How much debt do Youngstown State biology graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $19,000, which ranks the lowest of 28 biology bachelor's programs in Ohio. That works out to about $201 a month over 10 years.

Is a biology degree from Youngstown State worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 64% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 75%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 20% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Ohio programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Do Youngstown State biology graduates stay in Ohio?

Most do. 85% (39 of 46) were working in Ohio one year after graduating.

Youngstown State Biology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Biology, General
Public university
Youngstown, OH
About 99 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Youngstown State biology graduates earn about what biology graduates earn nationally, $29,689 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $19,000 in federal loans, less than at 87% of biology programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying biology degrees in Ohio.

First-year earnings$29,68933rd percentile of 795 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$62,060109% more than year one

Median federal debt$19,000The lowest of 28 Ohio programs

Debt-to-earnings64%Ohio median 83%, national 75%

How it compares

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

	Youngstown State	Ohio	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$29,689	$30,924	$32,212
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$62,060	$61,961	$60,596
Median federal debt at graduation	$19,000	$26,054	$25,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	64%	83%	75%
Programs compared		28	795

Five years out, Youngstown State graduates earn about the national figure and about the same as the Ohio median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Ohio biology program

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

Youngstown StateOther Ohio programs

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 109% between the first and fifth year.

Youngstown State grads, year 1$29,689

Youngstown State grads, year 5$62,060

All Ohio biology grads, year 5$61,961

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 more in their first year than other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $20,786 against $18,489.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$29,889Median debt $20,786

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$27,018Median debt $18,489

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $201 a month, or 8.1% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (65 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	20–39%
Paused payments (forbearance)	20% or less
In default	20% or less

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, 23 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $17,655.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

85% of graduates (39 of 46) were working in Ohio one year after graduating. Prices in the Youngstown area are about 13% below the national average, so a $29,689 salary here buys what about $33,971 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

$78,800

Median pay in Ohio. 49,540 people work in this job in Ohio. 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%: $48,370Top 10%: $103,150

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

$83,910

Median pay in Ohio. 4,840 people work in this job in Ohio. 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%: $60,080Top 10%: $173,450

Natural Sciences Managers

$137,170

Median pay in Ohio. 1,560 people work in this job in Ohio. 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%: $78,720Top 10%: $217,760

Biological Technicians

$51,080

Median pay in Ohio. 2,240 people work in this job in Ohio. 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%: $36,400Top 10%: $79,490

About Youngstown State

In-state tuition and fees	$11,113 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$11,473 / year
Average net price after aid	$12,767 / year
Admission rate	84%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	50%
Undergraduate students	7,961

Biology ranks 28th of 36 bachelor's programs at Youngstown State by first-year earnings. The top three are Electrical Engineering ($74,799), Chemical Engineering ($69,609), and Industrial Engineering ($69,202).

Other biology bachelor's programs near Youngstown

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Youngstown StateYoungstown, OH · public		$29,689	$19,000
Westminster College (Pennsylvania)New Wilmington, PA · private nonprofit	16 mi	$27,467	$27,000
University of Mount UnionAlliance, OH · private nonprofit	28 mi	$33,433	$27,000
Slippery Rock University of PennsylvaniaSlippery Rock, PA · public	31 mi	$33,206	$27,000
Kent StateKent, OH · public	36 mi	$30,118	$25,000
Walsh UniversityNorth Canton, OH · private nonprofit	41 mi	$31,250	$27,000
Malone UniversityCanton, OH · private nonprofit	43 mi	$22,005	$27,000
University of AkronAkron, OH · public	45 mi	$32,050	$21,750
Allegheny CollegeMeadville, PA · private nonprofit	46 mi	$35,620	$27,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $29,689 one year after graduating and $62,060 five years after. The median across biology bachelor's programs in Ohio is $30,924.

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 Ohio 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 Ohio, ranked28 programs by pay and debt Biology bachelor's programs in the US, ranked795 programs by pay and debt All Youngstown State programs, ranked36 programs by pay and debt