Best Biological Technician programs in Ohio, ranked by enrollment
Assist biological and medical scientists. Set up, operate, and maintain laboratory instruments and equipment, monitor experiments, collect data and samples, make observations, and calculate and record results.
68 schools in Ohio run programs that feed this job, graduating 4,397 people a year. The job pays a median of $51,080 in Ohio across about 2,240 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Ohio that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
15 programs in Ohio that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Ohio (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 Ohio page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Biology/Biological Sciences, Generalmain feeder CIP 26.0101In Ohio → | 2,701 | 61.4% | 64 | $32,152 | $25,000 |
| 2 | Neurosciencemain feeder CIP 26.1501In Ohio → | 499 | 11.3% | 16 | $31,687 | $22,936 |
| 3 | CIP 26.0202In Ohio → | 391 | 8.9% | 28 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 4 | CIP 26.0701In Ohio → | 387 | 8.8% | 10 | $28,266 | $24,393 |
| 5 | Biomedical Sciences, Generalmain feeder CIP 26.0102In Ohio → | 141 | 3.2% | 5 | $32,152 | $25,000 |
| 6 | CIP 26.0502In Ohio → | 112 | 2.5% | 5 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 7 | CIP 26.0204In Ohio → | 41 | 0.9% | 5 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 8 | Cell/Cellular and Molecular Biologymain feeder CIP 26.0406In Ohio → | 27 | 0.6% | 4 | $35,393 | $19,961 |
| 9 | CIP 26.0508In Ohio → | 21 | 0.5% | 2 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 10 | CIP 26.0709In Ohio → | 19 | 0.4% | 1 | $28,266 | $24,393 |
| 11 | Computational Biologymain feeder CIP 26.1104In Ohio → | 17 | 0.4% | 1 | $72,338 | $18,500 |
| 12 | Biostatisticsmain feeder CIP 26.1102In Ohio → | 13 | 0.3% | 2 | $72,338 | $18,500 |
| 13 | Biology/Biotechnology Technology/Technicianmain feeder CIP 41.0101In Ohio → | 12 | 0.3% | 2 | $38,858 | $12,609 |
| 14 | CIP 26.0801In Ohio → | 9 | 0.2% | 2 | $31,800 | $21,424 |
| 15 | Bioinformaticsmain feeder CIP 26.1103In Ohio → | 7 | 0.2% | 4 | $72,338 | $18,500 |
Top 25 schools in Ohio
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 35 of the 68 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohio State University - Main Campus Columbus, OH Public · 9 feeder programs | 1,040 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $32,356 | 88% | — | 61% |
| 2 | Miami University - Oxford Oxford, OH Public · 5 feeder programs | 577 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $38,122 | 80% | — | 75% |
| 3 | Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH Private not-for-profit · 7 feeder programs | 323 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $26,254 | 87% | $27,976 | 37% |
| 4 | University of Cincinnati - Main Campus Cincinnati, OH Public · 5 feeder programs | 237 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $34,092 | 75% | — | 85% |
| 5 | Ohio University - Main Campus Athens, OH Public · 6 feeder programs | 172 | Zoology/Animal Biology | $29,303 | 65% | — | 85% |
| 6 | University of Toledo Toledo, OH Public · 5 feeder programs | 169 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $23,285 | 57% | — | 92% |
| 7 | Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH Public · 6 feeder programs | 168 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $30,118 | 64% | — | 86% |
| 8 | Bowling Green State University - Main Campus Bowling Green, OH Public · 3 feeder programs | 131 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $30,861 | 64% | — | 81% |
| 9 | Youngstown State University Youngstown, OH Public · 3 feeder programs | 107 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $29,689 | 50% | — | 84% |
| 10 | University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH Public · 3 feeder programs | 100 | Biomedical Sciences, General | $32,050 | 52% | — | 60% |
| 11 | Cleveland State University Cleveland, OH Public · 1 feeder programs | 84 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $29,440 | 51% | — | 91% |
| 12 | Oberlin College Oberlin, OH Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 84 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $22,684 | 81% | $28,313 | 34% |
| 13 | University of Dayton Dayton, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 76 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $26,431 | 80% | $28,560 | 65% |
| 14 | Wright State University - Main Campus Dayton, OH Public · 2 feeder programs | 69 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $28,368 | 42% | — | 96% |
| 15 | John Carroll University University Heights, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 68 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 79% | $25,705 | 81% |
| 16 | Kenyon College Gambier, OH Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 64 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 82% | $20,475 | 31% |
| 17 | Otterbein University Westerville, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 62 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $24,341 | 68% | $20,150 | 85% |
| 18 | The College of Wooster Wooster, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 59 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $32,462 | 74% | $22,491 | 60% |
