Best Biological Science Teacher, Postsecondary programs in California, ranked by enrollment
Teach courses in biological sciences.
183 schools in California run programs that feed this job, graduating 26,732 people a year. The job pays a median of $129,150 in California across about 3,610 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in California that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
57 programs in California that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in California (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own California page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 26.0101In California → | 13,861 | 51.9% | 171 | $32,152 | $25,000 |
| 2 | CIP 26.0406In California → | 1,589 | 5.9% | 10 | $35,393 | $19,961 |
| 3 | CIP 26.0202In California → | 1,236 | 4.6% | 47 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 4 | CIP 30.1901In California → | 1,102 | 4.1% | 18 | $30,508 | $24,586 |
| 5 | CIP 26.9999In California → | 1,006 | 3.8% | 13 | $31,278 | $23,000 |
| 6 | CIP 30.2701In California → | 870 | 3.3% | 7 | $31,690 | $17,312 |
| 7 | CIP 26.1501In California → | 817 | 3.1% | 20 | $31,687 | $22,936 |
| 8 | CIP 26.0102In California → | 667 | 2.5% | 18 | $32,152 | $25,000 |
| 9 | CIP 26.0403In California → | 591 | 2.2% | 3 | $35,393 | $19,961 |
| 10 | CIP 26.1503In California → | 508 | 1.9% | 3 | $31,687 | $22,936 |
| 11 | CIP 26.0901In California → | 466 | 1.7% | 7 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 12 | CIP 26.0502In California → | 422 | 1.6% | 13 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 13 | CIP 26.1201In California → | 398 | 1.5% | 16 | $49,023 | $21,309 |
| 14 | CIP 26.1302In California → | 353 | 1.3% | 8 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 15 | CIP 26.0205In California → | 305 | 1.1% | 4 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 16 | CIP 26.0499In California → | 229 | 0.9% | 3 | $35,393 | $19,961 |
| 17 | CIP 26.1599In California → | 186 | 0.7% | 3 | $31,687 | $22,936 |
| 18 | CIP 26.0701In California → | 171 | 0.6% | 4 | $28,266 | $24,393 |
| 19 | CIP 26.1310In California → | 162 | 0.6% | 4 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 20 | CIP 26.0599In California → | 158 | 0.6% | 3 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 21 | CIP 26.1199In California → | 148 | 0.6% | 6 | $72,338 | $18,500 |
| 22 | CIP 26.1399In California → | 133 | 0.5% | 6 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 23 | CIP 26.0908In California → | 107 | 0.4% | 5 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 24 | CIP 26.0299In California → | 106 | 0.4% | 6 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 25 | CIP 26.0301In California → | 105 | 0.4% | 5 | $33,009 | $21,975 |
| 26 | CIP 26.0801In California → | 104 | 0.4% | 4 | $31,800 | $21,424 |
| 27 | CIP 26.0806In California → | 94 | 0.4% | 4 | $31,800 | $21,424 |
| 28 | CIP 26.0210In California → | 91 | 0.3% | 4 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 29 | CIP 26.0204In California → | 73 | 0.3% | 5 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 30 | CIP 26.1301In California → | 72 | 0.3% | 4 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 31 | CIP 26.1001In California → | 67 | 0.3% | 2 | $39,202 | $18,000 |
| 32 | CIP 26.1104In California → | 62 | 0.2% | 2 | $72,338 | $18,500 |
| 33 | CIP 26.0203In California → | 58 | 0.2% | 11 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 34 | CIP 26.0508In California → | 56 | 0.2% | 3 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 35 | CIP 26.0401In California → | 40 | 0.1% | 3 | $35,393 | $19,961 |
| 36 | CIP 26.0702In California → | 40 | 0.1% | 2 | $28,266 | $24,393 |
| 37 | CIP 26.1304In California → | 39 | 0.1% | 1 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 38 | CIP 26.1504In California → | 29 | 0.1% | 2 | $31,687 | $22,936 |
| 39 | CIP 26.0910In California → | 28 | 0.1% | 3 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 40 | CIP 13.1316In California → | 25 | 0.1% | 5 | $43,033 | $26,044 |
| 41 | CIP 26.0911In California → | 23 | 0.1% | 2 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 42 | CIP 26.0507In California → | 22 | 0.1% | 3 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 43 | CIP 26.1303In California → | 21 | 0.1% | 5 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 44 | CIP 26.1305In California → | 20 | 0.1% | 2 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 45 | CIP 26.0903In California → | 16 | 0.1% | 2 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 46 | CIP 26.0305In California → | 11 | 0.0% | 2 | $33,009 | $21,975 |
| 47 | CIP 26.0902In California → | 9 | 0.0% | 1 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 48 | CIP 13.1322In California → | 7 | 0.0% | 1 | $43,033 | $26,044 |
| 49 | CIP 26.0404In California → | 7 | 0.0% | 2 | $35,393 | $19,961 |
| 50 | CIP 26.1306In California → | 6 | 0.0% | 1 | $29,460 | $23,480 |
| 51 | CIP 26.0707In California → | 4 | 0.0% | 1 | $28,266 | $24,393 |
| 52 | CIP 26.0909In California → | 4 | 0.0% | 1 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 53 | CIP 26.0503In California → | 3 | 0.0% | 1 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 54 | CIP 26.0904In California → | 2 | 0.0% | 1 | $31,146 | $23,384 |
| 55 | CIP 26.0802In California → | 1 | 0.0% | 1 | $31,800 | $21,424 |
| 56 | CIP 26.1004In California → | 1 | 0.0% | 1 | $39,202 | $18,000 |
| 57 | CIP 26.1401In California → | 1 | 0.0% | 1 | — | — |
Top 25 schools in California
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 51 of the 183 schools in this state.
