Top 10%: $204,550

Biological Technicians

$42,130

Median pay in Idaho. 450 people work in this job in Idaho. 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.

Bottom 10%: $36,030Top 10%: $59,010

About Northwest Nazarene University

Tuition and fees	$40,794 / year
Average net price after aid	$29,580 / year
Admission rate	65%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	71%
Undergraduate students	1,024

Biology ranks 5th of 8 bachelor's programs at Northwest Nazarene University by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($75,383), Accounting ($48,648), and Business Administration ($46,499).

Other biology bachelor's programs near Nampa

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Northwest Nazarene UniversityNampa, ID · private nonprofit		$33,875	$24,406
College of IdahoCaldwell, ID · private nonprofit	8 mi	$29,460	$24,000
Boise StateBoise, ID · public	18 mi	$36,288	$22,988

Common questions

The median graduate earns $33,875 one year after graduating. The median across biology bachelor's programs in Idaho is $31,668.

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 Idaho 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 biology 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

Biology bachelor's programs in Idaho, ranked6 programs by pay and debt Biology bachelor's programs in the US, ranked795 programs by pay and debt All Northwest Nazarene University programs, ranked8 programs by pay and debt