| 19 | Denison University Granville, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 57 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $31,017 | 79% | $23,864 | 17% |
| 20 | Ohio Wesleyan University Delaware, OH Private not-for-profit · 6 feeder programs | 56 | Zoology/Animal Biology | $29,547 | 59% | $18,325 | 56% |
| 21 | Baldwin Wallace University Berea, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 44 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $30,986 | 67% | $25,104 | 76% |
| 22 | University of Mount Union Alliance, OH Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 43 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $33,433 | 59% | $21,121 | 78% |
| 23 | Xavier University Cincinnati, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 43 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 69% | $31,119 | 86% |
| 24 | University of Cincinnati - Blue Ash College Blue Ash, OH Public · 2 feeder programs | 32 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 16% | — | — |
| 25 | Ashland University Ashland, OH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 31 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $37,814 | 61% | $21,785 | 76% |
All 68 schools in Ohio
Every school in Ohio 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State University - Main Campus | Columbus | Public | 1,040 | 9 |
| Miami University - Oxford | Oxford | Public | 577 | 5 |
| Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland | Private not-for-profit | 323 | 7 |
| University of Cincinnati - Main Campus | Cincinnati | Public | 237 | 5 |
| Ohio University - Main Campus | Athens | Public | 172 | 6 |
| University of Toledo | Toledo | Public | 169 | 5 |
| Kent State University at Kent | Kent | Public | 168 | 6 |
| Bowling Green State University - Main Campus | Bowling Green | Public | 131 | 3 |
| Youngstown State University | Youngstown | Public | 107 | 3 |
| University of Akron Main Campus | Akron | Public | 100 | 3 |
| Cleveland State University | Cleveland | Public | 84 | 1 |
| Oberlin College | Oberlin | Private not-for-profit | 84 | 3 |
| University of Dayton | Dayton | Private not-for-profit | 76 | 2 |
| Wright State University - Main Campus | Dayton | Public | 69 | 2 |
| John Carroll University | University Heights | Private not-for-profit | 68 | 2 |
What biological technicians earn in Ohio
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $57,510. Ohio pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Ohio
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 Technicians page.
How to become a Biological Technician
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational 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 Ohio
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 19 majors mapped to Biological Technicians19 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 26.0101Biology/Biological Sciences, General
- 26.0102Biomedical Sciences, General
- 26.0202Biochemistry
- 26.0204Molecular Biology
- 26.0406Cell/Cellular and Molecular Biology
- 26.0502Microbiology, General
- 26.0503Medical Microbiology and Bacteriology
- 26.0508Microbiology and Immunology
- 26.0701Zoology/Animal Biology
- 26.0708Animal Behavior and Ethology
- 26.0709Wildlife Biology
- 26.0801Genetics, General
- 26.1102Biostatistics
- 26.1103Bioinformatics
- 26.1104Computational Biology
- 26.1302Marine Biology and Biological Oceanography
- 26.1304Aquatic Biology/Limnology
- 26.1501Neuroscience
- 41.0101Biology/Biotechnology Technology/Technician
Common questions
Answers for people weighing biological technicians programs in Ohio.
What degree do you need to become a Biological Technician?+
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 2,701 degrees in Ohio in 2024-25, 61.4% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Biological Technician?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 15 programs to this occupation. The largest are Biology, Neurobiology and Neurosciences, Biochemistry, Zoology/Animal Biology, plus 5 more. Together they graduate about 4,397 people a year in Ohio.
How much do biological technicians earn in Ohio?+
The median is $51,080 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 11.2% below the U.S. median of $57,510. 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 technicians growing?+
BLS projects a +3.5% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 9,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Ohio?+
68 institutions in Ohio reported graduates from at least one of the 15 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 technicians work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Research Associate, Research Technician, Biological Technician, Laboratory Technician among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 19-4021.
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
Explore every U.S. college in one conversation
Clema turns plain-language questions into sourced answers across every U.S. institution — earnings, aid, acceptance, graduation, safety, and athletics from IPEDS, College Scorecard, and 10+ federal datasets, built in.
Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card