All 183 schools in California
Every school in California with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of California - San Diego | La Jolla | Public | 2,124 | 14 |
| University of California - Los Angeles | Los Angeles | Public | 2,022 | 15 |
| University of California - Davis | Davis | Public | 1,867 | 25 |
| University of California - Irvine | Irvine | Public | 1,340 | 22 |
| University of California - Berkeley | Berkeley | Public | 1,221 | 14 |
| University of California - Riverside | Riverside | Public | 1,140 | 13 |
| University of Southern California | Los Angeles | Private not-for-profit | 818 | 26 |
| University of California - Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara | Public | 722 | 13 |
| University of California - Santa Cruz | Santa Cruz | Public | 713 | 11 |
| California State University - Long Beach | Long Beach | Public | 570 | 7 |
| San Francisco State University | San Francisco | Public | 480 | 4 |
| San Diego State University | San Diego | Public | 414 | 6 |
| California State Polytechnic University - Pomona | Pomona | Public | 388 | 4 |
| Chabot College | Hayward | Public | 383 | 2 |
| Stanford University | Stanford | Private not-for-profit | 382 | 15 |
What biological science teachers, postsecondary earn in California
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $84,620. California pays above the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in California
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary page.
How to become a Biological Science Teacher, Postsecondary
Job zone 5 of 5 · SVP 8.0 and above- Typical entry education
- Doctoral or professional degree
Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.
Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in California
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 25 majors mapped to Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary24 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 13.1316Science Teacher Education/General Science Teacher Education
- 13.1322Biology Teacher Education
- 26.0101Biology/Biological Sciences, General
- 26.0102Biomedical Sciences, General
- 26.0202Biochemistry
- 26.0203Biophysics
- 26.0204Molecular Biology
- 26.0205Molecular Biochemistry
- 26.0206Molecular Biophysics
- 26.0207Structural Biology
- 26.0208Photobiology(no graduates reported)
- 26.0209Radiation Biology/Radiobiology
- 26.0210Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
- 26.0299Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology, Other
- 26.0301Botany/Plant Biology
- 26.0305Plant Pathology/Phytopathology
- 26.0307Plant Physiology
- 26.0399Botany/Plant Biology, Other
- 26.0401Cell/Cellular Biology and Histology
- 26.0403Anatomy
- 26.0404Developmental Biology and Embryology
- 26.0406Cell/Cellular and Molecular Biology
- 26.0407Cell Biology and Anatomy
- 26.0499Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences, Other
- 26.0502Microbiology, General
Common questions
Answers for people weighing biological science teachers, postsecondary programs in California.
What degree do you need to become a Biological Science Teacher, Postsecondary?+
Doctoral or professional degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Biology/Biological Sciences, General, which awarded 13,861 degrees in California in 2024-25, 51.9% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Biological Science Teacher, Postsecondary?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 57 programs to this occupation. The largest are Biology, Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences, Biochemistry, Neurobiology and Neurosciences, plus 14 more. Together they graduate about 26,732 people a year in California.
How much do biological science teachers, postsecondary earn in California?+
The median is $129,150 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 52.6% above the U.S. median of $84,620. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for biological science teachers, postsecondary growing?+
BLS projects a +7.3% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, faster than average, with roughly 5,400 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in California?+
183 institutions in California reported graduates from at least one of the 57 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do biological science teachers, postsecondary work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Professor, Biology Professor, Biology Instructor, Associate Professor among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 25-1042.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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