UC Santa Cruz Cell Biology and Anatomy (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences
- Public university
- Santa Cruz, CA
- About 178 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
UC Santa Cruz cell biology and anatomy graduates earn more than graduates of most cell biology and anatomy programs nationally, $45,088 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $19,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $19,500. Two other California programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The California and national columns are the medians across all cell biology and anatomy bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, UC Santa Cruz graduates earn more than the national figure and about $6,825 more than the California median.
Debt and first-year pay at every California cell biology and anatomy program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the California 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 76% 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 about the same in their first year as other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $19,000 against $17,060.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $201 a month, or 5.3% 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, 69 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $23,771.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
94% of graduates (195 of 208) were working in California one year after graduating. Prices in the Santa Cruz area are about 10% above the national average, so a $45,088 salary here buys what about $41,028 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 cell biology and anatomy, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians
$76,010Median pay in California. 29,210 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 20,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists
$136,990Median pay in California. 29,830 people work in this job in California. 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
$210,230Median pay in California. 14,950 people work in this job in California. 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
$71,440Median pay in California. 9,210 people work in this job in California. 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 UC Santa Cruz
Cell Biology and Anatomy ranks 8th of 35 bachelor's programs at UC Santa Cruz by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Engineering ($79,969), Electrical Engineering ($78,842), and Computer Science ($75,150).
Other cell biology and anatomy bachelor's programs near Santa Cruz
Common questions
The median graduate earns $45,088 one year after graduating and $79,429 five years after. The median across cell biology and anatomy bachelor's programs in California is $39,564.
The median federal loan balance is $19,000, which ranks 6th lowest of 10 cell biology and anatomy bachelor's programs in California. That works out to about $201 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 42% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 52%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 5% or less.
Most do. 94% (195 of 208) were working in California 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 California 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 cell biology and anatomy 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