UNC Chapel Hill Biology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Biology, General
- Public university
- Chapel Hill, NC
- About 544 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
UNC Chapel Hill biology graduates earn about what biology graduates earn nationally, $33,471 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $15,100 in federal loans, less than at 94% of biology programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying biology degrees in North Carolina.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The North Carolina and national columns are the medians across all biology bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, UNC Chapel Hill graduates earn more than the national figure and about $10,283 more than the North Carolina median.
Debt and first-year pay at every North Carolina biology program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the North Carolina 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 92% 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 $2,929 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 $160 a month, or 5.7% 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, 41 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $24,010.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
76% of graduates (363 of 476) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating. Prices in the Durham area are about 2% below the national average, so a $33,471 salary here buys what about $34,304 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
$57,650Median pay in North Carolina. 28,620 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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
$102,980Median pay in North Carolina. 5,730 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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
$173,870Median pay in North Carolina. 6,010 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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
$61,720Median pay in North Carolina. 2,460 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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 UNC Chapel Hill
Biology ranks 25th of 40 bachelor's programs at UNC Chapel Hill by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Science ($90,293), Business Administration ($85,618), and Information Science ($75,834).
Other biology bachelor's programs near Chapel Hill
Common questions
The median graduate earns $33,471 one year after graduating and $64,430 five years after. The median across biology bachelor's programs in North Carolina is $30,693.
The median federal loan balance is $15,100, which ranks 2nd lowest of 28 biology bachelor's programs in North Carolina. That works out to about $160 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 45% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 75%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 5% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several North Carolina programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.
Most do. 76% (363 of 476) were working in North Carolina 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 North Carolina 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