New Jersey·Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations·SOC 19-1099

Best Life Scientist, All Other programs in New Jersey, ranked by enrollment

All life scientists not listed.

33 schools in New Jersey run programs that feed this job, graduating 2,522 people a year. The job pays a median of $103,890 in New Jersey across about 110 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledOsteologistEmbryologistMorphologistPhysiologistPaleobotanistOlericulturistPhytopathologistPlant Taxonomist
Graduates / yr
2,522
in New Jersey
Median pay · New Jersey
$103,890
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
110
people employed
Schools
33
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
56%
across those schools
Median net price
$23,094
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in New Jersey that lead to this job

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

6 programs in New Jersey that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in New Jersey (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 New Jersey page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
12,211
87.7%
32$32,152$25,000
2175
6.9%
2$30,508$24,586
3120
4.8%
4$36,206$29,240
410
0.4%
1$29,587$21,610
54
0.2%
1$29,460$23,480
62
0.1%
2$31,278$23,000

Top 25 schools in New Jersey

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 24 of the 33 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Rutgers University - New Brunswick
New Brunswick, NJ Public · 4 feeder programs
496Biology/Biological Sciences, General$32,02484%58%
2Montclair State University
Montclair, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
255Biology/Biological Sciences, General$37,17965%88%
3Rowan University
Glassboro, NJ Public · 3 feeder programs
215Biology/Biological Sciences, General$33,31367%78%
4Rutgers University - Newark
Newark, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
190Biology/Biological Sciences, General$32,02464%71%
5Kean University
Union, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
173Biology/Biological Sciences, General$34,52247%76%
6Seton Hall University
South Orange, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
157Biology/Biological Sciences, General$27,75969%$27,37673%
7The College of New Jersey
Ewing, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
115Biology/Biological Sciences, General$25,34086%62%
8William Paterson University of New Jersey
Wayne, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
105Biology/Biological Sciences, General$42,49244%90%
9Stockton University
Galloway, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
104Biology/Biological Sciences, General$30,44769%89%
10New Jersey Institute of Technology
Newark, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
101Biology/Biological Sciences, General$25,74973%65%
11Ramapo College of New Jersey
Mahwah, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
89Biology/Biological Sciences, General$33,98870%71%
12New Jersey City University
Jersey City, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
86Biology/Biological Sciences, General$37,98034%98%
13Rutgers University - Camden
Camden, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
59Biology/Biological Sciences, General$32,02467%66%
14Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan Campus
Teaneck, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
53Biology/Biological Sciences, General$26,41853%$18,05991%
15Felician University
Lodi, NJ Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
43Biology/Biological Sciences, General$29,51547%$41,497
16Saint Peter's University
Jersey City, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
35Biology/Biological Sciences, General$33,77958%$14,44090%
17Monmouth University
West Long Branch, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
31Biology/Biological Sciences, General$26,44572%$28,51489%
18Fairleigh Dickinson University - Florham Campus
Madison, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
27Biology/Biological Sciences, General$26,41867%$23,57395%
19UCNJ Union College of Union County, New Jersey
Cranford, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
24Biology/Biological Sciences, General35%
20Caldwell University
Caldwell, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
23Biology/Biological Sciences, General57%$21,90271%
21Drew University
Madison, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
23Biology/Biological Sciences, General$24,22970%$23,09468%
22Essex County College
Newark, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
22Biology/Biological Sciences, General20%
23Rider University
Lawrenceville, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
18Biology/Biological Sciences, General$41,18161%$23,84479%
24Bloomfield College of Montclair State University
Bloomfield, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
13Biology/Biological Sciences, General$31,01938%$20,94070%
25Stevens Institute of Technology
Hoboken, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
12Biology/Biological Sciences, General87%$34,82748%

All 33 schools in New Jersey

Every school in New Jersey 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 New Jersey that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Rutgers University - New BrunswickNew BrunswickPublic4964
Montclair State UniversityMontclairPublic2552
Rowan UniversityGlassboroPublic2153
Rutgers University - NewarkNewarkPublic1901
Kean UniversityUnionPublic1731
Seton Hall UniversitySouth OrangePrivate not-for-profit1571
The College of New JerseyEwingPublic1151
William Paterson University of New JerseyWaynePublic1052
Stockton UniversityGallowayPublic1041
New Jersey Institute of TechnologyNewarkPublic1012
Ramapo College of New JerseyMahwahPublic891
New Jersey City UniversityJersey CityPublic861
Rutgers University - CamdenCamdenPublic591
Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan CampusTeaneckPrivate not-for-profit531
Felician UniversityLodiPrivate not-for-profit432

What life scientists, all other earn in New Jersey

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

Median annual in New Jersey
$103,890
Mean annual
$110,390
Jobs in state
110
What the range looks like
10th pct$83,200Median$103,89090th pct$146,490
Versus the national median
+10.8%

U.S. median $93,750. New Jersey pays above the national figure.

Job concentration
0.53×

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

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+3.7%
About as fast as average
Openings per year
400
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
300
7,800 → 8,100
Typical entry education
Bachelor's 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 Life Scientists, All Other page.

How to become a Life Scientist, All Other

Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

The same job in other states

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

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 10 majors mapped to Life Scientists, All Other10 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 26.0101Biology/Biological Sciences, General
  • 26.1301Ecology
  • 26.1399Ecology, Evolution, Systematics and Population Biology, Other
  • 26.9999Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other
  • 30.1701Behavioral Sciences
  • 30.1801Natural Sciences
  • 30.1901Nutrition Sciences
  • 30.4301Geobiology
  • 42.2706Behavioral Neuroscience
  • 51.2314Rehabilitation Science

Common questions

Answers for people weighing life scientists, all other programs in New Jersey.

What degree do you need to become a Life Scientist, All Other?+

Bachelor's 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 2,211 degrees in New Jersey in 2024-25, 87.7% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Life Scientist, All Other?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 6 programs to this occupation. The largest are Biology, Nutrition Sciences, Behavioral Sciences, Natural Sciences, plus 2 more. Together they graduate about 2,522 people a year in New Jersey.

How much do life scientists, all other earn in New Jersey?+

The median is $103,890 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 10.8% above the U.S. median of $93,750. 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 life scientists, all other growing?+

BLS projects a +3.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 400 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in New Jersey?+

33 institutions in New Jersey reported graduates from at least one of the 6 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.

Do you need training or experience beyond a degree?+

BLS lists 'None' for related work experience and 'None' for on-the-job training typically needed to reach competency.

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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