South Texas College Biology (Associate's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Associate's in Biology, General
- Public college
- McAllen, TX
- About 116 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
South Texas College biology graduates earn about what biology graduates earn nationally, $28,791 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $6,602 in federal loans, less than at 84% of biology programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying biology degrees in Texas.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Texas and national columns are the medians across all biology associate's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, South Texas College graduates earn less than the national figure and about $6,792 less than the Texas median. Several Texas programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.
Debt and first-year pay at every Texas biology program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Texas 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 20% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $70 a month, or 2.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
83% of graduates (20 of 24) were working in Texas one year after graduating. Prices in the McAllen area are about 14% below the national average, so a $28,791 salary here buys what about $33,519 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
$63,590Median pay in Texas. 111,660 people work in this job in Texas. 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.
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists
$80,470Median pay in Texas. 11,920 people work in this job in Texas. 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
$129,960Median pay in Texas. 7,470 people work in this job in Texas. 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
$50,130Median pay in Texas. 2,730 people work in this job in Texas. 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.
About South Texas College
Biology ranks 6th of 18 associate's programs at South Texas College by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($75,733), Diagnostic and Treatment Professions ($68,727), and Welding and Machining ($33,167).
Common questions
The median graduate earns $28,791 one year after graduating and $34,637 five years after. The median across biology associate's programs in Texas is $27,813.
The median federal loan balance is $6,602, which ranks the lowest of 8 biology associate's programs in Texas. That works out to about $70 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 23% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 38%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Texas programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.
Most do. 83% (20 of 24) were working in Texas 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 Texas 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