Best Food Science Technician programs in Washington, ranked by enrollment
Work with food scientists or technologists to perform standardized qualitative and quantitative tests to determine physical or chemical properties of food or beverage products.
33 schools in Washington run programs that feed this job, graduating 2,125 people a year. The job pays a median of $62,070 in Washington across about 660 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Washington that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
6 programs in Washington that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Washington (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 Washington page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 26.0101In Washington → | 1,346 | 63.3% | 33 | $32,152 | $25,000 |
| 2 | CIP 26.0202In Washington → | 415 | 19.5% | 9 | $38,243 | $23,014 |
| 3 | CIP 40.0501In Washington → | 257 | 12.1% | 15 | $42,620 | $23,900 |
| 4 | CIP 26.0502In Washington → | 86 | 4.0% | 2 | $38,383 | $22,065 |
| 5 | CIP 01.1001In Washington → | 17 | 0.8% | 2 | $51,883 | $21,000 |
| 6 | CIP 01.0401In Washington → | 4 | 0.2% | 1 | $48,505 | $23,250 |
Top 25 schools in Washington
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 13 of the 33 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Washington - Seattle Campus Seattle, WA Public · 4 feeder programs | 694 | Biochemistry | $38,985 | 85% | — | 39% |
| 2 | Washington State University Pullman, WA Public · 6 feeder programs | 340 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $36,290 | 60% | — | 87% |
| 3 | Western Washington University Bellingham, WA Public · 3 feeder programs | 135 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $33,871 | 65% | — | 93% |
| 4 | University of Washington - Bothell Campus Bothell, WA Public · 3 feeder programs | 114 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $38,716 | 65% | — | 91% |
| 5 | Gonzaga University Spokane, WA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 105 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $30,819 | 86% | $30,006 | 82% |
| 6 | Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA Public · 2 feeder programs | 101 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $33,793 | 43% | — | 91% |
| 7 | Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA Public · 2 feeder programs | 80 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $36,401 | 54% | — | 91% |
| 8 | Pacific Lutheran University Tacoma, WA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 60 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $36,766 | 69% | $19,944 | 78% |
| 9 | Clark College Vancouver, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 51 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 39% | — | — |
| 10 | Cascadia College Bothell, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 47 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 32% | — | — |
| 11 | Seattle University Seattle, WA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 46 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $37,063 | 76% | $31,900 | 77% |
| 12 | Whitworth University Spokane, WA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 38 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $29,599 | 71% | $23,510 | 90% |
| 13 | South Puget Sound Community College Olympia, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 33 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 44% | — | — |
| 14 | Pierce College District Lakewood, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 32 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 31% | — | — |
| 15 | Edmonds College Lynnwood, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 30 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 29% | — | — |
| 16 | Whitman College Walla Walla, WA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 30 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $28,538 | 81% | $28,508 | 38% |
| 17 | Highline College Des Moines, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 27 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 35% | — | — |
| 18 | University of Puget Sound Tacoma, WA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 21 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $30,191 | 68% | $35,057 | 72% |
| 19 | Saint Martin's University Lacey, WA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 20 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | $32,034 | 52% | $22,131 | 90% |
| 20 | Walla Walla University College Place, WA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 17 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 60% | $22,260 | — |
| 21 | Spokane Falls Community College Spokane, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 16 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 32% | — | — |
| 22 | Skagit Valley College Mount Vernon, WA Public · 2 feeder programs | 13 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 36% | — | — |
| 23 | Heritage University Toppenish, WA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 12 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 54% | $13,380 | — |
| 24 | Seattle Pacific University Seattle, WA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 11 | Biochemistry | — | 62% | $24,653 | 83% |
| 25 | Tacoma Community College Tacoma, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Biology/Biological Sciences, General | — | 32% | — | — |
All 33 schools in Washington
Every school in Washington 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 Washington - Seattle Campus | Seattle | Public | 694 | 4 |
| Washington State University | Pullman | Public | 340 | 6 |
| Western Washington University | Bellingham | Public | 135 | 3 |
| University of Washington - Bothell Campus | Bothell | Public | 114 | 3 |
| Gonzaga University | Spokane | Private not-for-profit | 105 | 3 |
| Eastern Washington University | Cheney | Public | 101 | 2 |
| Central Washington University | Ellensburg | Public | 80 | 2 |
| Pacific Lutheran University | Tacoma | Private not-for-profit | 60 | 2 |
| Clark College | Vancouver | Public | 51 | 1 |
| Cascadia College | Bothell | Public | 47 | 1 |
| Seattle University | Seattle | Private not-for-profit | 46 | 3 |
| Whitworth University | Spokane | Private not-for-profit | 38 | 2 |
| South Puget Sound Community College | Olympia | Public | 33 | 1 |
| Pierce College District | Lakewood | Public | 32 | 1 |
| Edmonds College | Lynnwood | Public | 30 | 1 |
What food science technicians earn in Washington
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $52,130. Washington pays above the national figure.
Concentrated here: Washington employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Metro areas in Washington
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 Food Science Technicians page.
How to become a Food Science Technician
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- Associate's degree
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Washington
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 10 majors mapped to Food Science Technicians10 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 01.0401Agricultural and Food Products Processing
- 01.1001Food Science
- 01.1002Food Technology and Processing
- 01.1003Brewing Science
- 01.1005Zymology/Fermentation Science
- 01.1099Food Science and Technology, Other
- 26.0101Biology/Biological Sciences, General
- 26.0202Biochemistry
- 26.0502Microbiology, General
- 40.0501Chemistry, General
Common questions
Answers for people weighing food science technicians programs in Washington.
What degree do you need to become a Food Science Technician?+
Associate'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 1,346 degrees in Washington in 2024-25, 63.3% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Food Science Technician?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 6 programs to this occupation. The largest are Biology, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Microbiological Sciences and Immunology, plus 2 more. Together they graduate about 2,125 people a year in Washington.
How much do food science technicians earn in Washington?+
The median is $62,070 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 19.1% above the U.S. median of $52,130. 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 food science technicians growing?+
BLS projects a +4.8% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 3,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Washington?+
33 institutions in Washington 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.
What other job titles do food science technicians work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Laboratory Technician (Lab Tech), Central Laboratory Technician (CLT), QC Tech (Quality Control Technician), Quality Assurance Analyst (QA Analyst) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 19-4013.
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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