Delaware·Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations·SOC 19-1042

Best Medical Scientist programs in Delaware, ranked by enrollment

Conduct research dealing with the understanding of human diseases and the improvement of human health.

1 schools in Delaware run programs that feed this job, graduating 169 people a year. The job pays a median of $100,190 in Delaware across about 270 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledScientistStudy DirectorResearch ScientistClinical Research ScientistAnatomistCytologistResearcherSerologist
Graduates / yr
169
in Delaware
Median pay · Delaware
$100,190
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
270
people employed
Schools
1
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
81%
across those schools
Median net price
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Delaware that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

8 programs in Delaware that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Delaware (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 Delaware page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 26.0999In Delaware
85
50.3%
1$31,146$23,384
2
CIP 26.0901In Delaware
34
20.1%
1$31,146$23,384
3
CIP 26.0202In Delaware
15
8.9%
1$38,243$23,014
4
CIP 26.1309In Delaware
13
7.7%
1$29,460$23,480
5
CIP 26.0913In Delaware
8
4.7%
1$31,146$23,384
6
CIP 26.0102In Delaware
6
3.6%
1$32,152$25,000
7
CIP 26.0908In Delaware
4
2.4%
1$31,146$23,384
8
CIP 26.1102In Delaware
4
2.4%
1$72,338$18,500

Top 1 schools in Delaware

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 0 of the 1 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1University of Delaware
Newark, DE Public · 8 feeder programs
169Physiology, Pathology, and Related Sciences, Other81%71%

All 1 schools in Delaware

Every school in Delaware 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.

All schools in Delaware that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
University of DelawareNewarkPublic1698

What medical scientists earn in Delaware

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Delaware
$100,190
Mean annual
$118,280
Jobs in state
270
What the range looks like
10th pct$65,520Median$100,19090th pct$214,040
Versus the national median
-3.1%

U.S. median $103,410. Delaware pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
0.50×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Delaware

Dover, DE
$88,370median
30 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+8.7%
Much faster than average
Openings per year
9,600
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
14,300
165,300 → 179,600
Typical entry education
Doctoral or professional degree

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 Medical Scientists page.

How to become a Medical Scientist

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

WritingActive LearningScienceSpeakingReading ComprehensionActive Listening

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Delaware

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 25 majors mapped to Medical Scientists25 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 26.0102Biomedical Sciences, General
  • 26.0202Biochemistry
  • 26.0203Biophysics
  • 26.0204Molecular Biology
  • 26.0205Molecular Biochemistry
  • 26.0401Cell/Cellular Biology and Histology
  • 26.0403Anatomy
  • 26.0404Developmental Biology and Embryology
  • 26.0406Cell/Cellular and Molecular Biology
  • 26.0407Cell Biology and Anatomy
  • 26.0503Medical Microbiology and Bacteriology
  • 26.0504Virology
  • 26.0505Parasitology
  • 26.0507Immunology
  • 26.0508Microbiology and Immunology
  • 26.0509Infectious Disease and Global Health
  • 26.0806Human/Medical Genetics
  • 26.0901Physiology, General
  • 26.0902Molecular Physiology
  • 26.0903Cell Physiology
  • 26.0904Endocrinology
  • 26.0905Reproductive Biology
  • 26.0907Cardiovascular Science
  • 26.0908Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology
  • 26.0909Vision Science/Physiological Optics

Common questions

Answers for people weighing medical scientists programs in Delaware.

What degree do you need to become a Medical Scientist?+

Doctoral or professional degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Physiology, Pathology, and Related Sciences, Other, which awarded 85 degrees in Delaware in 2024-25, 50.3% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Medical Scientist?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 8 programs to this occupation. The largest are Physiology, Biochemistry, Ecology, Biology, plus 1 more. Together they graduate about 169 people a year in Delaware.

How much do medical scientists earn in Delaware?+

The median is $100,190 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 3.1% below the U.S. median of $103,410. 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 medical scientists growing?+

BLS projects a +8.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 9,600 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Delaware?+

1 institutions in Delaware reported graduates from at least one of the 8 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 medical scientists work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Scientist, Study Director, Research Scientist, Clinical Research Scientist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 19-1042.

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 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected 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 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, 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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