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2025 Best General Biology Master's Degree Schools

158 Colleges in the United States
7,761 Master's Degrees
$44,882 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #31 in popularity, general biology is one of the most sought-after master's degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

College Factual reviewed 158 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for master's degree seekers in the field of general biology. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 7,761 master's degrees in general biology during the <nil> academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great General Biology School for Your Master's Degree

Best General Biology Master's Degree Schools The biology master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality biology program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we consider a college's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their master's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their master's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for general biology students working on their master's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Biology Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best General Biology Master's Degree Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study General Biology in the United States

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in general biology. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

25 Top Schools for a Master's in Biology

1

It's difficult to beat Johns Hopkins University if you wish to pursue a master's degree in general biology. Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Master's recipients from the general biology program at Johns Hopkins University get $108,740 more than the typical college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Johns Hopkins University

2
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY

Any student who is interested in a master's degree in general biology needs to check out New York University. NYU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York.

Those general biology students who get their master's degree from New York University earn $25,030 more than the average biology student.

More information about a master’s in general biology from New York University

3
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
11 Annual Graduates

University of Pennsylvania is a great decision for students interested in a master's degree in general biology. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia.More information about a master’s in general biology from University of Pennsylvania

4
Tufts crest
Tufts University
Medford, MA

Tufts University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a master's degree in general biology. Located in the suburb of Medford, Tufts is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

Master's students who receive their degree from the biology program earn about $42,668 in their early career salary.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Tufts University

5
28 Annual Graduates

Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York.More information about a master’s in general biology from Columbia University in the City of New York

6

WUSTL is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.

Those general biology students who get their master's degree from Washington University in St Louis earn $12,360 more than the typical biology grad.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Washington University in St Louis

7
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, NC

Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Durham.

Students who graduate with their master's from the biology program state that they receive average early career income of $29,519.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Duke University

8
25 Annual Graduates

UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a master’s in general biology from University of Chicago

9
58 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from San Francisco State University

10
14 Annual Graduates

Located in the fringe town of Durham, UNH is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from University of New Hampshire - Main Campus

11
Boston U crest
Boston University
Boston, MA
44 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Boston, Boston U is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from Boston University

12
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
22 Annual Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from Stanford University

13
Georgetown crest
Georgetown University
Washington, DC
15 Annual Graduates

Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Washington.More information about a master’s in general biology from Georgetown University

14

Located in the large city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their master's from the biology program state that they receive average early career earnings of $44,139.

More information about a master’s in general biology from University of California - San Diego

15

Texas A&M College Station is a fairly large public university located in the city of College Station.

Soon after graduation, biology master's recipients typically make around $46,102 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Texas A&M University - College Station

16
Auburn crest
Auburn University
Auburn, AL

Located in the small city of Auburn, Auburn is a public university with a very large student population.

Those general biology students who get their master's degree from Auburn University make $21,982 more than the standard biology student.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Auburn University

17
26 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from George Washington University

18
Clemson crest
Clemson University
Clemson, SC

Located in the midsize suburb of Clemson, Clemson is a public university with a very large student population.

General Biology master's degree recipients from Clemson University earn a boost of approximately $15,119 over the typical earnings of general biology graduates.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Clemson University

19
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
15 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from Vanderbilt University

20
12 Annual Graduates

UMN Twin Cities is a very large public university located in the city of Minneapolis.More information about a master’s in general biology from University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

21

Located in the city of New Brunswick, Rutgers New Brunswick is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Students who graduate with their master's from the biology program state that they receive average early career income of $43,317.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Rutgers University - New Brunswick

22
10 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Boston, Northeastern is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from Northeastern University

23

Located in the midsize city of Fort Collins, Colorado State is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those general biology students who get their master's degree from Colorado State University - Fort Collins earn $15,352 more than the standard biology student.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Colorado State University - Fort Collins

24
Wake Forest University crest
Wake Forest University
Winston-Salem, NC

Located in the large city of Winston-Salem, Wake Forest University is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.

Students who graduate with their master's from the biology program state that they receive average early career income of $44,209.

More information about a master’s in general biology from Wake Forest University

25
11 Annual Graduates

Located in the small city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in general biology from Purdue University - Main Campus

Rest of the Top Best General Biology Master's Degree Schools

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27
28
29
30
31
SUNY Stony Brook crest
Stony Brook University
Stony Brook, NY

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for General Biology students that almost earned our Best General Biology Master's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
32 St John’s University - New York Queens, NY
33 Florida State University Tallahassee, FL
34 Arizona State University - Tempe Tempe, AZ
35 California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA
36 University of Massachusetts - Lowell Lowell, MA
37 University of Wisconsin - La Crosse La Crosse, WI
38 Drexel University Philadelphia, PA
39 University of South Carolina - Columbia Columbia, SC
40 University of Denver Denver, CO
41 Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT
42 University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY
43 The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, TX
44 San Diego State University San Diego, CA
45 James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA
46 University of Kentucky Lexington, KY
47 University of Miami Coral Gables, FL
48 Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL
49 University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL
50 University at Albany Albany, NY
51 Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS
52 Iowa State University Ames, IA

General Biology by Region

View the Best General Biology Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

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One of 14 majors within the Biological & Biomedical Sciences area of study, General Biology has other similar majors worth exploring.

Biology Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Biomedical Sciences 3,939
Biology Studies 3,822

Majors Similar to Biology

Related Major Annual Graduates
Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Biology 3,247
Physiology & Pathology Sciences 2,075
Biomathematics & Bioinformatics 1,995
Biotechnology 1,832
Biological & Biomedical Sciences (Other) 1,778
Microbiological Sciences & Immunology 998
Biochemistry, Biophysics & Molecular Biology 953
Cell Biology & Anatomical Sciences 703
Neurobiology & Neurosciences 513
Pharmacology & Toxicology 502

Notes and References

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